2025 Sun Belt Conference Championships
- Dates: Wednesday, February 19–Saturday, February 22
- Location: Rosen Aquatic & Fitness Center, Orlando, FL
- Defending Champions: James Madison women (1x)
- Live Results (MeetMobile)
- Live Video: ESPN+
- Championship Central
- Fan Guide
- Teams: Georgia Southern, James Madison, Marshall, Old Dominion
- Results: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4
- Recap: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3
James Madison University finished this iteration of the Sun Belt Championships the way they began it: as champions.
In what will be the last Sun Belt Championship meet, at least for now, before the four participants scatter next year, the Dukes pulled away on day 4 to lock up a second straight conference title.
Final Team Scores:
- James Madison – 1067.5
- Marshall – 974
- Georgia Southern – 704.5
- Old Dominion – 384
The meet was much tighter than last year, where JMU won by 311.5 points, and a back-and-forth battle between the front-runners on the final day reflected that.
In the women’s 1650 free, Eszter Laban from Marshall and Katelyn Fitzgerald from JMU fought the whole way. Laban took the lead at about the 400 yard mark and never gave it back, leaving Fitzgerald on her hip for most of the race.
Laban, the 5th year from Budapest, has won three straight conference crowns in the mile, including last year’s Sun Belt title and the 2023 Missouri Valley Conference title. This was her only individual win of the week, and it was a crucial one as JMU went 2-3-4.
Laban’s win led a hot start that saw Marshall’s Kseniia Luniushina win the 200 back in 1:58.03, a new lifetime best. That gave her a sweep of the backstroke races after winning the 100 in a new Sun Belt record of 52.49, to go with a 2nd place finish in the 50 free.
JMU’s Jess Pryne finished 2nd in that race in 1:59.11.
But while Marshall had good swims on Saturday (they were 1-3-6 in the 200 backstroke), they were just outnumbered by the Dukes (who scored more points by going 2-4-6-7-8 in the same event).
The tide turned toward a clinch in the 100 free when James Madison junior Jamie Cornwell won the race in 48.91, more than a second ahead of the field. Teammates Grace Bousum (50.10) and Alex Volk (50.59) finished 2nd and 4th, respectively, all ahead of the top Marshall finisher.
That was a second Meet Record for Cornwell after doing so in the 50 free earlier in the week.
Georgia Southern’s Chiara Alberti was 3rd in 50.30, which was her first time under 51 seconds. She also crushed her best time in the 50 free earlier in the meet to place 3rd.
JMU kept the ball rolling in the 200 breaststroke, when Riley Bridgman won in 2:12.73 – almost three seconds better than Marshall runner-up Audrey West. That was a second-and-a-half drop for Bridgman and gave her a sweep of the meet’s breaststroke events (1:01.11 in the 100).
The two leaders, along with Marshall’s Paige Banton, were pretty tight at the halfway mark, but it was Bridgman’s 34.19 final 50 of a beautifully-split race that opened the gap up.
Bridgman vs. West Splitting, 200 breaststroke
| Riley Bridgman, 1st | Audrey West, 2nd | |
| JMU | Marshall | |
| 50y | 30.01 | 30.56 |
| 100y | 34.14 (1:04.15) | 34.12 (1:04.68) |
| 150y | 34.39 (1:38.54) | 34.76 (1:39.44) |
| 200y | 34.19 (3:12.73) | 36.20 (2:15.64) |
The 200 fly was another strong event for the Thundering Herd, with Lauren McNamara touching in 1:58.73 to lead a 1-3-4 finish for Marshall to tighten the gap, but the James Madison divers were nails on the platform to lock the meet away.
Just like the swimming, the diving was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams all week, but JMU went 1-2-4, led by Alexa Holloway. A 66 to 40 advantage in that race was the final touch on the individual events, leaving everyone to swim free in the final relay.
The JMU women did just that, with Grace Bousum and Alex Volk splitting matching 49.8s to open, Madison Wimmer splitting 50.69 on the third leg, and Jamie Cornwell dropping the hammer with a 48.52 anchor. Their 3:18.90 was four-and-a-half seconds ahead of Marshall’s winning relay time of 3:23.48, while Georgia Southern finished 3rd in 3:23.51 – just .03 seconds back of Marshall.
Holloway’s win on platform on Saturday secured her Diver of the Meet honors with 57 points, while Marshall’s Kseniia Luniushina and James Madison’s Jess Pryne fittingly shared Swimmer of the Meet honors with 57 points each as well.
57 points represents two wins and a runner-up finish.
James Madison and Marshall will both move to the American Athletic Conference next year.
Interview with winning coach Dane Pedersen:
The Meet By the Numbers:
Championship Records Broken
50 Free – Jamie Cornwell, James Madison [22.54]
100 Back – Kseniia Luniushina, Marshall [52.49]
100 Breast – Riley Bridgman, James Madison [1:01.11]
100 Free – Jamie Cornwell, James Madison [48.91]
200 Free Relay – James Madison [1:30.59]
400 Free Relay – James Madison [3:18.90]
400 Medley Relay – Marshall [3:38.11]
3M Dive – Alexa Holloway, James Madison [350.35]
Platform Diving – Alexa Holloway, James Madison [267.15]
Sun Belt Records Broken
100 Back – Kseniia Luniushina, Marshall [52.49]
100 Free – Jamie Cornwell, James Madison [48.91]
400 Free Relay – James Madison [3:18.90]
Platform Diving – Alexa Holloway, James Madison [267.15]
NCAA “B” Standards
50 Free – Jamie Cornwell, James Madison [22.54]
100 Back – Kseniia Luniushina, Marshall [52.49]
100 Breast – Riley Bridgman, James Madison [1:01.11]
100 Free – Jamie Cornwell, James Madison [48.91]
200 Breast – Riley Bridgman, James Madison [2:12.73]
200 Fly – Lauren McNamara, Marshall [1:58.73]
400 IM – Jess Pryne, James Madison [4:14.25]
400 IM – Eszter Laban, Marshall [4:16.31]
