Owls win twice more, take second at NCAC Championship

2/14/2026 9:35:00 PM

GRANVILLE, Ohio – The Kenyon College men's swimming and diving team wrapped up the fourth and final day of the 2026 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Championships on Saturday night from Denison University, with the Owls adding two more event titles to wind up at 1,741.5 points, finishing in second place for the championships.

The Big Red came away with the victory, totaling 1,958.5 points. After the Owls was John Carroll University, who earned 1192.5 points, followed by DePauw University (1,095) and Wabash College (1,030) to round out the top five.

After the conclusion of the meet, first year diver Chase Smith was named the 2026 NCAC Diver of the Year and NCAC Newcomer of the Year. He gives the Owls their fourth diver of the year honor in five years and the team's first newcomer of the year award since 2023.

The first Kenyon victory of the evening came in the 100 freestyle, where Djordje Dragojlovic defended his crown from a year ago with a 43.58 second mark. The time earned the Owls 35 points and surpassed the NCAA 'B' cut threshold. Also making the top five in the 100 was Teo Jaworski, who placed fifth place with a 44.98 second time.

Ethan Manske earned the Owls' second victory of the night and third of the championships in the 200 butterfly, where the senior posted a 1:48.41 time, which earned him the win and was under the NCAA 'B' cut mark. Michael Baltodano added a strong performance in the 200 butterfly as well, taking third place and also earning a 'B' cut with a 1:49.35 race.

Another good showing from Kenyon came in the 100 individual medley, where two Owls swimmers finished inside the top five. Leo Karnitz put up a second place finish at 49.36 seconds, and Zach Schuster was not far behind at 52.27 seconds, good enough for fifth place.

In the first race of the evening, the 1650, Matthew Amodio logged a third place finish, clocking in at 15:49.86 and earning an NCAA 'B' cut in the process. Gabriel Cowart was not far behind, taking fifth and finishing at 15:56.03.

A pair of 200-yard finishes led to a third and a sixth place finish for Kenyon as well. Noel Tumbasz sped to a 2:01.18 time in the 200 breaststroke, taking third place, while in the 200 backstroke, Kristof Szappanos clocked in at 1:49.83 to earn sixth.

To close the evening, the Kenyon 'A' team of Dragojlovic, Jaworski, Neil Abrahamson and Spencer Stluka took second in the 400 freestyle relay with a 2:57.06 time, good enough for the team's final NCAA 'B' cut of the evening.

Kenyon will be back in the pool on Friday, February 20 from the Steen Aquatic Center to host the First Chance Invite.

Print Friendly Version

Related Videos

Related Stories