Season Review: 2025-26 Michigan Women's Swimming and Diving
5/2/2026 8:41:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Record: 11-2, 5-0 Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Championships: 1st (1,243 points)
NCAA Championships: 6th (296 points)
The University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team reached new heights in 2025-26, returning to the top of the conference for the first time in eight years and taking another step forward in pursuit of a national championship.
Team Highlights
• Michigan opened the season in dominant fashion, winning its first six dual meets to enter the midseason meet with a spotless 6-0 record.
• U-M was one of four premier teams to participate in the inaugural CSCAA Dual Meet Challenge in Knoxville, Tenn. Michigan battled host Tennessee and top-ranked Virginia at the meet, defeating the Volunteers twice on the way to a second-place finish behind Virginia.
• The Wolverines were dominant on their way to the Big Ten championship, scoring 1,243 points and outscoring the runner-up by more than 100 points. The win marked U-M's first conference crown since 2018 and the 18th in program history.
• Eleven student-athletes (10 swimmers and one diver) punched their tickets to the NCAA Championships in Atlanta, Ga. The Wolverines finished sixth overall their highest national result since the 2020-21 season and its second three-place improvement in as many seasons.
Individual Highlights
• Bella Sims elevated the program in her first year at Michigan. Sims set school records in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke, along with the 400-yard IM. She captured an individual national championship in the 400-yard IM and was named Big Ten Swimmer of the Year and Swimmer of the Championships. Sims won two individual Big Ten titles and was integral in three of the Wolverines' four relay wins at the conference championships.
• Letitia Sim shone in her final season with Michigan. The redshirt senior set new program marks in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke and swept both events at the Big Ten Championships. Sim also swam the breaststroke leg on the medley relay teams that captured two conference crowns and finished on the podium at the national championships. Sim was also a standout in the classroom, earning CSC Academic All-America recognition after maintaining a 4.00 grade-point average in applied exercise science.
• Brady Kendall closed her college career with a flourish in 2025-26, as the senior set a new program record in the 50-yard freestyle on the way to a conference gold medal in the event. Behind her freestyle and butterfly prowess, Kendall helped the Wolverines win multiple Big Ten relay titles, set records and propel the Wolverines to the podium at the NCAA Championships. Kendall joined Sim on the CSC Academic All-America team by holding a 4.00 GPA in pharmacy.
• Hannah Bellard took a huge leap in 2025-26. The junior set a new Big Ten record in the 200-yard butterfly and won Big Ten titles in the 200 fly and 500-yard freestyle. She also swam on the Big Ten champion 800-yard freestyle relay team. Bellard also earned three All-America citations for her swims in the 800 free relay, 500 free and 200 fly.
Honors and Awards
Stephanie
Balduccini
Hannah
Bellard
Leila
Fack
Lexi
Greenhawt
Brady
Kendall
Christey
Liang
Letitia
Sim
Bella
Sims
NCAA
All-America (First Team): Stephanie Balduccini, Hannah Bellard, Leila Fack, Lexi Greenhawt, Brady Kendall, Christey Liang, Letitia Sim, Bella Sims
All-America (Second Team): Kiarra Milligan
Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Swimmer of the Year: Bella Sims
Big Ten Swimmer of the Championships: Bella Sims
All-Big Ten (First Team): Stephanie Balduccini, Hannah Bellard, Leila Fack, Lexi Greenhawt, Brady Kendall, Christey Liang, Letitia Sim, Bella Sims
All-Big Ten (Freshman Team): Milla Drakopoulos, Montse Spielmann
Sportsmanship Award: Anna Boemer
CSC
Academic All-District: Lexi Greenhawt, Brady Kendall, Kiarra Milligan, Letitia Sim
Academic All-America: Brady Kendall, Letitia Sim
Academic All-Big Ten
Malia Amuan, Sr., Statistics
Stephanie Balduccini, Jr., Communications and Media
Anna Boemer, Jr., Sport Management
Rebecca Diaconescu, So., Movement Science
Lexi Greenhawt, Jr., Communications and Media; Psychology
Brady Kendall, Gr., Pharmacy PharmD
Kiarra Milligan, Sr., Psychology
Ella Jo Piersma, Sr., Business Administration
Marian Ploger, So., Movement Science
Letitia Sim, Sr., Applied Exercise Science
Madison Smith, Jr., Movement Science
Players Mentioned
