Canton, Ohio – The dynastic run of Oilers swimming and diving continued in 2025 as the University of Findlay men's and women's teams each captured Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) titles on Saturday, Feb. 15. For the third time, and fifth time since 2018, both squads have earned conference titles in the same year.
Competition at the G-MAC / MEC (Mountain East Conference) Swimming and Diving Championships wrapped up on Saturday at C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton, Ohio. It was a long four days in the pool and the Oilers put on a show, proving to all in attendance that there was one school in that building that stood alone.
In total, 38 individual swimming event titles were won, 19 on both the men's and women's side. Of those 38 titles, 34 went to the Oilers with the men picking up a clean sweep and the women winning 15 of 19. In fact, Findlay's men have now won 61 consecutive races dating back to the final day of the 2022 conference championship.
Findlay's men, ranked 24
th in NCAA II, finished with 1,791 points and claimed and eighth consecutive G-MAC Championship, winning every title since joining the league back in 2017-18. That streak remains the longest streak of conference championships by any school in any sport in Great Midwest history, a run that has spanned nearly a decade.
The Oilers women, ranked 12
th in the country, have now won a third consecutive conference title and are without a doubt the top program in the G-MAC, having won five conference titles in the past eight years.
Quote from Coach Diego Santos
I'm so proud of this team. Seeing how all of the early mornings, the sacrifices made, and the hard work pays off is something special. Eight out of eight for the men and five out of eight for the women speaks volumes of the level of talent, skill, and dedication shown by our teams.
Despite the wins, it's very easy to stay motivated and remain focused because we are all still hungry. Our upperclassmen set the tone and have become tremendous leaders. The season is not over yet and we have one month before we get a chance to make some more noise at the NCAA National Championship.
Along with the two team titles and 34 individual titles, the Oilers are coming home with more hardware.
Men's Freshman of the Meet – Leland Woeste
Women's Freshman of the Meet – Sophie Busby
Men's Swimmer of the Meet – Matteo Filippi
Women's Swimmer of the Meet – Emily Mears-Bentley
Men's Elite 26 Award – Randy Keener
Women's Elite 26 Award – Mille Berg
Saturday's Top Performances
Men
- Junior Matteo Filippi has now won the 1650 freestyle in three consecutive conference championship meets. His time of 15:33.73 on Saturday meets the NCAA B standard.
- Last year's G-MAC Freshman of the Year, sophomore Santiago Arteaga won the 100 freestyle for the first time in his career, touching the wall in a time of 45.18, good enough to meet the NCAA B standard in the event.
- In the 200 backstroke, junior Randy Keener, who set the meet record in the event last season, won with a time of 1:47.03, meeting the NCAA B standard.
- Winning the title in the 200 breaststroke while meeting an NCAA B standard was grad student Marko Priednieks who finished with a time of 1:59.94.
- Rounding out Saturday's winners was the 400 free relay team of Zein Kawas, Arteaga, Keener, and Dags Bregis. That group was less than a second shy of the meet record, finishing the race in a time of 3:01.62, almost five full seconds ahead of the runner-up from Ashland.
Women
- Proving to be one of the most dominant female swimmers in program history, junior Emily Mears-Bentley picked up her second career 100 free title, winning the race with a meet record time of 50.63. That time meets the NCAA B standard.
- Another meet record came in the 200 back where senior Sasha Melnyk finished in a time of 2:00.25 meeting the NCAA B standard. That win is her second consecutive in the event.
- Winning her third consecutive G-MAC title in the 200 breaststroke is junior Katie Susi who recorded a time of 2:20.27.
- Findlay's final win of the meet came in the 400 freestyle relay where Sydney Jones, Olivia Scheibelhoffer, Troie Grubbs, and Emily Mears-Bentley recorded a time of 3:25.20, a new meet record.
- Freshman of the Meet Sophie Busby was a runner-up in the 1650 freestyle, recording a time of 17:28.29.
Team Scores
Men
- Findlay – 1791
- Ashland – 1556
- Frostburg State – 1119.5
- Fairmont State – 697
- Wheeling – 577
- Davis & Elkins – 514
- Salem – 500
- Malone – 344.5
- West Virginia Wesleyan - 228
Women
- Findlay – 1966
- Hillsdale – 1414.5
- Ashland – 1046.5
- Frostburg State – 974
- Wheeling – 565
- Fairmont State – 541
- Davis & Elkins – 377
- Salem – 288
- Malone – 278
- West Virginia State - 214
