Michigan
Big Ten Championships
U-M Prepares for B1G Swimming and Diving Championships
2/19/2024 1:26:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 16-ranked University of Michigan women's swimming and diving program will battle against the best in the conference at the Big Ten Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, hosted by Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. The four-day meet will commence on Wednesday (Feb. 21) at 5 p.m. with the opening relays and exhibition team diving events. The remaining three days will feature preliminary races at 10 a.m. with the final heats starting at 5:30 p.m., ending on Saturday (Feb. 24).
Notes
• U-M features eight returners that landed on an All-Big Ten team last season. Katie Crom put together a dominant display last year in Canham, winning the 200-yard butterfly and earning a silver and two bronze medals to garner Big Ten Freshman of the Year recognition.
• After a successful World Aquatics Championships performance, freshman Stephanie Balduccini returns stateside to compete in freestyle in West Lafayette, Ind. Balduccini ranks in the top two in both the 100- and 200-yard freestyle events, posting both marks at the Georgia Invitational in November.
• Fellow freshman Hannah Bellard leads the way for the Maize and Blue in the distance freestyle events, ranking second in the Big Ten in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:38.44. Bellard posted that mark at the Georgia Invitational.
• Casey Chung highlights the backstroke specialists that will compete this week. The senior sits fifth in the league in the 100-yard backstroke with an NCAA "B" cut time of 52.23. Freshman Lily Cleason leads all Wolverine women in the 200-yard backstroke race with a season-best time of 1:55.05.
• Devon Kitchel enters the conference championships with some momentum after posting a 28.44 in the 50-yard breaststroke at the First Chance Meet in Canham on Saturday (Feb. 17). Kitchel's mark ranks sixth in the league. The sophomore also owns a top-10 time in the 100-yard breaststroke, clocking a 1:01.02 at the First Chance Meet.
• The Wolverines boast depth in the butterfly event as two swimmers have top-five times in the Big Ten in the 50-yard race. Anna Boemer has a season-best mark of 24.40 while Brady Kendall is close behind with a time of 24.45. Boemer, Kendall and Ella Jo Piersma rank fourth, fifth and sixth in the 100-yard butterfly, respectively, while Bellard and reigning Big Ten champion Crom hold top-four marks in the 200-yard event.
• In the individual medley, Balduccini sits third in the conference in the 200-yard race with a "B" cut time of 1:56.94. Bellard has a season-best mark of 4:10.29 in the 400-yard IM to rank third in the league.
• The Wolverines have put together a strong campaign in the freestyle relays, paced by the quartet of Balduccini, Lindsay Flynn, Christey Liang and Claire Newman who combined to log an "A" cut mark of 3:10.30 at the Georgia Invitational, leading the Big Ten and ranking second in the country.
• In diving, Kiarra Milligan sits 10th in the one-meter dive, logging a top score of 289.35 at the Wisconsin Tri-Meet in October.
Players Mentioned
