Site: Minneapolis, Minn. (Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center)
Event: Big Ten Championships (Day 4 of 4)
U-M Team Result: 1st Place of 14 Teams (1,243 Points)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 1 — at Last Chance Meet, TBA
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The University of Michigan women’s swimming and diving team scored 1,243 points to claim the Big Ten Championships title on Saturday (Feb. 21) at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center. The Wolverines finished ahead of second-place Indiana (1,084 points) to earn their first conference title since 2018. This season’s victory is their 18th all-time, and the total leads all Big Ten teams.
Michigan placed 12 swimmers into final heats, including eight in A finals.
Bella Sims kicked off the final session of the meet with her second individual Big Ten title of the meet in the 200-yard IM. The junior outlasted the field and posted a time of 1:52.81. Letitia Sim and Devon Kitchel took third and fourth, respectively, in the event to round out a strong start for the Maize and Blue.
Stephanie Balduccini placed third in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 47.20 seconds to reach the podium. Brady Kendall took sixth with a mark of 47.99 while Christey Liang finished 10th with a time of 48.40.
Hannah Bellard successfully defended her Big Ten crown in the 200-yard butterfly by breaking the school, Big Ten and Big Ten Championship records with a time of 1:50.34. Freshman Montse Spielmann made her championship final debut and clocked a 1:56.34.
Milla Drakopoulos swam her first championship final in the 200-yard backstroke and finished seventh with a time of 1:53.98.
Michigan closed out the conference championship win with a silver medal in the 400-yard freestyle relay, as the team of Stephanie Balduccini, Lexi Greenhawt, Brady Kendall and Bella Sims combined to post a time of 3:07.90.
Sims was named Swimmer of the Championships, the first Michigan swimmer to earn the honor since Maggie MacNeil from 2020-22.
Ten Wolverines were named to the All-Big Ten team, with eight swimmers earning first-team honors.
Next up, Michigan will send select swimmers to the Last Chance Meet on March 1. Locations and start times are to be announced.
Final Team Standings
1. No. 4 Michigan 1,243
2. No. 6 Indiana 1,084
3. No. 11 Ohio State 1,066
4. No. 15 Wisconsin 893
5. No. 12 USC 768
6. No. 25 Minnesota 701
7. No. 22 UCLA 605.5
8. Purdue 497
9. Northwestern 446
10. Nebraska 433.5
11. Rutgers 379.5
12. Iowa 284
13. Penn State 216
14. Illinois 195.5
Swimmer of the Championships
Bella Sims, Michigan
Diver of the Championships
Viviana Del Angel, Minnesota
All-Big Ten First Team
Alex Shackell, Indiana
Avery Worobel, Purdue
Bella Sims, Michigan
Brady Kendall, Michigan
Christey Liang, Michigan
Elna Widerstrom, Minnesota
Gena Jorgenson, Nebraska
Grace Hoeper, Indiana
Hannah Bellard, Michigan
Kristina Paegle, Indiana
Leila Fack, Michigan
Letitia Sim, Michigan
Lexi Greenhawt, Michigan
Liberty Clark, Indiana
Maggie Wanezek, Wisconsin
Stephanie Balduccini, Michigan
Vivi Del Angel, Minnesota
All-Big Ten Second Team
Abby Wanezek, Wisconsin
Brooke Corrigan, Wisconsin
Daryn Wright, Purdue
Hailey Tierney, Wisconsin
Jonette Lagreid, Indiana
Lena Hentschel, Ohio State
Mackenzie Hodges, Indiana
Maria Ramos Najji, Ohio State
Mila Nikanorov, Ohio State
Miranda Grana, Indiana
Mya Dewitt, Indiana
Rachel Bockrath, Ohio State
Rosie Murphy, UCLA
Sienna Angove, Ohio State
All-Freshman Team
Adair Shaw, Ohio State
Alex Shackell, Indiana
Alisee Pisane, USC
Bella Brito, USC
Brooke Corrigan, Wisconsin
Brooklyn Petit, Ohio State
Carrie Furbee, Ohio State
Dora Molnar, USC
Grace Hoeper, Indiana
Hannah Newbrook, Ohio State
Jada Duncan, UCLA
Justine Delmas, Wisconsin
Kaylee Bishop, Indiana
KK LeBlanc, Ohio State
Liberty Clark, Indiana
Lucie Delmas, Wisconsin
Milla Drakopoulos, Michigan
Montse Spielmann, Michigan
Zita Bernatsky, Iowa