Wheeling, W. Va. - As they entered the 2025-2026 season, the Wheeling University Men's Swimming team was set to be led by a roster of seven freshman across 19 swimmers on the roster. The young swimmers not only built a solid foundation for the future, but took the program to new heights, setting the single-season dual meet record. With many of the roster returning, the Cardinals will have a solid foundation to build on now and into the future.
The success began right away with the Cardinals young swimmers establishing themselves as leaders. Freshman accounted for three of the top four swimmers for the Cardinals, as they took second place out of the eight teams in the field. As the dual meet schedule continued, Wheeling continued their hot streak, sweeping their opening Mountain East Conference (MEC) tri-meet against Frostburg State and West Virginia Wesleyan College. It would lead to a season-opening six meet winning streak for the Cardinals, before dropping their first dual meet to Davis & Elkins on November 8th. Wheeling would finish the first half dual meet schedule at 7-1, and added a third place finish at the annual Midseason Classic. They would end up breaking the dual meet win record, finishing the year 10-2 overall and 4-1 in conference play. At the annual MEC/Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) Championships, the Cardinals would finish with their highest finish in program history at fourth overall and 2nd among conference teams.
The youth movement led the way and at the very top of that movement was freshman Segmen Duygun. Duygun was the Cardinal's leading scorer during the season, averaging 662.30 points, and took home three First Team All-MEC honors at the MEC/GMAC Swimming & Diving Championships. Duygun thrived in the distance events, regularly swimming the 500, 1000, and 1650 Freestyles. He would take home First Team All-MEC honors in all three events at the conference championships, while also setting PR's in each of the three swims. His highest overall finish would come in the 500 Freestyle, where he took second overall and set a PR by 4.35 seconds. However, his biggest PR of the day would come in the 1000 Freestyle, where he swam a time of 9:42.44 to set a new PR by over 10 seconds in the event. Duygun will be a key leader for the distance swimmers into the future as he helps shape this young core.
Another key contributor for the Cardinals throughout the season was freshman Archie Pigott who too home Second Team All-MEC honors at the championship event. It would come in the 200-Yard Breaststroke, where he swam a time of 2:03.96 to finish fourth overall and second among his MEC opponents. It was the first of two top five finishes for the freshman, with his other coming in the A Final of the 200 IM, where he finished 5th overall and fourth among the conference. Although not with the team the entire season, freshman Efe Kucuk joined the program at the midway point and made an immediate impact. He, like Pigott, would also swim in the A Final of the 200-Yard Breaststroke and also earned All-MEC honors, his was an Honorable Mention Award, after finishing eight in the A Final. This strong freshman core will look to continue leading the program for years to come as they set the foundation for success.
The Wheeling University Men's Swimming Team now heads into the offseason as they look to build off their 2025-2026 success.
