Wheeling, W. Va. - During the 2025-2026 season, the Wheeling University Men's and Women's Swimming teams have been battling against some of the top competition across the Mountain East Conference (MEC). A lot of that success has been led by the young talent added to the team over the off-season, and that young talent now looks to shine on the conference championship stage. On Tuesday, the Cardinals will begin their run at the 2026 MEC/Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) Swimming & Diving Championships, where they look to build off the success that both programs had a season ago, and compete for a conference championship.
Both teams have had two weeks to rest and recover, last taking the pool for their senior day swim against Bethany College and Fairmont State back on January 23rd. On the men's side, it was a historic day in the pool as the Cardinals earned a 197-0 victory over Bethany and a 154-80 victory over Fairmont State. The dual meet sweep would help the Cardinals break the single-season dual meet win record, improving to 10-2 overall. As a team, the Caridnals picked up nine first place finishes at the event, including having two different swimmers earn three or more wins at the event. On the women's side, it was a bounce back for the Cardinals after they had dropped back-to-back dual meets prior. The women defeated Bethany College 172-0 and Fairmont State 120-112, led by six first place finishes in the pool.
Leading the way for the women was senior Gabby Baiano, who picked up a pair of first place finishes as she continued to show her versatility in the pool. She started the day in the 500-Yard Freestyle, picking up her biggest win of the day with a time of 5:22.28 seconds. She would beat out the rest of the field by 7.36 seconds and came back strong in the short-distance swims. She came back in the 100-Yard Butterfly to secure her second first place finish with a time of 1:03.94. It was a season-best effort for the senior, beating her old mark by 0.40 seconds. The other multi-event winner for the Cardinals was Niki Chrysafi, who picked up wins in both the 100-Yard Backstroke and the 200 Individual Medley. She won the IM by 3.21 seconds with a time of 2:21.61, and followed that with a 1.63 second win in the 100-Backstroke with a time of 1:02.11.
On the men's side, Archie Pigott would lead the way as one of two swimmers with three event wins on the day. His biggest would come in the 200-Yard Breaststroke, where the freshman swam a time of 2:17.50. He would beat out the rest of the field by 11.48 seconds, marking one of two wins by six seconds or more. The other would be in the 200 IM, where he swam a time of 2:02.23 to beat the field by 6.68 seconds, and rounded out the day with a time of 1:00.82 in the 100 Breaststroke. Segmen Duygun would be the top point scorer for the Cardinals, putting up 509.5 points across three events. He would set a new PR in the 200 Yard Butterfly, swimming a time of 2:01.48, and added his biggest win of the day in the 500-Yard Freestyle, where he swam a time of 5:01.44 to beat the field by 17.82 seconds.
The 2026 MEC/GMAC Swimming & Diving Championships comes back to the C.T. Brannin Natatorium in Canton, Ohio, serving as the home pool for the Malone University Swimming team. The four day competition will begin on Tuesday, with events being held in both the morning and the evening each day. The competition field will feature four teams from the GMAC (Findlay, Malone, Ashland, and Hillsdale (women only)) and six teams from the MEC (Wheeling, Davis & Elkins, Fairmont State, Frostburg State, Salem, and West Virginia Wesleyan). On the men's side, the Cardinals enter as the MEC leader in both the Dual scoring (575.70) and Championship scoring (484.66), while the women sit third in Championship (402.91) and third in dual (525.20). Both will be competing for their first ever MEC title, across the four days of competition.
Last Year's Event
Women: At the 2025 MEC/GMAC Swimming & Diving Championships, the Cardinals would finish 5th overall and 2nd among MEC teams in the competition field. It was their highest finish at the championship event and program history, and their highest standing in the MEC. Individually, the Cardinals took home 13 All-MEC honors across the four days of competition, led by two individual MEC Champions in their respective events. Former Cardinal Jade Miller would win the 200-Yard Backstroke, swimming a time of 2:08.67, and Gabby Baiano won the 200-Yard Freestyle, with a time of 1:56.52, to claim the two championships.
Men: The Wheeling Men's Swimming team also put together a historic performance at the 2025 event, finishing 5th overall and 3rd among the MEC field of competition. Like the women, the men also produced their highest finish both overall and in the conference in program history, and brought home five All-MEC honorees. Included in that field was the program's first-ever MEC Champion, when former Cardinal Gustav Lofqvist won the 50-Yard Freestyle with a time of 21.24. He would end up taking home both individual All-MEC honors, while the 200-Yard Freestyle Relay earned 2nd Team All-MEC honors, and the 800-Yard Freestyle Relay team would earn Honorable Mention All-MEC honors with a time of 7:20.36.
The Details
Day one of the 2025 MEC/GMAC Swimming & Diving Championships are scheduled for Tuesday, February 10th, with the morning session beginning at 10 AM followed by the evening session at 6 PM. You can watch the event live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
