Throughout her women's swimming and diving career at Hillsdale College, Megan Clifford has been on a historic path.

Now, the senior stands alone. 

On Friday evening at the 2025 NCAA DII Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana, Clifford accomplished something no other woman in Hillsdale College swimming history has done by earning her third All-American honor in the 200 butterfly, adding to previous distinctions won in 2023 and 2024. 2015 graduate Rachael Kurtz was a back-to-back All-American in the 50 freestyle in 2014 and 2015, but Clifford is the first to succeed on the national stage for three straight seasons.

Clifford made history with two excellent, consistent races. In the morning prelims on Friday, Clifford booked her spot in the consolation finals with an 11th place finish at 2:01.28 that was just one one-hundredth off her previous personal best and Hillsdale school record. She came back later that evening and went even faster, breaking the record with a time of 2:01.08 to win her heat and place ninth in the nation in the event. The top sixteen in each event earn All-American honors at the NCAA DII Championships.

It's a fitting ending to Clifford's signature event, as she's established herself as the best butterfly swimmer in program history with the school records in both the 100 and 200 fly.

Also competing on Friday was fellow senior Elise Mason, who broke her own school record and set a personal best in the 500 freestyle preliminaries in the morning with a time of 5:00.90. Mason placed 38th in the nation in the 500 and looks to be in solid form heading into her strongest event, the 1,650 freestyle, tomorrow.

Mason previously earned All-American honors in the 1,650 freestyle as a sophomore in 2023, and was just one place off of repeating that honor in 2024 with a 17th place finish. She'll look to add a second All-American honor to her collection in the race tomorrow, while Clifford also competes in the 100 freestyle on the final day of the NCAA DII Championships. Both events will take place in the morning session.

Photo by James Gensterblum