The 2025-26 season marks a changing of the guard for the Hillsdale College women's swimming and diving team, as the Chargers bid farewell to two of the greatest swimmers in program history.

All-American swimmers Megan Clifford and Elise Mason, combined the most decorated competitors in the history of Hillsdale College women's swimming and diving, both graduated in the spring of 2025, as did G-MAC/MEC Champion Joanna Burnham.

Replacing the contributions of those three is the challenge facing the Chargers, who are looking to extend a streak of eight straight top two finishes in the G-MAC/MEC Championships to nine this February.

That means finding new stars to become the program's leaders. Thankfully for Hillsdale, the cupboard is far from bare even after losing generational talent.

It starts with a great sophomore class, headlined by Ella Schafer, who won the G-MAC/MEC title in the 200 freestyle and set a program record in the event as a freshman in 2024-25. Schafer should be a top contender in sprint freestyle events for the Chargers, and Hillsdale also has a returning athlete who looks poised to continue the Chargers' distance freestyle dominance in the G-MAC/MEC in Matilyn Wilhelmsen. While injuries and illness limited her late in the season, Wilhelmsen put up times in the first half of the season that were within a few seconds of Mason in the 500, 1,000 and 1,650 freestyle events, and was named the G-MAC's co-Freshman of the Year. With Mason graduated, and likely better health in 2025-26, Wilhelmsen could be in line to bring home multiple titles this spring.

Along with Wilhelmsen, Hillsdale has another previous Freshman of the Year winner who is capable of putting up big points in the distance races in Isabel Ondracek. Ondracek headlines a solid junior class that provides much of the scoring backbone for the Chargers squad, with Irene Del Castro, Lauren Kamp, Alyson Early and Inez McNichols all holding top 10 times in Chargers history in at least one event. Hillsdale also is hoping for big things from sophomore Ella Malone, who had a strong first season in the butterfly as well.

To its nucleus, Hillsdale also adds another strong freshman class that will help the Chargers reload in the backstroke and breaststroke. All six should contribute this season, and big things are expected in particular from Avery May, who swam times in high school in distance freestyle races that would have made the NCAA DII national meet last season. May should combine with Wilhelmsen and Ondracek to give the Chargers a huge point-scoring nucleus in the 500 freestyle and above events.

Hillsdale opens the season with its annual Blue/White Intrasquad meet on homecoming morning, Sept. 27. The Chargers' first official competition is the Oberlin Invite on Oct. 10-11 in Ohio, and Hillsdale will host home meets on Nov. 7 against Albion and Davenport and on Nov. 8 against Aquinas and Indiana Wesleyan in Jack McAvoy Natatorium. Everything builds towards the G-MAC/MEC Championship meet, scheduled for Feb. 10-13 at the C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton, Ohio, where Hillsdale will try to unseat three-time defending champion Findlay. Hillsdale's top swimmers also will look to earn All-American honors at the NCAA DII Championships, hosted in Evansville, Indiana on March 10-14. You can find the full schedule here.