Waves of talent have the Hope College women's and men's swimming and diving teams dreaming big this season.
After strong performances last year, the Orange and Blue aim to contend for MIAA championships and send multiple qualifiers to the NCAA Division III Championships again.
The Flying Dutch earned their fifth consecutive MIAA women's title with a record-setting performance, qualified seven swimmers for nationals and finished ninth in the nation during the 2024-25 season. It was the program's 18th top-10 finish at the NCAA Championships and second in three years.
The Flying Dutchmen placed runner-up in the MIAA, qualified nine swimmers for the NCAA Division III Championships and finished 27th in the nation.
Many of those national qualifiers return for both teams, providing a strong foundation for the 2025-26 season.
Coaching Staff
Women's Roster
The Flying Dutch roster of 33 includes seven seniors, eight juniors, five sophomores and 14 freshmen.
Hope returns five swimmers who earned CSCAA All-America and All-MIAA honors last season: sophomore
Emme D'Errico (Farmington Hills, Michigan/Farmington), fifth-year senior
Greta Gidley (Franklin, Michigan/Mercy), senior Katie
Hermann (Canton, Michigan/Mercy), senior
Bella Turner (Chelsea, Michigan/Chelsea), and senior
Laurel Wasiniak (Northville, Michigan/Northville).
Gidley is an 11-time All-American who placed fourth nationally in the 200-yard individual medley last season and was runner-up in the event at both the 2024 and 2023 NCAA Championships. The elementary education major was named MIAA Most Valuable Swimmer in 2024.
Wasiniak earned seven All-America honors last season, including first-team recognition in three relays: the 200 freestyle, 400 freestyle and 400 medley.
Hermann is a three-time All-American who claimed first-team honors in the 100 backstroke as a freshman.
Two others also return after receiving All-MIAA recognition: senior
Madi Remenschneider (Holland, Michigan/West Ottawa) and junior diver
Laura Zupancic (Fort Collins, Colorado/Liberty Common).
Taber said the Flying Dutch — preseason favorites in the inaugural MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll — will lean on their veterans.
"You look at our senior class, we're going to miss the group that graduated dearly," Taber said. "They certainly accomplished some impressive things during their time. Four individual swimmers in this year's senior class were national qualifiers. We're going to lean on that big-meet experience to carry us through."
Men's Roster
The Flying Dutchmen roster of 36 includes four seniors, 10 juniors, 13 sophomores and nine freshmen.
Hope returns six swimmers who earned CSCAA All-America and All-MIAA honors last season: junior
Josh Bordovsky (Herndon, Virginia/South Lakes), sophomore
Everett Cox (Sugar Land, Texas/Logos Prep), junior
Graham Eisenmann (Ozark, Missouri/Ozark), sophomore
Joe Engle (Holland, Michigan/West Ottawa), sophomore
George Marsh (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan/Seaholm), and sophomore
Luke Newcomb (Brighton, Michigan/Brighton).
Newcomb set Hope and MIAA records in the 100 breaststroke as a freshman. Engle won the MIAA title in the 1,650 freestyle as a freshman.
Eisenmann broke the school record in the 200 freestyle as a sophomore. Bordovsky set Hope's all-time record in the 200 individual medley as a freshman.
Hope also returns at least half of the swimmers from three school-record relays: the 400 medley, 200 freestyle and 400 freestyle.
Junior
Alex Pierce (Oswego, Illinois/Oswego) returns after earning All-MIAA honors last season and winning the league title in the 400 individual medley.
The Flying Dutchmen are motivated, Taber said.
"They're excited to get back and start racing again," he said. "One of the things about our men right now is they're extremely versatile. We're thinking about how we best prepare them for the events they'll need to be ready for to help us succeed."
MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll
The Flying Dutch topped the women's preseason poll after receiving all five possible first-place votes and finishing with five points. Coaches could not vote for their own teams. Calvin finished runner-up with one first-place vote and nine points. Albion took third with 15, followed by Kalamazoo (17), Alma (19) and Olivet (25).
The Flying Dutchmen placed second in the men's poll with two first-place votes and eight points. Defending champion Calvin took the top spot with four first-place votes and six points. Kalamazoo was third with 15, followed by Albion and Alma (18 each) and Olivet (25).
Schedule
Hope opens the 2025-26 season on Friday, Sept. 26, at 3 p.m. at the Be Better Invitational hosted by the University of Michigan. The annual meet promotes mental health awareness and supports the Be Better Foundation, established by the family of Ian Miskelley of Holland in his memory.
The Flying Dutch and Flying Dutchmen will compete in 11 regular-season events, including two home meets at the Holland Aquatic Center: the MIAA Invite on Saturday, Oct. 25, and against the University of Chicago on Saturday, Jan. 31.
Hope will host the MIAA Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving Championships on Wednesday-Saturday, Feb. 18-21, at the Holland Aquatic Center.
The NCAA Division III Championships are scheduled for Wednesday-Saturday, March 18-21, at the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis.
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