The 11th-ranked Hope College women's swimming and diving team secured its sixth consecutive MIAA Championship on Saturday evening, as the MIAA Championships concluded at the Holland Aquatic Center.

The Flying Dutch, which collected the program's 28th MIAA title, won 15 of 20 events over the four-day competition – including four on Saturday evening. Hope led the meet from start to finish and topped the field by nearly 300 points, impressing head coach Jake Taber.

"I don't know that I've seen a meet like this. Our women were incredible this weekend. They were very on point," Taber said. "It wasn't just one discipline. it wasn't a particular stroke or a particular distance. We were really able to string some incredible swims together throughout the course of the weekend. It just seemed to build one after another."

On the final night of competition, freshman Makenzie Baldwin (Holland, Michigan / West Ottawa) won the 200 backstroke for her third title of the weekend, while senior Laurel Wasiniak (Northville, Michigan / Northville) took the gold medal in the 100 freestyle for her second win of the meet. 

Sophomore Emme D'Errico (Farmington Hills, Michigan / Farmington) also won her second race of the meet, topping the 200 butterfly podium in record time. She set a new MIAA record and lowered her own school record from earlier this season. Freshman Grace Dawson (Jackson, Michigan / Western) added the one-meter diving title. 

Hope tallied 1,284 points during the weekend, while No. 13 Calvin University finished second, posting a score of 990. Kalamazoo College placed third with 466 points, followed by Alma College (407) and Albion College (344). The University of Olivet finished in sixth place.

Senior Greta Gidley (Franklin, Michigan / Mercy) was named the MIAA Most Valuable Swimmer for the second time in her career after winning three individual titles and taking part in three winning relays. She also received the honor in 2024. 

Gidley said the Flying Dutch's commitment to each race, morning or night, paid big dividends.

"We really focus on having our team energy be really present in the morning, up and cheering everyone in every single race," Gidley said. "I think that makes a huge difference when all of your teammates standing there and screaming their heads off for you, even in the morning. If you don't get your job done in the morning, there is no way to get it done at night."

Gidley set MIAA records in the 200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke events and was also victorious in the 100 butterfly. She is the second swimmer in MIAA history to win the 200 IM in four straight years and will conclude her career with eight individual titles.

This is the eighth straight year that a Hope swimmer has won the award. 

Dawson was named the MIAA Most Valuable Diver after winning the one-meter competition on Saturday and placing second on the three-meter board on Thursday. Dawson also posted NCAA qualifying scores in both events during the weekend. 

In the 1650 freestyle, junior Natalie Pitera (Livonia, Michigan / Stevenson) was Hope's top finisher, posting a personal-best time of 17:57.90 to capture the silver medal.

Hope took six of the top seven positions in the 200 backstroke, led by Baldwin's winning time of 1:59.36. Senior Katie Hermann (Canton, Michigan / Mercy) grabbed the bronze medal, finishing third with a time of 2:02.30. 

In the 100 freestyle, the Flying Dutch swept the podium with the top three finishes. Wasiniak led the field with a time of 50.29 to repeat as the MIAA champion. Senior Bella Turner (Chelsea, Michigan / Chelsea) earned the silver medal, touching in 50.98, while freshman Claudia Busse (Grand Haven, Michigan / Grand Haven) placed third with a time of 51.69 to earn the bronze.

The 200 breaststroke saw Hope grab three of the top four spots, led by senior Madi Remenschneider (Holland, Michigan / West Ottawa), who touched second with a personal-best time of 2:21.11 to earn the silver. Reiss Estep took the bronze medal with a time of 2:22.02, while junior Anna Stolle (Fishers, Indiana / Hamilton Southeastern) finished fourth, touching the wall in 2:22.23.

D'Errico repeated as MIAA champion in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:03.58, erasing the MIAA record of 2:03.94 from 2016 held by Kalamazoo's Colleen Orwin. Swingewood earned the bronze medal after touching the wall in 2:14.37.

In diving, Dawson and junior Laura Zupancic (Fort Collins, Colorado / Liberty Common) posted NCAA-regional qualifying scores on the one-meter board in the morning preliminaries as Hope qualified three divers for the evening final. Dawson took the gold medal on the final dive, scoring 441.25 points, while Zupancic finished just 4.75 points behind for the silver medal. 

In the 400 freestyle relay, Hope's B team of D'Errico, Hermann, Baldwin and junior Madeline McGee (Ionia, Michigan / Ionia) won the consolation final, while the A relay team was disqualified in the championship heat. 

Hope's swimmers will now await invitations to the NCAA Division III Swimming and Diving Championships, which are scheduled for Wednesday-Saturday, March 18-21, at the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis, Indiana. Prior to the national meet, divers Dawson and Zupancic will compete in the NCAA Division III Diving Regional, scheduled for Friday-Saturday, Feb. 27-28, at Kalamazoo College.