Charger swim closed out the regular 2022-2023 season with a second place finish at the G-MAC-MEC championship meet. 

“Our team knew we were up against a quality opponent in Findlay, however that did not affect the impact we had on the meet,” head coach Kurt Kirner said. “Several times I had meet officials and parents from other teams take note as to how competitive and gracious our athletes were in the way they performed.”

Kirner also won G-MAC coach of the year for the fifth season in a row.

“My fifth consecutive coach of the year award is more a reflection of our team’s character that has been built than of anything I do,” he said. “It is a testament to the quality of athletes we have and the pride we exhibit.”

The championship meet ran Feb. 7-10 in Canton, Ohio. Last week The Collegian reported the team closed the first day of competition in second place behind conference rival Findlay University. 

Sophomore Elise Mason became the conference champion in the 1000 yard freestyle for the second year in a row, achieving a lifetime best time in the event as well as an NCAA B cut time. Senior Marie Taylor also took home a title for the Chargers in the 50 yard freestyle for the second time, hitting the NCAA B cut time.

The rest of the meet saw more conference titles, personal and team best times, and NCAA cuts.

In the 100 yard butterfly, sophomore Megan Clifford finished second with a time of 56.18. This was a personal best time and also broke a 14-year-old Hillsdale College record set by Linda Onkowski in 2009.

In the 400 yard individual medley race, sophomore Joanna Burnham won with a time of 4:30.55 – a personal best, an NCAA B cut, and the second fastest swim in Hillsdale’s history. 

Junior Caroline Holmes swam the 200 yard freestyle in 1:53.98 for a second place finish. This was also a personal best time and put her in the top 5 of Hillsdale swimmers in the event. 

The 400 yard medley relay saw the Chargers in first by just 32 hundredths of a second, beating out Findlay which had been seeded first going into the event. Holmes, Burnham, Clifford, and Taylor worked together for a final time of 3:51.02.

Mason earned her second conference title of the year after a commanding win in the 500 yard freestyle. She finished in 5:03.07, more than 8 seconds faster than the Findlay athlete in second place.

On the final day of the meet, Mason finished her clean sweep of conference titles in the three distance freestyle events after placing first in the 1650 yard freestyle (17:17.65). This was another B cut time for the sophomore.

“I was very happy with how my races turned out,” Mason said. “My goal was to do my best and drop my time as much as possible. I think that it was a good opportunity to swim those distance races again before nationals.”

This meet was the last swimming competition for most of the class of 2023.

“This was a legendary senior class with 8 graduates who all played major roles over the four years and three conference titles,” Kirner said. “The last night was bittersweet as tears flowed and excitement prevailed in their final efforts capping off what for most will be their careers.”

Hillsdale finished second overall with 1,589 points to first place Findlay’s 1,889.5.

“I am so proud of the team and proud to be a Charger,” Mason said. “It was very different from last year as we weren’t as close to beating Findlay. That being said, everyone had such a positive attitude and really did their very best despite the circumstance. It really shows the strong character of the girls on the team and how much effort they are willing to put in.”

Four swimmers – Mason, Clifford, Taylor, and Burnham – earned NCAA B cut times during the season which gives them all chances to qualify for the NCAA DII championships taking place March 8 through March 11 in Indianapolis.