Northwestern University Athletics
Friday, October 24
South Bend, Ind.
5 p.m. CT
Northwestern
149
at
151
Notre Dame
Photo by: Mary Grace Grabill/Northwestern Athletics
‘Cats Post Top-Five Conference Times at Notre Dame, Michigan
10/26/2025 5:20:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - In two road meets, the Northwestern swimming and diving teams put up competitive results, posting multiple times good for top 10 in the nation, but came up short in the final scores.
The Wildcats collected five event finishes that earned top-five standings in the Big Ten in their second weekend of the season. Despite the top times, tough opponents left both the men's and women's programs to take their first losses of the season at Notre Dame and Michigan.
The men's efforts were led by Joshua Staples, Oli Kos and Diego Nosack, winning a combined six individual events. On the women's side, Zoe Nordmann set a new personal best in the 1000 free, while Kat Nikonova contributed to two relay victories.
Friday's competition saw the women's team claim both relay events, as well as the top two finishes in the 1000 free, 100 breast, and 50 free individual events. Both the men's and women's free relays at Notre Dame earned impressive Big Ten positions. For the event, the men's time (2:53.18) comes in second, and the women's (3:17.15) takes the fourth fastest time in the conference.
The men's side won five events during Saturday's action, which was full of tight margins and six top-three individual finishes for the women.
"Really proud of the way that our team faced this early-season challenge," director of swimming and diving Rachel Stratton-Mills said. "Racing on back-to-back days against quality competition is tough, but we had some strong performances that we're really excited to build on as the season continues."
Individually, Staples swam a dominant 8:58.35 for the 1000 free event, good for the second-fastest in the Big Ten, and eighth in the country. Nordmann's 1000 free also scored her second in the conference standings, with a 9:45.69 finish. Stuart Seymour's performance in the 100 back (45.92) comes in at No. 4 in the Big Ten.
OCT. 24 SCORES
Men
Notre Dame 158.5 - Northwestern 141.5
Women
Notre Dame 151.00 - Northwestern 149.00
OCT. 25 SCORES
Men
Michigan 186.00 - Northwestern 114.00
Women
Michigan 205.00 - Northwestern 92.00
Michigan 193.00 - UCLA 103.00
UCLA 165.5 - Northwestern 134.5
HOW IT HAPPENED (NOTRE DAME)
Grey Davis, Teya Nikolova, Nikonova and Lindsay Ervin came in at 1:39.16 to claim the first-place finish in the women's 200 medley relay. In the women's 400 free relay, Ervin, Nikonova, Amy Pan and Audrey Yu clocked in at 3:17.15 to win and improve on their latest time.
For the second weekend this season, Nordmann collected two individual wins for the Wildcats. This time, the sophomore claimed victories in the 1000 free (9:45.69) and the 500 free (4:46.30).
Margaret Papanicholas earned a Northwestern victory in the 100 breaststroke, clocking in at 1:01.63, while also finishing second in the 200 breaststroke (2:13.14).
Individually, Ervin represented NU in the 50 and 100 free events, placing first (22.49) and second (49.28), respectively.
First-year Gretchen Braun picked up her first individual win as a Wildcat in the 200 breaststroke event (1:57.78), and also collected a third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke (54.52).
On the men's side, the Wildcats won both relays, including a tie at the top in the 400 free. Seymour, Staples, Kos and David Gerchick posted a 2:53.18 finish, a top-10 time this season across the country.
NU quartet Gerchick, Staples, Gal Shlegel and Seymour came in first in the 200 medley relay (1:26.17) early in the meet.
The Wildcats also claimed individual victories in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events, 200 fly, 100 and 200 back, and the 100 IM. Staples paced the Wildcats with two event wins, as the sophomore claimed the 100 and 200 breaststroke events with times of 53.09 and 1:55.46, respectively.
In addition to his relay contributions, Seymour also picked up a first-place finish in the 100 backstroke, clocking in at 45.92, good for No. 13 in the nation this season.
Nosack claimed the 200 fly event, finishing first with a time of 1:44.50. Kos collected a victory in 1:44.08 in the 200 back race, while Chris Leung posted a 48.47 time for the 100 IM win. Leung's showing against Notre Dame notched him at No. 4 in the 2025-26 season's national event standings.
On the diving side, Chloe Sharpe led the Wildcats, finishing in the top three in the 1-meter, with a score of 271.05. The junior also earned third place in the 3-meter (287.85).
Ryan Augustine and Adam Cohen had the highest diving scores of the day for NU, as Augustine claimed second in the 3-meter (365.40) and Cohen took second in the 1-meter (350.63).
HOW IT HAPPENED (MICHIGAN)
The Wildcat men challenged No. 10 Michigan, claiming five event victories before falling 186-114. Staples won the 1000 free (8:58.35), while Gerchick took the top spot with a time of 47.51 in the 100 back, followed by Kos (47.97).
Tona Zinn earned second place in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:01.55. Nosack punched a 3:49.99 finish in the 400 IM for a win.
Cohen claimed his season-best score of 375.90 with his 3-meter dive, also earning his second victory this year. Kyle Ly took first place in the 1-meter event with a score of 320.25.
On the women's side, three 'Cats claimed top-five finishes in the 1000 free event. Papanicholas finished in the top three of the 100 breaststroke (1:01.71), followed by Nikolova (1:01.89).
Nordmann finished in second in the 500 free, clocking in at 4:48.33.
UP NEXT
Northwestern will host the Duke Blue Devils in a two-day matchup at the Norris Aquatics Center. The action begins on Friday, Nov. 7, at 5 p.m. CT, and continues on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 11 a.m. CT.
The Wildcats collected five event finishes that earned top-five standings in the Big Ten in their second weekend of the season. Despite the top times, tough opponents left both the men's and women's programs to take their first losses of the season at Notre Dame and Michigan.
The men's efforts were led by Joshua Staples, Oli Kos and Diego Nosack, winning a combined six individual events. On the women's side, Zoe Nordmann set a new personal best in the 1000 free, while Kat Nikonova contributed to two relay victories.
Friday's competition saw the women's team claim both relay events, as well as the top two finishes in the 1000 free, 100 breast, and 50 free individual events. Both the men's and women's free relays at Notre Dame earned impressive Big Ten positions. For the event, the men's time (2:53.18) comes in second, and the women's (3:17.15) takes the fourth fastest time in the conference.
The men's side won five events during Saturday's action, which was full of tight margins and six top-three individual finishes for the women.
"Really proud of the way that our team faced this early-season challenge," director of swimming and diving Rachel Stratton-Mills said. "Racing on back-to-back days against quality competition is tough, but we had some strong performances that we're really excited to build on as the season continues."
Individually, Staples swam a dominant 8:58.35 for the 1000 free event, good for the second-fastest in the Big Ten, and eighth in the country. Nordmann's 1000 free also scored her second in the conference standings, with a 9:45.69 finish. Stuart Seymour's performance in the 100 back (45.92) comes in at No. 4 in the Big Ten.
OCT. 24 SCORES
Men
Notre Dame 158.5 - Northwestern 141.5
Women
Notre Dame 151.00 - Northwestern 149.00
OCT. 25 SCORES
Men
Michigan 186.00 - Northwestern 114.00
Women
Michigan 205.00 - Northwestern 92.00
Michigan 193.00 - UCLA 103.00
UCLA 165.5 - Northwestern 134.5
HOW IT HAPPENED (NOTRE DAME)
Grey Davis, Teya Nikolova, Nikonova and Lindsay Ervin came in at 1:39.16 to claim the first-place finish in the women's 200 medley relay. In the women's 400 free relay, Ervin, Nikonova, Amy Pan and Audrey Yu clocked in at 3:17.15 to win and improve on their latest time.
For the second weekend this season, Nordmann collected two individual wins for the Wildcats. This time, the sophomore claimed victories in the 1000 free (9:45.69) and the 500 free (4:46.30).
Margaret Papanicholas earned a Northwestern victory in the 100 breaststroke, clocking in at 1:01.63, while also finishing second in the 200 breaststroke (2:13.14).
Individually, Ervin represented NU in the 50 and 100 free events, placing first (22.49) and second (49.28), respectively.
First-year Gretchen Braun picked up her first individual win as a Wildcat in the 200 breaststroke event (1:57.78), and also collected a third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke (54.52).
On the men's side, the Wildcats won both relays, including a tie at the top in the 400 free. Seymour, Staples, Kos and David Gerchick posted a 2:53.18 finish, a top-10 time this season across the country.
NU quartet Gerchick, Staples, Gal Shlegel and Seymour came in first in the 200 medley relay (1:26.17) early in the meet.
The Wildcats also claimed individual victories in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events, 200 fly, 100 and 200 back, and the 100 IM. Staples paced the Wildcats with two event wins, as the sophomore claimed the 100 and 200 breaststroke events with times of 53.09 and 1:55.46, respectively.
In addition to his relay contributions, Seymour also picked up a first-place finish in the 100 backstroke, clocking in at 45.92, good for No. 13 in the nation this season.
Nosack claimed the 200 fly event, finishing first with a time of 1:44.50. Kos collected a victory in 1:44.08 in the 200 back race, while Chris Leung posted a 48.47 time for the 100 IM win. Leung's showing against Notre Dame notched him at No. 4 in the 2025-26 season's national event standings.
On the diving side, Chloe Sharpe led the Wildcats, finishing in the top three in the 1-meter, with a score of 271.05. The junior also earned third place in the 3-meter (287.85).
Ryan Augustine and Adam Cohen had the highest diving scores of the day for NU, as Augustine claimed second in the 3-meter (365.40) and Cohen took second in the 1-meter (350.63).
HOW IT HAPPENED (MICHIGAN)
The Wildcat men challenged No. 10 Michigan, claiming five event victories before falling 186-114. Staples won the 1000 free (8:58.35), while Gerchick took the top spot with a time of 47.51 in the 100 back, followed by Kos (47.97).
Tona Zinn earned second place in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:01.55. Nosack punched a 3:49.99 finish in the 400 IM for a win.
Cohen claimed his season-best score of 375.90 with his 3-meter dive, also earning his second victory this year. Kyle Ly took first place in the 1-meter event with a score of 320.25.
On the women's side, three 'Cats claimed top-five finishes in the 1000 free event. Papanicholas finished in the top three of the 100 breaststroke (1:01.71), followed by Nikolova (1:01.89).
Nordmann finished in second in the 500 free, clocking in at 4:48.33.
UP NEXT
Northwestern will host the Duke Blue Devils in a two-day matchup at the Norris Aquatics Center. The action begins on Friday, Nov. 7, at 5 p.m. CT, and continues on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 11 a.m. CT.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
/ Women's Swimming and Diving
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