Evansville, Ind. – History was made on Friday, March 13 at the Deaconess Aquatic Center on the fourth of five days at the NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving National Championship as the University of Findlay now has its' first-ever women's national champion. That win highlighted another big day in the water for the Oilers whose women remain in seventh in the team standings while the men are still in the top ten, sitting in ninth with one day remaining.
"Relief. That's the first thing I felt", said head coach Diego Santos. "Emily has worked so hard over the years and after being so close over and over, it was incredible to see her get it done."
When senior Emily Mears-Bentley hit the water in the evening finals of the 200 butterfly, the Oilers as a team had collected six national runner-up finishes on the week. As a squad, there was a feeling of angst, wondering if and when someone would break through and claim a title this week.
Mears-Bentley was the top seed coming into the meet and, in the morning, cruised effortlessly to the fifth-best qualifying time, securing her spot in the evening finals.
The horn sounded and Mears-Bentley soared into the pool in an attempt to make history, facing the pressure of being a favorite in her best event. Through 50 yards she was in third, just a tenth behind the leader. By the next 50, she had slid behind by about a half a second.
This is where the race flipped.
In the third 50, the Oilers' senior phenom made up that half-second and took over the lead heading into the final length of the pool. She held off the field to win with a time of 1:58.93.
With this national title, Mears-Bentley becomes the first female swimmer at Findlay to win an NCAA national title and is just the fourth on either the men's or women's side to claim gold. She joins Tim Stollins (100 butterfly in 2021 and 2024) and Daniel Garcia (200 breaststroke in 2023) as the only swimmers to record national championships.
This race was not the only highlight of the evening as one of those runners-up mentioned earlier happened just minutes before Mears-Bentley's race. In the men's 500 free, freshman Sebastian Camacho took second with a time of 4:15.92 which sets a new program record. Camacho never waivered, staying in second at each turn throughout the race. His middle six splits all were within a second, rhythmically gliding through the water to earn second place.
Senior Randy Keener put together another solid day in the water, earning his way into the consolation finals in the 100 back. In the evening, Keener went on to a time of 47.83 which took fourth in the heat and 12th overall.
A pair of athletes hit the water in the 100 breaststroke as, in the morning prelims, freshman Helmi Käkelä and senior Katie Susi were paired in adjacent lanes. Käkelä earned her way into the championship final and went on to finish with a time of 1:01.53 which was good for fifth place and first team all-American honors. Susi, a two-time all-American in the event, earned second team honors by taking second in the consolation final with a time of 1:01.73.
Rounding out the day was the 200 free relay where Findlay's women had a spot in the championship final. Käkelä, junior Anabelle Smith, sophomore Olivia Scheibelhoffer, and senior Troie Grubbs teamed up to take fifth with a time of 1:31.72. Scheibelhoffer, who also swam in the morning in the 100 back, narrowly missing out on the consolation finals, split in 22.53 and closed the gap. She handed off to Grubbs who had the team's quickest split at 22.16 and securing Findlay's fifth-place finish.
Findlay's men took part in the first heat of the 200 free relay and would go on to finish 13th overall in the event with a time of 1:19.38. That team was comprised of Camilo Marrugo, Santiago Arteaga, Randy Keener, and Juan Blandon Torres.
The final day tomorrow is another busy one with seven athletes taking part in the morning prelims hoping to secure more points and improve the Oilers' team scores.
Results all week can be found HERE.