The spirit and energy of the swimming and diving team was unmatched throughout the season. While Big Ten competition proved difficult for the Illini, a loss never dampened their spirits.

In her 22nd and final year at the helm of the Illinois swimming & diving program, head coach Sue Novitsky led Illinois to a 5-4 season while going 3-1 against Illinois-based swim & dive programs, finishing their fall stretch with a first place finish at the House of Champions.

At the House of Champions, a total of 74 lifetime bests and 171 season bests were broken during the three-day contest by 22 different swimmers across a variety of events.

House of Champions proved to be a peak in Illinois’ season, finishing first at the event and heading into the holiday season with quantifiable and visible results to their intense training.

The Illini went on to compete against Big Ten opposition after the holiday season, most notably beating the Iowa Hawkeyes for the first time in 15 years.

The Illini went on to remain competitive across the board at the Big Ten Championships, winning many of their heats, breaking even more lifetime bests, with many Illini swimmers leaving their mark on the record book.

Throughout the 2021-2022, Illini broke multiple freestyle records and reshuffled the record books, setting a permanent standard for what Illinois swim & dive should accomplish for years to come.

Of school records broken, most notably, freshman Molly Yetter broke a 17-year-old record in the 50-yard freestyle at the Big Ten Championship, a record previously held by Illini great Barbie Viney-Langley.

Fellow freshman Sydney Stoll also made waves early on in the season breaking the 100-yard individual medley record in a meet against Vanderbilt.

Senior Abby Cabush also broke the school record in the 200-yard freestyle, which was previously set by her the year before at the House of Championship Invite in November.

Illinois also had five divers set NCAA Zone C Diving scores across the one-meter and three-meter dives, increasing the competitive experience and maintaining Illinois’ presence at the event.

The freshmen class showed immense growth and promise for the growing program, sophomores continued to contribute and began establishing leadership positions within the team and juniors and seniors guided the culture and set the example of what it means to be an Illinois athlete.

The Illinois freestyle sprint squad proved a lethal asset to the team while other events such as the breaststroke and backstroke often failed to meet similar standards and garner the same success.

The program will be going through some anticipated transition as the University looks for their next head coach after the retirement of Novitsky, with an adjusted culture awaiting the team. 

The continued development of the team will be paramount in helping the Illinois swim & dive program achieve new heights and move up the standings in a constantly improving Big Ten Conference.

@JonathanAlday7

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