ROCHESTER, Mich. – Oakland University returns to the Horizon League Championships, February 18-21, as both the men's and women's teams pursue their 13th consecutive conference title since joining the league.

Hosted by IU Indianapolis, the championships will be held at the IU Natatorium for the sixth straight year. Competition begins Wednesday with the women's three-meter diving prelims at 1 p.m. (ET). A total of 20 events will take place over the four-day meet, with Friday and Saturday featuring the heaviest slate at seven events each.

WOMEN'S PREVIEW
At last year's Horizon League Championships, Oakland captured titles in half of the events and won the meet with 830 points. The next closest competitor, Milwaukee, claimed three event wins and finished with 655 points. 

Sophomore Grace Albrecht was named the Horizon League's Newcomer of the Meet and Freshman of the Year for her outstanding season debut, which included four Horizon League Championship victories: the 100 back, 200 back, 200 medley relay, and 400 free relay. Assistant coach Will Brenner, in his first season with the Golden Grizzlies, was named Diving Coach of the Year at the 2025 championships after OU alum Ellie Chalifoux swept the diving events and earned the Diver of the Meet award.

Over the course of the season, the women have broken two pool records and posted seven new times in the all-time top-10. These performances come from freshmen Kendra Venter, Lydia Soldatke, Megan Donnelly, and Charisse Hickman, along with junior Clarissa Bezuidenhout. Soldatke set two pool records this season, breaking the OU Aquatic Center's 200 back mark on two different occasions.

The Oakland women's team has collected multiple Horizon League weekly honors, totaling eight so far this season. Since the fall, Soldatke has earned the most with four Swimmer of the Week honors, followed by Victoria Sanders with two Diver of the Week honors, and Hickman and Venter with one Swimmer of the Week honor each.

MEN'S PREVIEW
The Oakland men dominated last year's Horizon League Championships, winning the meet with 949 points and taking first in 14 events. Runner-up IU Indianapolis finished with 624 points and four event wins.

Senior Harry Nicholson was named the 2025 Swimmer of the Meet for his dominant performance, earning six Horizon League titles: the 100 back, 200 back, 200 free relay, 400 free relay, 200 medley relay, and 400 medley relay. Nicholson helped set school and league records in the 200 free, 200 medley, and 400 medley relays. Head coach Mitch Alters, in his second season at the helm, earned his first Swimming Coach of the Year award thanks to Nicholson's and the Golden Grizzlies' performances.

This year's roster looks to be one of the program's strongest in recent years, with the team achieving 15 new best times in the all-time top-10. These performances come from seniors Micah Scheffer, Christopher Palvadre, and Nicholas Karel Subagyo, juniors Joseph Countryman, Sean Diffenderfer, and Max Haney, and freshmen Ike Martinez, Cooper Dillman, and Ajjuub Ezzat.

Along with multiple top times, four athletes have earned Horizon League weekly honors. Subagyo, Palvadre, and Haney each collected one Swimmer of the Week honor, while freshman Owen Cox earned one Diver of the Week award.

Both teams are looking to extend their historic conference championship streaks, with the men winning their last 46 titles and the women their last 31. Building on a tradition of sustained success, the Golden Grizzlies aim to add another chapter to their championship legacy at this year's Horizon League Championships. 

HORIZON LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP ORDER OF EVENTS
(All four days of the championship will be available to stream on ESPN+)

Wednesday | 1 PM Diving Prelims, 4:30 Dive Consolation, 5:30 PM Finals
200 Medley Relay 
Women's Three-Meter Dive
800 Free Relay

Thursday | 10 AM Prelims, 1 PM Diving Prelims, 4:30 Dive Consolations, 5:30 PM Finals
500 Free
200 IM
50 Free
Men's One-Meter Dive
200 Free Relay

Friday | 10 AM Prelims, 1 PM Diving Prelims, 4:30 Dive Consolations, 5:30 PM Finals
100 Fly
400 IM
200 Free
100 Breast
100 Back
Women's One-Meter Dive
400 Medley Relay

Saturday | 10 AM Prelims, 12:30 PM Diving Prelims, TBD 1650 Early Heats, 4 PM Dive Consolations, 5 PM Finals
1650 Free
200 Back
100 Free
200 Breast
200 Fly
Men's Three-Meter Dive
400 Free Relay

How to Follow Oakland Swimming and Diving: For complete information on Oakland Swimming and Diving, follow the team on Instagram and on X at @OAK_swim_dive.