PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis. — In the closest finish in conference history, Wheaton secured the 2026 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Women’s Swimming & Diving Championship by a single point on Saturday night at the RecPlex in Pleasant Prairie, Wis. The Thunder finished the four-day meet with 818 points, narrowly edging defending champion Augustana, which totaled 817 points.
 
The victory marks the 27th CCIW women’s team title for Wheaton. The Thunder had most recently reclaimed the crown in 2023.
 
The one-point margin is the narrowest gap between first and second place in the history of the CCIW women’s championship. The previous closest finish was in 2010, when Wheaton defeated Carthage by three points, 816-813.
 
The final day of competition featured a see-saw battle between the top teams. Illinois Wesleyan senior Natalie Porter opened the evening with a victory in the 1,650-yard freestyle, posting a time of 17:31.53. Wheaton senior Olivia Wiebe followed with a critical first-place finish for the Thunder in the 200-yard backstroke at 2:07.20. 
 
Augustana junior Kendle Mihm kept the Vikings in contention by winning the 100-yard freestyle in 52.93 seconds, before Wheaton freshman Lydia Hansen responded with a victory in the 200-yard breaststroke, touching the wall in 2:25.17. Wheaton junior Tess Boyer then added another individual title for the Thunder with a winning time of 2:06.71 in the 200-yard butterfly.
 
The team championship was decided in the final event, the 400-yard freestyle relay. Augustana’s quartet of Sophia Warren, Petra Evans, Mya Pheneger and Kendle Mihm won the race in 3:32.87, while Wheaton placed second in 3:33.62. The Thunder’s runner-up finish provided the points needed to clinch the overall team title by the minimum possible margin.
 
Wheaton student-athletes swept the meet’s major performance awards. Tess Boyer was named Swimming Student-Athlete of the Meet after setting new CCIW meet records in both the 200-yard IM (2:03.94) and 400-yard IM (4:21.41). Lydia Hansen earned First-Year Student-Athlete of the Meet honors after sweeping the breaststroke events, winning the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:05.81 and the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:25.17. 
 
Lara Stamp was selected as the Diving Student-Athlete of the Meet after repeating as the 1-meter champion with a score of 361.35 and winning the 3-meter title with a score of 352.75 last weekend. Augustana’s Kendle Mihm received the Elite 26 Award for maintaining the highest cumulative GPA among the meet’s all-conference participants, and Illinois Wesleyan and Wheaton were named Co-Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
The final women’s team standings were Wheaton in first with 818 points, followed by Augustana with 817, Carthage with 736, Illinois Wesleyan with 505, Carroll with 256, Millikin with 143 and North Central with 128.

CCIW Women's Swimming Student-Athlete of the Meet
Tess Boyer, Wheaton

CCIW Women's Swimming & Diving First-Year Student-Athlete of the Meet
Lydia Hansen, Wheaton

CCIW Women's Diving Student-Athlete of the Meet
Lara Stamp, Wheaton

CCIW Women's Swimming & Diving Elite 26 Award Recipient
Kendle Mihm, Augustana

CCIW Women's Swimming & Diving Co-Coaching Staff of the Year
Illinois Wesleyan and Wheaton

CCIW Women's Swimming RESPECT Award Recipients
Genevieve Ryan, Augustana
Natalie Oldenburg, Carroll
Aidan Cote, Carthage
Claire Paule, Illinois Wesleyan
Audrey Korniak, Millikin
Amelia Minarik, North Central
Made Emmitt, Wheaton