The Eastern Michigan University swim team officially traded the chill of Ypsilanti for the Florida sun as they closed out their 2025-26 campaign this past week. Competing at the 2026 College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) National Invitational Championships (NIC), the Eagles traveled to the F.A.S.T. Facility in Ocala, Florida, for a three-day meet running from March 12-14. The event served as the final chapter of a long season, and the Eagles made sure to leave their mark on the program's history books before heading home.
Oz climbs the record books
The undisputed highlight of the weekend came during the distance events on the final day of competition. Sophomore Nehir Oz delivered a powerhouse performance in the 1,650-yard freestyle, stopping the clock at 16:44.48. This time was not only good enough for an 11th-place finish in a deep national field, but it also secured her the No. 9 spot on Eastern Michigan’s all-time program top-10 list.
Oz’s discipline was on display throughout the meet, as she also posted a strong 10:08.81 in the 1,000-yard freestyle split during her distance run. She was joined in the mile by teammate Marianna Fardella, who also ended her season on a high note by recording a personal-best time of 16:55.62. Fardella’s performance mirrored the team’s upward trajectory, as she had opened the meet on day one with a 4:57.74 in the 500-yard freestyle prelims.
LaRosa leads the sprint charge
While the distance crew was rewriting the record books, Nina LaRosa was busy handling business in the sprint breaststroke events. LaRosa proved to be one of the most consistent qualifiers for the Eagles, earning spots in the "B" finals for both the 50-yard and 100-yard breaststroke events.
On the opening day of competition, LaRosa clocked a 28.67 in the 50-yard breaststroke preliminaries to qualify for the evening session. She returned to the pool for the finals and found another gear, dropping her time to a personal-best 28.09 to finish 11th overall. She carried that momentum into day two, where she qualified for the 100-yard breaststroke finals with a prelim time of 1:02.83. In the final, she touched the wall at 1:02.32, securing a 16th-place finish for the Eagles.
A weekend of personal bests
The theme of the weekend for Head coach Derek Perkins' squad was individual improvement. Beyond the headline-grabbing times of Oz and LaRosa, the Eagles saw a flurry of personal bests across various disciplines.
Shayne Patrick was a standout in the individual medley, recording a personal-best time of 58.42 in the 100-yard IM. Patrick’s versatility was a major asset for the team throughout the weekend; she also competed in the 200-yard IM (2:06.74), the 400-yard IM (4:30.17), and the 200-yard butterfly (2:06.11).
Other notable individual efforts included Emma Littrell, who posted a sharp 1:51.11 in the 200-yard freestyle and a 51.60 in the 100-yard freestyle. Tristen Mina also contributed to the team score, swimming the 100-yard butterfly in 56.75 and the 100-yard IM in 58.76. Marlee Christie showed her speed in the 50-yard freestyle, finishing her prelim heat in 23.67.
Relay depth and team standings
The Eagles brought 11 swimmers to the meet, including eight individual qualifiers and four relay teams, emphasizing the program's collective growth. The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Christie, Abbey Clarke, Littrell, and Lucy Noble performed well on Day One, finishing in 1:32.66. The 400-yard medley relay team, consisting of Fardella, LaRosa, Mina, and Littrell, also put up a competitive 3:44.02.
The second day saw the 800-yard freestyle relay team—Oz, Patrick, Morgan Hofmeister, and Fardella—clock in at 7:37.03. While the final day was marred slightly by a disqualification in the 400-yard freestyle relay due to an early take-off, the Eagles' overall body of work remained strong.
When the final scores were tallied at the F.A.S.T. Facility, Eastern Michigan finished tied for 27th place in the women's standings with 148 total points. The University of Kentucky took the women’s team title with 553 points, but the Eagles remained competitive in a field that featured over 50 scoring programs.
As the Eagles return to Ypsilanti, they do so with a No. 9 all-time program time, four new personal bests, and the momentum of a top-30 national finish. With several underclassmen posting their best times on the biggest stage of the season, the future of EMU swimming and diving looks bright as they look toward the 2026-27 campaign.
