Grand Rapids, Mich. – Championship trophies. School records. All-America performances. Historic finishes on both the conference and national stages.
Now, one final honor has been added to one of the finest seasons Aquinas Swim & Dive has ever produced.
Seven members of the Aquinas men's and women's swim & dive teams have been named College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Scholar All-Americans, bringing a fitting conclusion to a remarkable 2025-26 campaign that showcased excellence in both the classroom and the pool.
Junior Titus Smith earned First Team Scholar All-America honors, while Adriana Waller, Emma Hale, Liam Sneller, Lucas Eussen, Matt Dumbsky and Talon Koppmann each received Second Team recognition. Scholar All-America recipients must maintain at least a 3.50 cumulative GPA while also achieving demanding national qualifying standards in competition.
The national academic recognition serves as the final chapter of a season that elevated Aquinas Swim & Dive to new heights.
The Saints men captured the first conference championship in program history, edging Olivet Nazarene by just 13 points to claim the KCAC title. On the women's side, Aquinas delivered its highest conference finish ever with a runner-up performance. Throughout the year, school records continued to fall, national qualifiers emerged across both rosters, and the Saints established themselves among the NAIA's rising programs.
That momentum carried all the way to the NAIA National Championships.
The Aquinas men finished 11th nationally among 43 teams, while the women placed 15th. The championship meet produced the first swimming All-America performance in school history, the first men's individual national scorer, multiple diving All-America honors and another wave of record-breaking performances that capped the most successful national championship showing the Saints have ever enjoyed.
Deputy Director of Athletics Connor Leppink believes the Scholar All-America honors perfectly reflect everything the Saints accomplished during their historic season.
"One of the things I appreciate most about this team is how consistent they've been," Leppink said. "They approached a Monday morning workout the same way they approached a national championship race, and they treated their academics with that same level of commitment. That's why this recognition feels so fitting. They earned it through the habits they built every single day, and I couldn't be happier for Coach Hepp, her staff and our student-athletes."
Head Coach Kristy Hepp said the academic recognition may be the accomplishment that best represents who her team truly is.
"This recognition means so much because it celebrates the complete student-athlete. Our team invested countless hours training, traveling and competing while never losing sight of why they came to Aquinas—to earn an outstanding education. Watching them win championships, rewrite our record book and achieve our best national finish ever was incredibly rewarding, but seeing them honored for their work in the classroom makes me just as proud. This season showed what's possible when talented people commit to one another, and I truly believe it's only the beginning of what this program can become."
Saints Snapshots
Seven Scholar All-Americans
Titus Smith earned First Team Scholar All-America honors, while Adriana Waller, Emma Hale, Liam Sneller, Lucas Eussen, Matt Dumbsky and Talon Koppmann received Second Team recognition.
Historic Conference Success
The AQ men won the first conference championship in school history, while the women recorded the highest conference finish ever with a runner-up showing.
National Breakthrough
The Saints finished 11th nationally on the men's side and 15th on the women's side while earning the program's first swimming All-America honor, multiple diving All-America honors and numerous school records.
Building Something Special
The combination of academic achievement and competitive excellence underscores the continued rise of Aquinas Swim & Dive under Head Coach Kristy Hepp.
This Team Has Earned a Beach Day
Championship banners will someday share the walls with new ones. School records will eventually fall. New All-Americans will emerge.
But the legacy of the 2025-26 Aquinas Swim & Dive teams reaches far beyond medals, trophies and podium finishes.
They proved that the pursuit of excellence is never confined to the classroom or the pool—it is built through daily commitment to both.
The records will always tell part of the story.
The classroom, the culture and the character of these Saints will tell the rest.
Because at Aquinas, championships are celebrated—but student-athletes are built.
And for AQ Swim & Dive, the future has never looked brighter.
