WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University men's and women's swimming and diving teams are set to begin their 2026-27 campaign on Saturday under the direction of second year coach, Arthur Wang. This new season welcomes three first-years to the program and one transfer along with 19 returners.

Both teams are coming off strong seasons, with the men's team going 9-4 overall and 4-2 in the Landmark Conference while the women's team finished 6-7 overall and 3-3 in conference. 

"I think the momentum is a little bit easier to carry over to the season because the team experienced success in drops and records," Wang said.

Wilkes welcomes back 13 swimmers to the men's team, seniors Luke Donato (Westerly, RI/Westerly) and Owen Lewis (Ellicott City, MD/Howard) and juniors Caleb Kenner, Leo Miller (Oak Forest, IL/Oak Forest), and Jacob Piotrowski (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge). Eight sophomores return, including Jack DeLuca (Easton, PA/Moravian Academy), DJ Hammond (Stone Mountain, GA/Stephenson), Max Johnson (Clarksburg, MD/Clarksburg), Josh Leonard (Athens, PA/Athens Area), Tobias Misinay (Somerset, KY/Pulaski County), Joshua Robinson (Richmond, VA/St. Christopher's), Brady Rushton (Nanticoke, PA/Greater Nanticoke Area), and Maximillian Wilson. The men's team recruited one lone first- year to the team, an individual medley swimmer, Cameron Place (Brookfield, CT/Brookfield).

"They know that if they want to do it again, they know what to expect in terms of hard work and commitment involved," Wang said when asked about returning seasoned veterans.

Three program records were broken last season on the men's side, breaking the school record in the 200 medley relay, 100 IM record, and in the 1650 freestyle. Returners Piotrowski, Wilson, and Lewis were a part of the team that broke the 200 medley record. Lewis also broke the 100 IM school record with a 56.12, breaking the previous record by 1.67 seconds. In the 1650 freestyle, Johnson broke his own school record with a new time of 17:14.48.

On the women's side, the Colonels return six swimmers and divers. A graduate student Pearl Hunter (York, PA/Northeastern) and seniors Emma Burlew (Effort, PA/Pleasant Valley) and Brynn Ullerich (Omaha, NE/Marian) return. Grace Cobb (Athens, PA/Athens Area) and Lea McCormick (Northumberland, PA/Shikellamy) swims for the junior class. Sophomore Emma Miller (Wyoming, PA/Dallas) returns after a legendary season being named Landmark Diver of the Year, All-Landmark First Team, and sweeping the Landmark Conference Diving Championships with a gold in 1M and 3M dives. 

The women's team added a trio of new members, with first-years Elizabeth Hritz (Lisle, IL/Lisle) and Maria-Lucia Priore (Dallas, PA/Dallas) joining sophomore transfer Emily Pironti (Lansdale, PA).

The Colonels' swimming team kick off their 2026-27 season on Saturday, October 10 as they host a tri-match against King's College (Pa.) and Marywood University at 11 a.m. The diving season begins this Friday against Marywood University at 4:45 p.m. 

"There are going to be ups and downs...but it will be nice for the team to see what they can do," Wang remarked about opening the 2026-27 season this upcoming weekend. 

Their season will conclude at the Landmark Conference Swimming & Diving Championships at the Magione Aquatic Center in Baltimore, Md. from February 12 to February 15.