Bold statement: Week one of the 2026 NCAA Division I conference meets produced nine NCAA Championships qualifiers—an early signal of who to watch as the season heats up. And this is the part most people miss: the late-night finales produced the edge cases and near-misses that reshaped the early rankings. Here’s a clear, beginner-friendly rewrite that preserves every key detail while enhancing clarity and flow.
As the first week wrapped, nine swimmers had already earned NCAA Championship bids, comprising five women and four men.
The final night of competition delivered two automatic qualifiers (AQs) from the Big West. In the men’s 200 breaststroke, Carter Dooling of Grand Canyon surged to 1:54.56, shaving more than a second off his prior best of 1:55.92. This clocking stood four-tenths under the NCAA AQ standard of 1:54.95.
On the women’s side, Samantha Banos of UC Santa Barbara posted an NCAA-qualifying time in the 200 butterfly, winning in 1:56.44. This time was over six-tenths faster than the standard of 1:57.11 and just shy of her lifetime best of 1:56.14 from November.
Several swimmers had already secured invites earlier in the meet and still posted AQ times during week one. Hawaii’s Karol Ostrowski claimed a third NCAA event by winning the 100 freestyle in 42.41, dipping under the standard of 42.44 by one tenth.
CSU Bakersfield’s Vili Sivec also earned an AQ in the 200 butterfly, touching in 1:42.37—over a second under the 1:43.79 standard. This performance marked a new personal best by about a second and surpassed his prior meet-best of 1:43.13 set last year.
Because Ostrowski and Sivec had already achieved NCAA qualifications earlier in the meet, they’re counted as a single swimmer in the official tally, appearing on the list only for the first event in which they qualified.
No NCAA qualifiers emerged from the MAAC Championships this weekend, which was the other Division I meet on the schedule.
New Women’s Qualifiers
- Samantha Banos, UCSB, Big West, 200 Fly, 1:56.44 (2025 Invite: 1:55.82)
New Men’s Qualifiers
- Carter Dooling, Grand Canyon, Big West, 200 Breast, 1:54.56 (2025 Invite: 1:52.89)
All Women’s Qualifiers After Week One
- Eva Boehlke, UC San Diego, Big West, 200 IM, 1:57.43 (2025 Invite: 1:56.69)
- Holly Nelson, Hawaii, Big West, 50 Free, 22.28 (2025 Invite: 22.01)
- Asia Kozan, UC San Diego, Big West, 200 Free, 1:45.52 (2025 Invite: 1:44.74)
- Chloe Braun, UC San Diego, Big West, 100 Breast, 58.95 (2025 Invite: 59.51)
- Samantha Banos, UCSB, Big West, 200 Fly, 1:56.44 (2025 Invite: 1:55.82)
All Men’s Qualifiers After Week One
- Tom Thalau, Hawaii, Big West, 200 IM, 1:43.93 (2025 Invite: 1:42.65)
- Karol Ostrowski, Hawaii, Big West, 50 Free, 19.13 (2025 Invite: 19.02)
- Vili Sivec, CSUB, Big West, 100 Fly, 45.91 (2025 Invite: 45.12)
- Carter Dooling, Grand Canyon, Big West, 200 Breast, 1:54.56 (2025 Invite: 1:52.89)
Notes
- Ostrowski and Sivec are listed as single qualifiers, reflecting their first qualifying event of the meet.
- The MAAC Championships did not yield any NCAA qualifiers this weekend.
If you’re following the early season momentum, these nine qualifiers set the table for what to expect as conference meets roll on. Which qualifier’s trajectory do you find most compelling, and do you anticipate any of them challenging the top times nationally as the season progresses?
