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Matteo Ballardin and Evangeline Pierce

Men's Swimming and Diving 10/28/2026 10:00:00 AM Braden Golisek - Assistant Director of Sports Information

Matteo Ballardin and Evangeline Pierce named GLIAC Swimmers of the Week

MARQUETTE, Mich. -- Northern Michigan University swim & dive athletes Matteo Ballardin and Evangeline Pierce have been honored as GLIAC Swimmers of the Week.

"Matteo and Evangeline had breakout meets last weekend," added head coach Heidi Voigt. "Matteo is always fun to watch; he loves to race and really steps up when the competition gets intense.

"I was so happy with Evangeline's swims; she raced how I knew she could and didn't hold anything back physically or mentally. Excited to watch both of their seasons this year!"

The Wildcats hosted Saginaw Valley State for a sprints meet on Friday night, before hosting Grand Valley, SVSU, and Lake State for the NMU Quad Meet on Saturday morning.

Ballardin had a blistering-fast weekend in the PEIF pool, beginning with Friday night's sprints against Saginaw Valley, where he claimed gold in all three of his events: the 75 fly (35.07), 125 IM (1:03.59), and as a member of the 5x25 medley relay team. Ballardin continued his success into Saturday morning and began by edging out reigning GLIAC champion Andrew Goh of Grand Valley to earn gold in the 200 breast at 2:01.32 before following that up with a 1:46.86 in the 200 fly and 1:47.31 in the 200 IM, both earning him a first-place medal. Ballardin rounded out his weekend as a member of the second-place 200 medley relay team.

At the time of writing, Ballardin's 200 fly and 200 IM times are both second in the country among Division II student-athletes.

Pierce dominated in the pool, beginning with three first-place finishes on Friday night's sprint races: the 25 back (12.84), 75 back (41.14), and the leadoff as a member of the first-place 5x25 medley relay team. Pierce flew on Saturday morning in the NMU Quad Meet, setting both personal and season bests in all of her races. Pierce began with a personal best 55.78 in the 100 back, good for a silver medal and just 0.24 seconds off a pool record. Pierce then crushed the 200 back, claiming gold and a personal best with her time of 2:00.98, a mark 0.22 seconds off a pool record. Pierce then posted a season best 2:11.16 in the 200 IM before leading off the second-place 200 medley relay team, posting a personal best 26.50 in her 50 back leg.

At the time of writing, Pierce is the fourth-ranked swimmer in the GLIAC, and her 100 back and 200 back times are ninth and sixth in the country, respectively.

The Wildcats are back in the pool Friday, November 6, and Saturday, November 7, when the Green and Gold travel to Wayne State for a tri-meet against the Warriors and the Findlay Oilers.

GLIAC Athletes of the Week

October 5
MEN'S SWIMMER OF THE WEEK: Matteo Ballardin*
WOMEN'S SWIMMER OF THE WEEK: Rowan Schmidt
WOMEN'S DIVER OF THE WEEK: Grace Daly

Week 3
MEN'S SWIMMER OF THE WEEK: Matteo Ballardin**
WOMEN'S SWIMMER OF THE WEEK: Evangeline Pierce

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Players Mentioned

Matteo Ballardin: Sophomore

Grace Daly: Sophomore

Evangeline Pierce: Sophomore

Rowan Schmidt: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Matteo Ballardin
: Sophomore

Grace Daly
: Sophomore

Evangeline Pierce
: Sophomore

Rowan Schmidt
: Freshman