LANCASTER, Pa. - After a fifth-place finish at the 2026 Centennial Conference Swimming Championship, Connor Rumpit begins his first year as head coach of the Franklin & Marshall women's swimming team after four seasons as an assistant coach with defending national champions No. 1 NYU. The 2026-27 season begins by hosting Dickinson, No. 10 Swarthmore, and Ursinus in a Centennial Conference Quad Meet on Saturday, October 24. 

2025-26 Recap 

F&M went 4-5, 2-3 Centennial Conference in the dual meet portion of the season. In-conference victories came against Ursinus and Swarthmore, while they lost to No. 16 Swarthmore, Dickinson, and No. 22 Gettysburg. They earned a pair of non-conference victories over Elizabethtown and Division II Millersville.

Four program records fell and Delphine Brown claimed two medals, as the Diplomats earned fifth place at the 2026 Centennial Conference Swimming Championship. Brown earned silver in the 200 freestyle and bronze in the 500 freestyle. Two relay records fell, as Madi Bickford, Grace Kovach, Brown, and Matti Harvey established a new 400 freestyle relay mark (3:32.31), and Grace Kovach, Bickford, Kala Zingle, and Matti Harvey logged a new 200 freestyle relay top time (1:35.87). Kovach logged two individual records in the sprint freestyle events, the 50 freestyle (23.96), and 100 freestyle (51.70). 

Swimmers to Watch

Free/Back - Delphine Brown - So.
Free/Back - Madi Bickford - Jr.
Free/Back - Grace Kovach - So.
Free/Back - Kala Zingle - Jr.

Sophomore Delphine Brown earned a pair of medals at last year's Centennial Conference Swimming Championship, finishing in second place in the 200 freestyle, third place in the 500 freestyle, and ninth in the 200 backstroke. She also contributed towards a fourth-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay and a fifth-place finish in the 800 freestyle relay.  With her strong individual performances at the conference championship, Brown has established her presence across F&M's performance list, as she holds the program's second-best 200 freestyle time, fifth-best 500 freestyle time, and seventh-best 200 backstroke time. Individually, she also established a new 200 freestyle relay split. She raced the final leg in F&M's new 400 freestyle relay record, while she opened the second-best 800 freestyle relay performance. 

Junior Madi Bickford was a B Finalist in a pair of individual events at the 2026 Centennial Conference Swimming Championship, as she finished in third place in the 50 freestyle B Final and sixth place in the 100 freestyle B Final. Individually, she set the second-best 50 freestyle time in program history last year, while she also set the third-best 100 freestyle relay split. Bickford helped topple a fair of program relay records, racing the opening leg of the team's new 200 freestyle relay record and the second leg of F&M's new 400 freestyle relay record. 

Sophomore Grace Kovach left the 2026 Centennial Conference swimming championship with one A Final appearance, two B Final berths, and two new program records. She claimed fifth place overall in the 100 freestyle, while she was second in the 200 freestyle B Final and sixth in the 50 freestyle. She now holds the top times in the 50 freestyle, which she set in a swim-off to qualify for the B Final, 100 freestyle, and 100 freestyle relay splits. She also set the fourth-best 200 freestyle split, sixth-best 200 freestyle relay split, and eighth-best 50 freestyle split. Kovach also helped to set a pair of new program relay records, as she raced the third leg of the new 200 freestyle relay standard and the opening leg of F&M's new 400 freestyle relay record. 

Junior Kala Zingle earned points for F&M in both backstroke events, as she was seventh overall in the 200 backstroke and fifth in the 100 backstroke B Final. Last season, she set the sixth-best 50 backstroke relay split, 100 backstroke time, and 200 backstroke time. Zingle also helped to establish a new 200 freestyle relay program record, as she completed the final leg of the new top mark in the event.  

New Diplomats

Women's swimming will see three first-year students begin their collegiate careers at tomorrow's quad meet. Corinne Blachere (Olney, Md. / Sherwood) and Quandra Meredith (Queens, N.Y. / Hillcrest) will specialize in freestyle and breaststroke events, while Jill Weinberger (Long Valley, N.J. / West Morris Central) will race in the backstroke.

2026-27 Coaching Staff

• Head Coach
  •  Connor Rumpit (New York University), First Season
• Assistant Coaches
  • Lauren Myers (Arcadia University '11), Fifth Season
  • JD Abercrombie (University of Southern California), Fourth Season
  • Casey Coble (University of North Carolina), Third Season
  • Ben Lockey '26 (Franklin & Marshall '26), First Season
  • Ryan Sullivan (Bloomsburg University '17), First Season

The Road Ahead

The Diplomats kick off the 2026-27 season by hosting the Centennial Conference Quad Meet against Dickinson, #10 Swarthmore, and Ursinus on Saturday, October 24. The Diplomats return in a week's time for two meets, as they host #21 Gettysburg on Friday, October 30th before traveling to Mary Washington for a tri-meet also featuring Roanoke on Saturday, October 31. The Diplomats return to the Kunkel Aquatic Center for a pair of tri meets, hosting (RV) Kean and Rowan  on Friday, November 6 and local Division II sides Kutztown and Millersville on Saturday, November 7.

F&M concludes the 2026 portion of the calendar with the annual Franklin & Marshall Invitational from Friday, November 20, through Sunday, November 22. 11 men's swimming programs are currently confirmed for this year's Invite. 

2026 begins with trips to Washington College on Friday, January 16 and No. 22 Salisbury on Saturday, January 17. The Franklin & Marshall Spring Invitational on Saturday, February 7, is the final competition ahead of the 2026 Centennial Conference Swimming Championship.

The team returns from the winter break with home meets against #17 Salisbury on Saturday, January 16, and Washington College on Saturday, January 23. The Villanova Sprints on Saturday, January 30 concludes the pre-championship schedule.

The Kunkel Aquatic Center will play host to the Centennial Conference Swimming Championship for the third consecutive season from Thursday, February 18, through Sunday, February 21. 

The 2027 NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving Championship will be hosted at the Greensboro Aquatic Center from Thursday, March 17, through Sunday, March 20. 

In the Polls

With 36 points, F&M was selected to finish fifth in the Centennial Conference Coaches Preseason Poll. Defending Centennial Conference Champions No. 10 Swarthmore lead the poll with 61 points and six first-place votes. No. 17 Johns Hopkins trails with 49 points and three first-place votes. Gettysburg (51) ranks in third place, while Ursinus is in fourth with 39 votes. Behind the Diplomats, Dickinson (33), Washington College (22), Bryn Mawr (14), and McDaniel (9) complete the poll. You can view the complete Centennial Conference Coaches Preseason Poll here.  

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