Cornell swimming and diving announced the newest members of their 2022 class last Wednesday, ushering in a new wave of youth to a program that has been slowly building momentum in the past three years. The men’s team will welcome nine new swimmers and one diver, while women’s will receive seven swimmers and a diver.
Of those 18 swimmers, eight previously swam in California — arguably the sport’s most competitive region in the United States — signaling the program’s increasing caliber.
Ethan Bachert
Niskayuna, New York — Niskayuna High School
A sophomore transfer from the University of Buffalo, while swimming for his hometime high school he was twice named to the all-region team. He was also a three-time member of the Section II All-star team, and set the school record in the 100 fly event. Primarily a butterfly swimmer, he will add to the Red’s existing strength in that event.
Jordan Blitz
San Diego, California — Torrey Pines High School
Blitz is a highly decorated freestyler who captured 12 California Interscholastic Federation San Diego titles while being named a U.S.A. Swimming Scholastic All-American for three consecutive years.
Matthew Chang
Holmdel, New Jersey — Ranney School
Chang graduated high school with nine school records and a conference title under his belt. He was a seven-time state medalist and a five-time national medalist. He is the sixth of his family to attend Cornell.
Jameson Crandell
Frisco, Texas — Rick Reedy High School
The sole freshman diver of the 2022 class, Crandell was an all-state diver for three consecutive years at his high school. Crandell was also a two-time TISCA state champion and a member of the senior U.S.A. Diving national team in 2018.
Matt Hales
Laguna Hills, California — Laguna Hills High School
Hales is a two-time Junior National Championships qualifier, and was named to the U.S.A. Swimming Scholastic All-American team for three consecutive years. He has also made a lasting contribution outside the pool: he is the president and co-founder of Goggles for guppies, an organization that has delivered over one million dollars worth of swim gear for at-risk children. For his charitable work, he received a Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award from Barack Obama.
Hunter Hitchens
Irvine, California — Northwood High School
A freestyle and butterfly swimmer, Hitchens graduated with three school records and was named to the USA Swimming Scholastic All-American team for three consecutive years. In a testament to his leadership skills, he captained his team to a state championship during his senior year.
Jake Lawson
Salem, Virginia — Salem High School
Lawson is an all-state swimmer and was named a member of the USA Gold Medal Club in 2018. Showing impressive versatility, he swims the freestyle, backstroke, and IM events.
Ian Mackey
Potomac, Maryland — Winston Churchill High School
A freestyler from Potomac, Maryland, Mackey captained an undefeated season for his Winston Churchill High School. He also set the 50m long course freestyle and 200m short course freestyle relay records for his club swimming team.
Ricardo Martinez
St. Petersburg, Florida — Osceola Fundamental High School
Martinez is a Florida state champion in the 200 IM, and has qualified for the state championship in each year of his high school career. On top of that, he qualified for junior nationals in an impressive six events.
Ziad Mosalam
Pinole, California — Bentley Upper School
During his time in high school, Mosalam set nine school records for Bentley Upper School. Also a cross country runner, Mosalam was elected the team MVP for three straight seasons.
Chris Ruhnke
Bridgewater, New Jersey — Bridgewater-Raritan High School
A freshman breaststroker from Bridgewater, New Jersey, Ruhnke is an All-American swimmer and a third team all-state honoree in the 100m breaststroke event. At the YMCA nationals championships, Ruhnke placed third overall.
Ryan Schildwachter
Newport Coast, California — Corona Del Mar High School
A freshman breaststroker from Newport Coast, California, Schildwachter not only is a two-time NISCA All-American in breaststroke, but has also twice earned All-American awards in water polo. Both Ruhnke and Schildwachter look to fill in a large hole left behind by Alex Evdokimov, who graduated last year as arguably the best breaststroker in Ivy League history.
Gillian Caverly
Pacific Palisades, California — Palisades Charter High
A freestyle and backstroke swimmer, Caverly is a 100m and 200m backstroke champion in the summer junior Olympics. She has additionally qualified for Junior Nationals as a member of her high school team.
Allison Chang
Plano, Texas — Plano Senior High School
In her junior and senior seasons, Chang earned Academic All-State honors while captaining her team. In 2016 and 2017, she qualified for the USA Swimming Winter Junior National Championships. In 2018, Chang was named NISCA Academic All-American.
Amilla Dlakic
Austin, Texas — Westlake High School
A breaststroker, Dlakic finished third overall in the 100m breaststroke event in Texas’ state championships. She was also a part of a 200 IM relay team that finished runner-up during the state competition.
Lavona Harper
La Habra, California — Sonora High School
A long-distance freestyle and backstroke swimmer, Harper won three league championships with her high school team and was a CIF finalist four times in 500m freestyle. In 2016, she earned a position to swim the 1000m freestyle event at the Junior Nationals championships.
DeeDee Maizes
Scotch Plains, New Jersey — Union County Academy for Allied Health Sciences
During her senior year, Maizes played an integral part of a 200 individual medley relay team that went on to win the state title. Maizes qualified for states three times, playing a pivotal role in a team that won four county and two sectional championships during her high school swimming career.
Claire McNeary
Manhasset, New York — Manhasset High School
A freshman medley swimmer, McNeary graduated with four school records, and qualified for states in four consecutive seasons. She has two brothers that are currently enrolled at Cornell.
Maddy Redding
Hope, Rhode Island — La Salle Academy
A freestyle swimmer, Redding is a decorated three-time state championship. She holds records in 100m and 200m freestyle, earned All-State awards in both her junior and senior seasons, and captained her club team for three years.
Demetra Williams
Saratoga, California — Monta Vista High School
Williams is a two-time Norcal Diver of the Year for the Stanford Diving Club. She qualified for the U.S.A. Diving Nationals championships in three consecutive years, and was named Athlete of the Year for her hometown high school.