Northern Michigan University’s Anika Wright shows off the form that helped her win her second GLIAC Women’s Swimmer of the Week award after a four-win performance in a dual meet against nationally ranked Wayne State on Saturday at the PEIF pool in Marquette. (Photo courtesy NMU)

MARQUETTE — A pair of past All-American athletes on the women’s swimming and diving team at Northern Michigan University have earned conference weekly awards after the Wildcats’ dominant performance over a nationally ranked foe.

The No. 10 nationally ranked NMU women blasted No. 13 Wayne State 239-61 at the PEIF pool on Saturday in this matchup of teams from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Meanwhile, two nationally ranked men’s teams also clashed on campus, but No. 11 Wayne State prevailed 163-137 over No. 8 Northern.

All these squads had met late Friday afternoon for a “skins” meet, too, where team scores weren’t kept.

In the aftermath of these meets, two Wildcat juniors on the women’s team earned GLIAC weekly awards — Anika Wright was named GLIAC Women’s Swimmer of the Week, while Kalina Ceglinski earned GLIAC Women’s Diver of the Week.

It wasn’t the first conference weekly award either has won even in this early part of the season; it was Ceglinski’s third time and Wright’s second.

Two male athletes have also won weekly awards this season, swimmer Jef Leroux and diver Tobie Stiles.

Wright, from Stillwater, Minnesota, swam on her traditional 200-yard freestyle relay team in Friday’s skins, which took second, then took on less usual roles, including in the 100 individual medley and swimming a breaststroke leg in the 200 medley relay.

On Saturday where the swimming really got serious, Wright won all four of her events — comfortable victories in the 500 free, 1,000 free and 400 IM, then also swimming the anchor freestyle leg of the 400 medley relay.

Statistically, she scored 27 points on Saturday and has accumulated 666.60 points in six weeks of the season, No. 1 among the Wildcat women and seventh in the GLIAC.

“Anika had a great weekend,” Northern head coach Heidi Voigt said in an NMU Sports Information news release about the awards. “She really swam with confidence and determination, and I am super excited for her to receive this award for all of her hard work she’s put in.”

Ceglinski, who is from Elmhurst, Illinois, kept a perfect streak going of sweeping every diving event she has entered this season. At the skins, she totaled 281.70 points for a win of more than 24 points on one-meter, then on Saturday, she had 450.00 points in one-meter, more than 25 points ahead of the field, and 278.18 in three-meter, a better than 33-point bulge.

“Kalina has been diving very well in competitions, and it is super nice to see consistency and confidence in meets this early on in the season,” Wildcats diving coach Christopher Kelly said in the NMU SI release. “(I’m) looking forward to taking that consistency into our midseason meet after a month of training.”

Both teams are getting four weeks off before a marathon meet, the three-day Calvin College Invitational from Dec. 4-6 in Grand Rapids.

Here are more details from each meet last weekend:

NMU women win big

In Saturday’s “regular” meet, Northern claimed 37 of 48 podium finishes, including a win in every event and pulling off a 1-2-3 sweep in five of them — the 200 free, 100 backstroke, 100 breaststroke, 200 butterfly and 100 fly.

NMU’s Annika Geyer, like Wright a distance specialist, was second in the 500 free and 1,000 free to Wright, also winning the 200 fly and swimming a leg in the runner-up 400 free relay.

Teammate Evie DeCarlo won the 100 breast, 100 free and swam with the 400 medley relay winners, while Manuela Arujo took the 200 free and 200 IM with second in the 400 IM to Wright.

And the Wildcats’ Sophia Moore won the 100 fly and swam on the 400 medley relay winners while adding a runner-up finish in the 200 fly. Teammate Evangeline Pierce won the 200 back and was second in the 100 back and as part of the 400 medley relay.

In diving, Grace Daly was third in the one-meter and Lilian Marx third in the three-meter.

NMU men edged out

On Saturday, the Wildcats won 22 of 48 podium spots, including seven victories.

Northern’s Andrew Tease won the 100 breast and 200 breast, finishing runner-up with the 400 medley relay, while Nicholas Metzler was second in the 100 breast and third in the 200 breast.

NMU freshman Matteo Ballardin continued his remarkable collegiate start, winning the 200 fly and 400 IM and runner-up in the 200 back and with the 400 medley relay.

Another Wildcat freshman, Timothee Garin, was second in the 500 free and 1,000 free, also third in the 400 free relay.

Northern’s Daniel Khmara won the 100 free and swam with the 400 free relay winners as he took second with the 400 medley relay, while William LaCount won the 50 free and was with the victorious 400 free relay, adding a third in the 100 free.

Story contents based on Northern Michigan University Sports Information press releases reviewing the meets and awards. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee’s email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.