ITHACA, N.Y. — With an Ivy League champion returning, a promising first-year class and a group of sophomores showing signs of growth, the Cornell men's swimming and diving team enters the 2026–27 season looking to make depth its defining strength.

The Big Red finished fifth at the 2026 Ivy League Championships with 841 points, holding off Brown's 805 and finishing behind fourth-place Columbia's 901.5. Blake Conway's first individual league title and subsequent NCAA Championships appearance highlighted a season Cornell hopes to build upon.cornellbigred+1

For head coach Wes Newman, the goal is to continue the progress established over the past several seasons while developing contributors throughout the roster.

"We've got a good foundation, and we want to continue to build off of that in terms of training and how that then moves forward into competition," Newman said.

Cornell opens at Teagle Pool against Harvard and Penn, with diving on Nov. 6 and swimming on Nov. 7. The following weekend brings meetings with Yale and Dartmouth in New Haven, giving the Big Red four Ivy opponents across its first two weekends.

Conway Returns With Championship Confidence

Senior Blake Conway enters the season as the defending Ivy League champion in the 100-yard backstroke after a breakthrough junior campaign that carried him to the national stage.

Conway's season-best 45.77 ranked second in Cornell history, behind former teammate Pietro Ubertalli's 45.29. At his first NCAA Championships, Conway placed 43rd in the event with a preliminary time of 46.41.

Newman sees an opportunity for Conway to build on that experience while helping lead Cornell's backstroke and middle-distance stroke groups.

"Honestly, he was an underdog last year, so he's a senior this year, coming back as the defending league champion," Newman said. "Exciting to see how he builds off of that year."

Conway is part of a six-member senior class that also includes Julian Correa, Owen Dankert, Brock Schedler, Michael Wywrocki and Haihan Xu.

Rather than relying on one dominant personality, Newman said the group has established a shared approach to leadership.

"I think that they all play a pretty good role, and that's pretty special," he said. "They're just leading by example."

Sprint Group and Sophomore Progress Fuel Optimism

Junior Josh Toothman anchors a sprint group Newman views as one of Cornell's strengths. Newman identified Toothman as the school-record holder in the 50 freestyle and believes he has additional room to improve in the 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke.

Toothman also brings championship relay experience after swimming on Cornell's fifth-place 400 freestyle relay at last season's Ivy meet.

Sophomore Soren Koschmann has been another encouraging presence in preseason. Newman pointed to Koschmann's summer work and renewed confidence as signs that he could take a significant step forward.

"I feel like we've just begun to see his potential," Newman said.

Fellow sophomores Duke Garvin and Will Chen also drew praise for their offseason improvement, giving Cornell additional possibilities as the coaching staff evaluates its freestyle lineup.

First-year sprinter Yaron Li adds another potential contributor. Newman expects his impact to develop as he returns to consistent training after an illness interrupted his preseason preparation.

Correa, Xu and Newcomers Strengthen Event Groups

Cornell's opportunities extend beyond the sprint events.

Correa returns for his senior season as the program's 400 IM record holder, according to Newman, and brings distance experience after finishing 11th in the 1,650 freestyle in 15:15.09 at last season's Ivy Championships.

First-year Jeremy Ting could help strengthen both the individual medley and distance training groups. Newman said Ting arrives with a 400 IM best time comparable to Correa's, creating the potential for productive competition between an established senior and a newcomer.

Xu provides another experienced championship scorer. He placed sixth in the 200 breaststroke in 1:55.58 last February, while returning junior Emmanuel Gadson finished 11th in 1:57.49.

Newman believes the first-year class can contribute in individual events and contend for relay positions, but he is allowing competition—not incoming times alone—to determine those roles.

Adjusting to academics, campus life and a new training environment will shape how quickly newcomers translate their potential into collegiate performances.

"There's a number of them that can contribute if everything goes to plan," Newman said.

Four Divers Push for Impact

Under diving coach Michael Ross, Cornell returns juniors William Klingensmith and Max Reis-Trovillion and sophomore Peter Buskirk, while welcoming first-year Henry Palmquist.

Newman credited the two juniors with providing experience and pointed to Buskirk's championship performance last season as a potential source of confidence entering his second year.

Reis-Trovillion finished 15th on the 3-meter board at the 2026 Ivy Championships with a finals score of 274.10.

Palmquist has already made an impression in practice, challenging the returning divers and demonstrating his potential to contribute immediately.

"I think all four of them have the potential to make an impact," Newman said. "I think that all four of them are pushing each other in practice every day."

Early Tests Build Toward February

The opening weekend will provide an immediate measure of Cornell's progress.

Newman expects Harvard to present a demanding challenge and anticipates a competitive meeting with Penn, an opponent he described as a longstanding rival. Racing at Teagle Pool gives the Big Red an opportunity to begin that stretch at home.

The schedule continues with the UB Invitational in November and the Zippy Invitational in December. January brings St. Bonaventure, a meeting with Brown and Princeton in Providence, and a home finale against Columbia on Jan. 29. Cornell then visits the Boston University Invitational on Feb. 5–6 before returning to Providence for the Ivy League Championships on Feb. 24–27.

Newman expects performances to sharpen as training shifts from heavier workloads toward race-specific preparation and, eventually, a championship taper. Maintaining health and consistent training will be essential to that progression.

Relays remain a priority, particularly the 400 medley relay, which Newman believes can again become a competitive event for Cornell. More broadly, he wants individual improvement throughout the roster to translate into collective gains.

By February, Newman hopes that progress creates difficult decisions for him and assistant coach Caleb Treadwell when selecting the championship team.

"I hope that Caleb and I have a really challenging job in trying to select our championship team when we have to whittle it down because we've got depth," Newman said. "And I hope that that shows at our conference meet at the end of the year."