Men’s Swimming & Diving: Cadets claim third-straight GNAC Championship, sixth ever in program history, Adlianitski, Bylow tapped Swimmer, Rookie of the Year

The Cadets amassed a dominant 472 points over the three-day GNAC Championship event, topping the three-team field that included Regis College and the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.).  The Pride took second place with 186 points, narrowly edging past the Blue Jays' 180-point tally.

Norwich maintained advantages across all three days, joining the women's swimming & diving team in a clean sweep of the GNAC Championship for the third-straight season.  The victory marks the second-ever three-peat for the Norwich men's swimming & diving program since the GNAC began sponsoring a men's swimming & diving championship in 2017-18.  The Cadets claimed the league crowns during the 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20 seasons, and again the 2022-23 and 2023-24 campaigns.

The Cadets enjoyed individual and relay victories in 22 of 25 events over the three-day showcase, including taking home gold in all eight events during the opening day.  Sunday's final day saw Norwich collect wins in seven of eight races, starting with Kristian Adlianitski's (Cheshire, Conn.) title in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 47.35.  He also won the 1650-yard freestyle, clocking in at 16:59.76.

Will Thompson (Downingtown, Pa.) claimed victory in the 50-yard breaststroke, touching the wall at 26.75.  The Cadets received a historic performance from Drew Bylow (Monroe, Mich.) in the 100-yard backstroke, as the freshman smashed Norwich Hall of Famer Ben Courtney '08's longstanding 17-year-old record of 53.16 by .2 seconds, finishing in 53.14.

Andrew Clark (Acworth, Ga.) took the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:56.12, while Martin Adlianitski (Cheshire, Conn.) claimed first in the 200-yard IM on 2:00.07.  Kristian Adlianitski, Thompson, Arthur Abrams (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.), and Adrian Riendeau (Ridgecrest, Calif.) teamed up to win the 400-yard medley relay, clocking in at 3:37.53.

Other records also fell over the three days, including a nine-year-old school record in the 50-yard butterfly, set by Mark Walleshauser in 2016 of 24.56.  Riendeau initially broke the mark during the 200-yard medley relay on day one with a 24.41 effort, but he shattered his own mark the next day, recording a 24.27 time to cement himself in the record books.

Riendeau's 200-yard medley relay team, which included Thompson, Martin Adlianitski, and Kristian Adlianitski, opened the GNAC Championships with a new conference record, combining for a 1:35.43 effort.

For their efforts throughout the season and at the title race, the Cadets were recognized with a pair of year-end major awards.  Kristian Adlianitski, the 2024 GNAC Men's Rookie of the Year and a four-time recipient of the GNAC Men's Swimmer of the Week award this season, was voted the GNAC's Men's Swimmer of the Year, joining teammates Thompson and Martin Adlianitski in earning the recognition over the last three years.  Bylow, meanwhile, continued to corral accolades for his historic freshman campaign, as the seven-time GNAC Men's Rookie of the Week recipient was tapped as the GNAC Men's Rookie of the Year.

Michael Carpenter (Gloversville, N.Y.) was named as Norwich's representative on the GNAC All-Sportsmanship Team.  For Head Coach Jennifer Cournoyer, the title marks the fourth men's championship under her leadership at Norwich University, and, with the women's title, the seventh overall.

The top three finishers in each event were also recognized as 2025 All-Conference honorees.  They included:
•    200 Medley Relay - Norwich (Adrian Riendeau, Will Thompson, Martin Adlianitski, Kristian Adlianitski)
•    400 IM - Arthur Abrams, Norwich; Braeden Scott (Keene, N.H.), Norwich
•    200 Freestyle - Kristian Adlianitski, Norwich; Drew Bylow, Norwich; Adrian Riendeau, Norwich
•    50 Butterfly - Martin Adlianitski, Norwich; Joshua Kelly (Stowe, Vt.), Norwich
•    100 Breaststroke - Will Thompson, Norwich
•    200 Backstroke - Drew Bylow, Norwich
•    1000 Freestyle - Andrew Clark, Norwich; John Connor Hallstrom (Bethany, Conn.), Norwich; Alex Sulyma, Norwich
•    400 Freestyle Relay - Norwich (Adrian Riendeau, Martin Adlianitski, Will Thompson, Kristian Adlianitski)
•    200 Freestyle Relay - Norwich (Drew Bylow, Martin Adlianitski, Will Thompson, Kristian Adlianitski)
•    100 Butterfly - Martin Adlianitski, Norwich; Arthur Abrams, Norwich
•    500 Freestyle - Andrew Clark, Norwich; Alex Sulyma (Warwick, R.I.), Norwich; Drew Bylow, Norwich
•    50 Backstroke - Adrian Riendeau, Norwich
•    50 Freestyle - Kristian Adlianitski, Norwich
•    200 Breaststroke - Will Thompson, Norwich
•    100 IM - Adrian Riendeau, Norwich; Will Thompson, Norwich; Braeden Scott, Norwich
•    800 Freestyle Relay - Norwich (Martin Adlianitski, Adrian Riendeau, Drew Bylow, Andrew Clark)
•    100 Freestyle - Kristian Adlianitski, Norwich; Martin Adlianitski, Norwich
•    50 Breaststroke - Will Thompson, Norwich
•    1650 Freestyle - Kristian Adlianitski, Norwich; John Connor Hallstrom, Norwich
•    100 Backstroke - Drew Bylow, Norwich; Zachary Pifer (Cibolo, Texas), Norwich
•    200 Butterfly - Andrew Clark, Norwich; John Connor Hallstrom, Norwich
•    200 IM - Martin Adlianitski, Norwich; Arthur Abrams, Norwich; Adrian Riendeau, Norwich
•    400 Medley Relay - Norwich (Adrian Riendeau, Will Thompson, Arty Abrams, Martin Adlianitski)

DAY 1 FINALS LEADERS:
•    200 Yard Medley Relay
o    Adrian Riendeau (Ridgecrest, Calif.), Will Thompson (Downingtown, Pa.), Martin Adlianitski (Cheshire, Conn.), Kristian Adlianitski (Cheshire, Conn.)
    1st, 1:35.43 (GNAC record)
•    400 Yard IM
o    Arthur Abrams (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.)
    1st, 4:20.40
•    200 Yard Freestyle
o    Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 1:46.44
•    50 Yard Butterfly
o    Martin Adlianitski
    1st, 23.82
•    100 Yard Breaststroke
o    Will Thompson
    1st, 58.73
•    200 Yard Backstroke
o    Drew Bylow (Monroe, Mich.)
    1st, 1:58.19
•    1000 Yard Freestyle
o    Andrew Clark (Acworth, Ga.)
    1st, 10:08.89
•    400 Yard Freestyle Relay
o    Adrian Riendeau, Martin Adlianitski, Will Thompson, Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 3:13.53

DAY 2 FINALS LEADERS:
•    200 Yard Freestyle Relay
o    Drew Bylow, Martin Adlianitski, Will Thompson, Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 1:26.44
•    100 Yard Butterfly
o    Martin Adlianitski
    2nd, 53.08
•    500 Yard Freestyle
o    Andrew Clark
    1st, 4:51.22
•    50 Yard Backstroke
o    Adrian Riendeau
    1st, 24.27 (school record)
•    50 Yard Freestyle
o    Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 21.48
•    200 Yard Breaststroke
o    Will Thompson
    1st, 2:11.76
•    100 Yard IM
o    Adrian Riendeau
    1st, 54.86
•    800 Yard Freestyle Relay
o    Martin Adlianitski, Adrian Riendeau, Drew Bylow, Andrew Clark
    1st, 7:11.14

DAY 3 FINALS LEADERS:
•    100 Yard Freestyle
o    Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 47.35
•    50 Yard Breaststroke
o    Will Thompson
    1st, 26.75
•    1650 Yard Freestyle
o    Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 16:59.76
•    100 Yard Backstroke
o    Drew Bylow
    1st, 53.14 (school & GNAC record)
•    200 Yard Butterfly
o    Andrew Clark
    1st, 1:56.12
•    200 Yard IM
o    Martin Adlianitski
    1st, 2:00.07
•    400 Yard Medley Relay
o    Adrian Riendeau, Will Thompson, Arthur Abrams, Kristian Adlianitski
    1st, 3:37.53

A select group of swimmers will now look ahead to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Open Swimming & Diving Championships, set to take place from Friday, Feb. 28 to Sunday, Mar. 2, hosted by the Naval Academy in Lejeune Hall in Annapolis, Md.

2025 GNAC Men's Swimming & Diving Final Rankings
1. Norwich - 472
2. Regis (Mass.) - 186
3. Saint Joseph (Conn.) - 180

Portion of release courtesy of Great Northeast Athletic Conference office.