Butler swimming is off to the races in Coach Stewart’s 21st year as head coach. Photo courtesy of Butler Athletics.
AIDEN CADDELL | STAFF REPORTER | acaddell@butler.edu
Diving into the 2025 season, the Bulldog swimming team started their year off in heartwarming fashion, meeting with Wabash College in its third annual “Swim Across America” charity event. Over $6,000 was raised for cancer awareness at the Sept. 25 event.
The event has become a tradition for the women’s team, which is looking to build and improve upon its historic 2024 season that saw eight school records broken. Many contributors from that milestone season are returning this year, including senior and short-distance swimmer Kate Schilling, who set five individual records herself.
The Bulldogs start their competitive season on Oct. 4 at IU Indy, facing the Jaguars as well as Bellarmine, BGSU, Saint Louis and Big East opponent Xavier. Head coach Maurice Stewart, in his 21st season at Butler, aims to start the season strong at a pool he says is one of the fastest in the world.
“I think this year could be one of the best and most exciting seasons I’ve had [in my time] here at Butler,” Stewart said. “I’m very excited… [to] finish out this class on a very high note.”
Following the crosstown meet, the Bulldogs head north to Purdue University for the Indiana Intercollegiates. Schilling, who placed third in both the 100 Breaststroke and 100 Fly last year at the meet, says it is one of her favorite experiences of the season.
“I’m really excited for the Purdue meet coming up,” Schilling said. “It brings the whole team together, and we race against some really fast girls.”
Looking forward to the year, Stewart says the mid-season “House of Champions” invite in November is highlighted, circled and bolded on his calendar. Last year, the team scored 619 points en route to a ninth-place finish.
“We typically perform well at that meet, [as] it’s a good mid-season, high-performance meet for us and other teams,” Stewart said. “Hopefully, the results are going to add motivation and confidence to our ladies, carrying us into the second half of the season.”
Senior Olivia Stotts, a sprint distance swimmer and member of the 400 Free relay team, feels the liveliness at high-importance meets, such as the House of Champions, is unmatched.
“The 400 Free relay, it’s the last relay of every big meet like the House of Champs and Big East,” Stotts said. “I’m really excited for the high energy and doing better than we did last year and years past.”
The season concludes in February with the Big East Championship in Ocala, Florida. Last year, the Bulldogs put together an all-time performance, scoring the second-most points in school history at the conference championship. This year, the Dawgs look to better their efforts, setting their sights on program history once again.
“[The girls] come in wanting to get better each day, and they work really hard to achieve that,” Stewart said. “It’s about work ethic, motivation and building confidence. They do a good job balancing those three to carry us into what’s hopefully going to be a great season.”
