The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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AUGUST 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 31 2025-26 YEAR IN REVIEW night. Olson, who received Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors with Ohio State's Jaloni Cambridge last season, led the team in points (18.9) and rebounds (6.1) en route to first-team All-Big Ten recognition and second-team All-Amer- ica nods from ESPN and The New York Times and third-team honors from the AP, USWBA and TSN. Swords joined Ol- son on the first-team All-Big Ten squad after averaging 14.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Holloway led the program with 4.8 assists per game to go with her 12.3 points per contest. The sophomore trio, along with class- mates Te'Yala Delfosse and Kendall Dud- ley, ended the season on the court to- gether in the loss to Texas. Barnes Arico said part of that was by design as the program builds around the class, and looks to take things to the next level in 2026-27. "Those five are a core group to the future of this program, and they all are really special in their own way," Barnes Arico said. "They all bring something in- credible to our team and to our program. They know that it's their turn now, and they know that they want to get back in the gym." Michigan hopes its next step involves more success against ranked opponents. The Wolverines went 6-6 against ranked foes last season and lost all five games against top-10 opponents. "I think the best thing about our team is we want to get back in the gym and get better, and we want to see what we need to work on," Olson said at the end of the campaign. "I think just growing from these games and being put in this situa- tion is really the missing piece. "We needed to get here, and now we know what it's like to be here. We're going to use that just to get better as a team." Barnes Arico suggested that the way the year ended could be a pivotal moment for the program. "I heard [Texas head coach Vic Schae- fer] say he lost in the Sweet 16 [by a lot] and then the following year he came back and was able to get to a Final Four," the coach said. "So, we talked in the locker room a little bit about it. Last year, we made our jump. Next year, we're going to look forward to making another jump." The 2025-26 season was a step for- ward in almost every area for U-M, with plenty to celebrate. Now, the hope is that it serves as a springboard. "Everybody, 1 through 14, seniors in- cluded, are people that are going to get in the gym as soon as Coach allows us when we get back and get working again," Swords said. "We're going to be watching film from [the Texas game], and we're just going to be taking it as fuel for next year and seeing how far we can go on that next run. ❏ Runners Up Women's basketball took home our top female team honors this year, but there were still a number of other performances across the U-M athletics department deserving of praise. Here are the women's teams that staked their claim for the top prize. 2. Swimming and Diving – The program enjoyed a successful campaign, opening the season with a 6-0 mark before taking second place at the inaugural CSCAA Dual Meet Challenge, trail- ing only perennial powerhouse Virginia. The Wolverines dominated the Big Ten Championships, winning their first title since 2018 by more than 100 points, then placing sixth at the NCAAs, their best finish since 2020-21. Newcomer Bella Sims headlined the year, winning an individual national title and Big Ten Swimmer of the Year honors, while Letitia Sim, Brady Kendall and Han- nah Bellard all earned All-America recognition. U-M finished with eight first-team All-Americans and eight first-team All-Big Ten selections (Sims, Sim, Kendall, Bellard, Stephanie Balduccini, Leila Fack, Lexi Greenhawt, Christey Liang), capping a landmark campaign. 3. Tennis – U-M went 21-7 overall, claiming a fourth straight Big Ten title and Sweet 16 ap- pearance before falling, 4-2, to No. 5 North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament. Seniors Lily Jones and Piper Charney earned ITA singles All-America honors, both reaching the NCAA Round of 16 and finishing in the final top 20 of the rankings. It was Charney's second career citation, making her the sixth Wolverine with multiple honors in her career, after a 24-1 mark with All-Big Ten first-team recognition. Jones closed her career ranked fourth all-time with 117 singles wins and Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors. 4. Lacrosse – Last year's Female Team of the Year finished 13-7 this past season with eight ranked wins, including top-five upsets against No. 3 Maryland and No. 5 Florida. The Wolverines went 6-2 in Big Ten play, reached the conference tournament quarterfinals and made their fifth straight NCAA Tournament appearance, bowing out in the second round. Senior Grace Callahan led the way with IWLCA third-team All-America honors while breaking Michigan's career ground ball record with 112 collected. Junior Emma Bradbury paced the offense with 70 points, and sophomore Emma Burke shattered the program's career draw-control record with 178 wins. U-M tied a program-best mark with eight All-Big Ten honorees (Callahan, Bradbury, Emma Burke, Jordyn Harrison, Ava Class, Taylor Cullen, Calli Norris, Elizabeth Johnson). 5. Softball – U-M finished 36-22 in 2026, reaching the Big Ten Tournament semifinals before falling to Nebraska, then advancing to the NCAA Regional championship game against host Oklahoma, which knocked them out. The Wolverines' offense surged behind sophomore Lauren Putz, who hit .435 with 22 home runs and 80 RBI en route to NFCA second-team All-America and All-Big Ten first-team honors. Michigan set program records with a .535 slugging percentage and 79 home runs, fueled by a historic comeback win at Northwestern and walk-off and Regional heroics from junior Jenissa Conway. Junior Erin Hoehn also broke out at the plate, earning first- team All-Great Lakes Region recognition. — Anthony Broome The U-M women's basketball squad set program standards for regular-season wins (24) and Big Ten wins (15) en route to the NCAA Elite Eight during a breakthrough season in 2025-26. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY