As the host school, Franklin College was already going to be represented in some manner at next month's NCAA Division III swimming and diving championships.

Now, the Grizzlies know they'll actually have swimmers in the water as well.

Junior Celeste Hollis and senior Kat Lundy both qualified as individuals for the national meet, which will be held at the IU Natatorium in downtown Indianapolis. They're the first Griz swimmers to advance to NCAAs since 2023, when Kosmo Wojack earned second team All-America status in the men's 200-yard butterfly.

"It's really fun when you see two of your hardest workers get that payoff," Franklin coach Zach Rayce said. "You preach hard work pays off, and when you actually see it, it's like, 'I'm not crazy; this actually works.'"

"I'm really grateful that I get to go, and that this program has gotten me to this point," Hollis added. "It's a good look for the team and the program, and I'm happy to have a part in that."

Hollis made the cut in the 100 fly by swimming a school and conference record time of 55.25 seconds at the HCAC Championships two weeks ago; she improved upon that mark by one hundredth of a second at the UIndy Last Chance Meet last Friday and is currently ranked 17th nationally. The Granger, Indiana product also plans to compete in the 200 fly (her HCAC preliminary time of 2:05.56 is a school and conference record) and the 50 freestyle, an event in which she broke school and HCAC open records with a 23.53 at the UIndy meet; she is seeded 36th and 38th, respectively, in those events.

"My goal is to drop time. I would really like to especially drop time in the 200 fly," Hollis said. "Just giving it my all in prelims, and if I get to come back for a second swim I'd be grateful."

Lundy punched her ticket in the 100 backstroke with a 56.19 at the conference meet, breaking her own school standard and establishing a new HCAC mark. She'll also swim the 200 backstroke and likely a third event to be determined. The Winchester, Indiana native is seeded 29th in the 100 and 31st in the 200.

Graduating a year early, Lundy came out of the HCAC Championships believing her competitive swimming days were over — but she wound up getting a surprise invitation. She's happy to have the chance to end her career on the biggest stage that Division III has to offer.

"One last time," she said. "This is it."

Also breaking one of his old school records at UIndy last weekend was junior Zachary Jackson-Blaine, who narrowly missed an NCAA spot of his own after swimming the men's 50 freestyle in 20.14, topping his previous mark of 20.33 set last year at the HCAC Championships. The top 16 times qualify on the men's side (Jackson-Blaine is tied for 23rd), and the NCAA qualifying cutoff wound up being 20.01, the fastest in the event's history.

Franklin hadn't had any women qualify for NCAAs since 2020, when five Grizzlies earned spots in relays, individual events or both only to have the meet canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, Hollis and Lundy will be the first Griz women to hit the water at nationals since 2019.

It's a big deal — and Rayce, who was a senior on the team during that ill-fated 2020 campaign, plans to make the most of the opportunity.

"We'll make a spectacle out of it," he said.