North Central College Cardinals

Career Highlights: 2006 NCAA Division III national champion in the 200-yard backstroke; Five-time All-American; Five-time CCIW champion in three different events; Program record holder for the 100- and 200-yard backstroke and 200-yard individual medley; Two-time CCIW Men’s Most Valuable Swimmer 

 

Mark Schmitt ’06 spent two memorable seasons with the North Central College men’s swimming & diving program after transferring in from the University of Iowa. He made an immediate impact on one of the most storied programs in North Central history. In his first season, Schmitt broke a pair of 15-year-old school records in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 50.28, and the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:49.03. That same season, Schmitt won three College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) individual championships in the 200-yard individual medley, 100-yard backstroke and 200-yard backstroke. This led him to be named the CCIW Men’s Most Valuable Swimmer and earn his place at the 2004 NCAA Division III Men’s Swimming National Championships. There, he took second place in the 200-yard backstroke while setting the new program benchmark. At the 2006 national championships, Schmitt secured second place in the 100-yard backstroke while setting another program record, along with a CCIW record. On the final day of the three-day championships, Schmitt beat the competition by 0.22 seconds to win an individual national championship in the 200-yard backstroke, becoming the 13th individual national champion in program history, and the first since 1964. Schmitt returned to North Central to serve as the head coach for the men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs from 2015 to 2020.