COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Mountain West announced today the 2026 women’s swimming & diving postseason accolades as voted on by the leagues 10 head coaches.

Nevada’s Scarlett Ferris was tabbed the 2026 MW Swimmer of the Year while Grace Ally was named the Diver of the Year. Washington State’s Russell Whitaker garnered the Swimming Coach of the Year honor and San Diego State’s Roland McDonald was selected as the Diving Coach of the Year.

SWIMMER OF THE YEAR
Scarlett Ferris, Junior, Nevada

Ferris was named the Mountain West Swimmer of the Week on February 3, 2026 after setting a Mountain West and Nevada record by winning the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 50.78. The junior won the 100-yard backstroke, becoming the first person in conference history to win the event three consecutive times, with a time of 51.07. Ferris also finished first in 100-yard butterfly with another conference record time of 51.34. She also finished seventh in the 50-yard freestyle, earning All-Mountain West honors in all three events and was named the Co-Swimmer of the Meet. She qualified for NCAA Championships in the 100-yard butterfly, 100-yard backstroke and competed in the 100-yard freestyle at the national meet. Ferris became Nevada’s first All-American since 2023 after finishing ninth in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 50.98, earning second team honors. She also finished 22nd in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 51.72 and 51st in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 49.25. She scored Nevada twelve points for the Wolf Pack’s first national finish (T-33rd) since 2023.

DIVER OF THE YEAR
Grace Ally, Senior, Fresno State

Ally was the only Mountain West Diver to qualify for the platform event at the NCAA Championship, finishing 28th with a score of 239.80. She claimed the final qualifying spot at the NCAA Zone E Championships, finishing seventh in the platform event with a score of 474.30. The senior earned All-Mountain West honors following the 2026 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Swimming & Diving Championships after finishing third with a score of 296.55.

SWIMMING COACH OF THE YEAR
Russell Whitaker, Washington State

Whitaker finished his second season leading the Washington State Swimming program and was selected for the first time as the MW Swimming Coach of the Year. He led two swimmers to the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championship this season, Emily Lundgren and Darcy Revitt. The pair became the first set of Cougar swimmers to earn All-America honors in the same season after finishing 15th in the 200-yard breaststroke and 16th in the 100-yard freestyle, respectively. Whitaker had 12 swimmers named 2026 All-Mountain West honorees. As a team, Washington State finished second at the 2026 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Swimming & Diving Championships, which was the best finish in program history. The team also went 7-0 in dual meets during the 2025-26 season.

DIVING COACH OF THE YEAR
Roland McDonald, San Diego State

McDonald finished his 16th year as the head diving coach for the Aztecs and was selected for the fifth time, and third consecutive time, as the MW Diving Coach of the Year (’19, ’20, ’24, ‘25). He coached three divers to All-MW honors in the 1-meter, 3-meter and platform events: Belen Cano, Isabella Gomez and Alina Skrocki. He also coached Keira Kuderka to All-MW honors in the platform event. In addition, McDonald coached Gomez, Cano and Skrocki to a gold medal in team diving at the MW Championships, the first year the event was scored at the meet.

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