Four Willamette Men's Swimmers Earn Academic All-District Honors

Academic All-District logo from the College Sports Communicators with the Willamette University Natatorium in the background
April 11, 2024

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University men's swimming team members William LaDuca (So., Salem, OR/South Salem HS), Cole Lindberg (Jr., Moses Lake, WA/Moses Lake Christian Academy), Will Mathews (Sr., St. Louis Park, MN/St. Louis Park HS), and Julius Wilhelmi (Sr., Roseville, CA/Woodcreek HS) have qualified for the 2023-24 NCAA Division III Academic All-District Men's Swimming Team. The Academic All-District Team is sponsored by the College Sports Communicators (CSC). Lindberg and Wilhelmi received Academic All-District recognition for the second consecutive year.

A panel of CSC members will determine which Academic All-District honorees are eligible to be selected for the NCAA Division III Academic All-America Women's Swimming Team. The Academic All-America Team will be released on Wednesday, April 24. Players nominated for the CSC All-District Team were starters or key reserves with cumulative grade point averages of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale. They participated in at least four meets or placed in the top eight at a conference championship. Each nominated student-athlete was at least a sophomore in academic and athletic standing.

The Willamette men's team placed second at the Bruin Invitational hosted by George Fox University on Dec. 2-3, 2023. Willamette placed fifth at the 2024 NWC Championships for the team's best finish since 2015. The Bearcats scored 282 points during the NWC Championships, an increase of 26 points from 2023 and the most points scored by the Willamette men's squad since 2018.

NCAA Division III Academic All-District

Headshot of Cole Lindberg Cole Lindberg (Jr.) earned CSC Academic All-District recognition for the second year in a row. At the 2024 NWC Championships, he set the Willamette record in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1:54.89 while placing fourth. He registered the second-fastest time in school history in the 100-yard butterfly at 49.96 seconds in the prelims and placed fourth in the final. He was named Second Team All-NWC in both events. He also received Second Team All-NWC honors in the 100-yard backstroke while taking fifth place with a career-best time of 52.63 seconds.

He was First Team All-NWC in the 200-yard butterfly in 2022-23 as he placed third in 1:53.40 while setting a school record. He was Second Team All-NWC in the 100-yard butterfly while placing fourth and setting the Willamette record in 49.91 seconds. In 2021-22, Lindberg was Second Team All-NWC in the 100-yard butterfly (4th place) and the 200-yard butterfly (4th place). He helped set the school record in the 400-yard medley relay at 3:31.28 in 2021-22, and contributed to the fourth-best time in the 400-yard medley relay at 3:33.50 in 2022-23.

Lindberg has an individually designed major in Strategic Communication and Marketing. He is participating in Willamette's 3+2 BA/MBA program. He was recently inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma. He concluded the fall semester with a 3.89 cumulative grade point average. He served as a Willamette Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative in 2022-23.

Headshot of William LaDuca William LaDuca (So.) competed in multiple events during the 2023-24 season. He swam in the 100-yard freestyle, 200-yard freestyle, and the 100-yard backstroke as individual events. He also participated in the 200-yard medley relay, 400-yard medley relay, and 800-yard feestyle relay events. At the 2024 NWC Championship, he was 12th in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 57.22 seconds. He finished 21st in the 100-yard freestyle and the 200-yard freestyle.

Also at the 2024 NWC Meet, he swam on three relay teams. Willamette placed sixth in the 200-yard medley relay, seventh in the 400-yard medley relay, and seventh in the 800-yard freestyle relay.

LaDuca is majoring in Politics, Policy, Law and Ethics. He has achieved a 3.86 cumulative GPA at Willamette.

Headshot of Will Mathews Will Mathews (Sr.) swam a limited amount during meets this season as he returned to action following an injury. Even so, he competed in four meets, including duals against Pacific University, Lewis & Clark College, and Linfield University. He also swam at the 2024 NWC Championships and placed 18th in the 100-yard backstroke.

Majoring in Physics at Willamette. He entered the spring semester with a 3.99 cumulative GPA. He was inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, the national student-athlete honorary society, in 2023.

Headshot of Julius Wilhelmi Julius Wilhelmi (Sr.) received CSC Academic All-District honors for the second year in a row. He was Second Team All-NWC in three events at the 2024 NWC Championships, as he took fourth place in the 50-yard freestyle in 21.10 seconds, seventh place in the 100-yard freestyle at 46.94 seconds, and sixth in the 200-yard freestyle in 1:43.48. He was a team captain this past season.

He also was named Second Team All-NWC three times in 2022-23. He took fourth place in the 50-yard freestyle, was sixth in the 100-yard freestyle, and finished fifth in the 200-yard freestyle. In 2021-22, he was chosen Second Team All-NWC in the 50-yard freestyle (4th place).

Wilhelmi's 21.10 in the 50-yard freestyle ranks fourth on WU's all-time list. He also holds the times that are fifth through eighth. He owns the Bearcats' second-best time of 46.73 in the 100-yard freestyle and is fourth in the 200-yard freestyle at 1:43.36. In 2021-22, he swam on the 400-yard medley relay team that set the school record of 3:31.28. In 2022-23, he contributed to the fourth-best time in the 400-yard medley relay at 3:31.28.

At Willamette, Wilhelmi is majoring in Computer Science. He concluded the fall semester with a 3.73 cumulative GPA. He was inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma in 2023.