It’s that time of year again when we at SwimSwam rank out the top 20 high school swimming prospects in the upcoming NCAA recruiting class.
As college recruiting has reached earlier and earlier into high school classes, we’re continually expanding our recruiting ranks and coverage. Last summer, we ranked out the then-sophomore class. This is essentially a re-rank of that class, taking into account a year of improvements. Stay tuned to our recruiting channel for more additions to our yearly recruiting coverage:
- Girls & boys ranks for current juniors – high school class of 2025 (updated rankings from our “Way Too Early” rankings last spring)
- Way Too Early ranks for current sophomore girls & boys – high school class of 2026
- Re-Rank of outgoing senior girls & boys – high school class of 2024
THIS CLASS
- Three generational talents at the top who dominate
- A ton of distance free talent
- Still not many pure sprinters, especially in backstroke and butterfly
The boys’ high school class of 2025 will be remembered as a historic. At the conclusion of their junior years, we’ve already got Luke Ellis, a swimmer who is already fast enough to win NCAAs; Thomas Heilman, a 17-year-old U.S. Olympian; and Maximus Williamson, the fastest swimmer ever in high school competition in three different events. These three swimmers are generational talents, who lead the class in all but two events. Specifically, a lot of other swimmers who would have been at the top of their specialty in other years have to sit in second or third in this class because of Heilman and Williamson.
In addition to having generational talents, the class of 2025 will also be known for its distance prowess. There are five different swimmers with sub-15 minute miles after there were none in the 2024 and 2023 junior classes, and a whopping eleven swimmers with sub-4:20 500 free times. Several swimmers who would have been top-ranked swimmers in other years were left out simply because there was too much depth in this year’s class.
The one weakness in this year’s class is a lack of pure sprint specialists, especially in the 100 back and 100 fly (this was an issue with the class of 2024, but it’s even worse in 2025). There are only three sub-47 100 backstrokers, and one sub-47 butterflies. By comparison, there were four sub-47 backstrokers and five sub-47 flyers in last year’s junior class. In addition, Marvin Johnson is the only swimmer in the top 20 whose best events are the 50 and 100 free.
Now, let’s get started.
TOP TIMES IN THE CLASS OF 2025
| Event | Time | Time |
| 50 Free | Thomas Heilman | 19.24 |
| 100 Free | Maximus Williamson | 41.84 |
| 200 Free | Maximus Williamson | 1:31.37 |
| 500 Free | Maximus Williamson | 4:16.84 |
| 1000 Free** | Luke Ellis | 8:45.19 |
| 1650 Free | Luke Ellis | 14:29.48 |
| 100 Back | Maximus Williamson | 46.29 |
| 200 Back | Maximus Williamson | 1:40.88 |
| 100 Breast | Josh Bey | 52.98 |
| 200 Breast | Josh Bey | 1:54.34 |
| 100 Fly | Thomas Heilman | 44.67 |
| 200 Fly | Thomas Heilman | 1:40.73 |
| 200 IM | Maximus Williamson | 1:40.81 |
| 400 IM | Maximus Williamson | 3:39.83 |
THE METHODOLOGY
Our goal in these rankings is to reflect what college coaches look for in recruits, based on many years of conversations and coverage.
We focus only on American-based athletes, simply because there is so much uncertainty with international recruits – if they’ll come to the United States, when they’ll come to the States and with what graduating class they should be ranked. Projecting international recruits often becomes more of a discussion of when they’ll first join a college program and not which program they’ll join.
A few other factors that weigh heavily in our rankings:
- Relay Value – Relay points count double in college swimming, and any program needs a strong stable of quality sprinters to fill out all 5 relays with stars. Obviously, a special distance swimmer can easily rank ahead of a very good 100 freestyler, but college swimming generally values a sprint freestyler over a distance swimmer, all other factors being equal.
- Improvements – Actual times carry the most weight by a longshot. But we also keep an eye on a swimmer’s trajectory, especially in deciding between two swimmers with relatively even times.
- Short Course over Long Course – while every club and every swimmer will have a different balance of focus between short course and long course swimming, the NCAA competes in short course yards, and that’s going to be the main factor considered in these rankings. Long course times are another data point for consideration, but we mainly view them through the lens of what a big long course swim could mean for an athlete’s future in short course.
- NCAA scoring ability – NCAAs are the big show for college teams, so we’ve weighted NCAA scoring potential very highly. Swimmers who already have NCAA scoring times wind up mostly filling out the top our of rankings. Since college athletic directors – and by extension coaches – also place high value on conference championships, scoring ability at conference meets is also a factor in our rankings.
- Relative depth in the NCAA and recruiting class – a wealth of elite depth nationwide in one stroke discipline makes a big difference in what times are considered more valuable in that event. Events rise at different rates in the NCAA, but when one event gets extremely deep and fast at the college level, it makes high school prospects in those events a little less valuable, relatively, with lots of other veteran options. In the same way, a recruiting class stacked with swimmers in butterfly, for example, would make each butterflyer a little less sought-after in the market, with lots of other recruiting options able to provide similar production.
Of course, there’s no way to predict the future, and the most concrete data we have to go on are cold, hard times. These rankings in no way mean that all of these 20 swimmers will be NCAA standouts, and they certainly don’t mean that no swimmer left off this list will make big contributions at the NCAA level.
Disclaimer: there are a lot of high school juniors in the country, and no really good, complete, 100% accurate listing of them all. If you don’t see your favorite swimmer on the list, feel free to politely point them out in the comments. There’s a chance that we disagree with your assessment of their spot in the top 20, and so long as it’s done civilly, there’s no problem with differences of opinions. There’s also a chance that we’ve simply missed a no-brainer (we’ve taken every precaution to avoid that), and if that happens, we want to make sure we correct it.
Best Of The Rest
Sprint Free:
- Josh Howat (19.9/44.0/1:38.1) **Virginia**
- Noah Powers (19.8/43.8)**Virginia**
- Andy Kravchenko (19.8/43.6/1:38.8)
- Ryan Henderson (19.9/44.5)**Louisville**
- Dar Lavrenko (20.1/43.7)**Cal**
- Brandon Fleck (20.2/43.8/1:36.7)**Indiana**
- Will Browne (20.5/44.5/1:36.5, 1:47.7 2IM)**Harvard**
- Preston Kessler (20.1/43.5) **Navy**
Distance Free:
- Oliver Rowe (44.71/1:36.9/4:23.1, 1:46.9 2FL)**Princeton**
- Julien Rosseau (4:24.9/15:12.7)**Cal**
- Mack Schumann (1:37.6/4:21.2/15:11.8)**Auburn**
- Luke Waldrep (1:37.7/4:24.0/15:23.0)**Auburn**
- Chase Maier (44.8/1:37.5/4:23.1) **Navy**
- Sam Huggins (1:37.3/4:23.95)**UNC**
Backstroke:
- Oliver Schimberg (47.3/1:45.0, 48.27 1FL)**Minnesota**
- Connor Johnson (47.6/1:45.0)**Virginia Tech**
- Hayden Meyers (48.5/1:43.6)**Georgia**
- Nate Thomas (48.4/1:43.6)**Louisville**
- Kenneth Barnicle (47.4/1:43.8)**Cal**
Breaststroke:
- Joseph Gardner (54.13/1:58.9)**Pitt**
- Keian Lam (53.7/1:58.7)**Princeton**
- Raphael Wang (54.5/1:58.0)**Duke**
- Cohen Barron Chiam (54.9/1:58.0)
- Wyatt Porch (53.8/1:57.9)**Georgia**
Butterfly:
- Matteo Palmisani (48.0/1:45.9)**Cal**
- John Rusnock (47.5/1:46.4, 1:45.9 2IM) **Princeton**
- Riccardo Osio (47.3/1:46.5)**USC**
- Antoine Destang (47.2)**Michigan**
- Alejandro Michelena (47.9/1:45.8)**Texas A&M**
IM:
- Grant Murphy (1:48.3/3:49.8, 1:45.4 2BK) **Virginia**
- Ian Platts-Mills (3:49.9, 4:26/15:15 500/1650 FR) **Cal**
- Sascha Macht (1:46.3)
- Ian Stutts (1:46.9/3:54.4)**NC State**
- Matson Ballew (1:48.0/3:52.7)**Auburn**
Honorable Mentions
Ryan Erisman — Laker Swimming — Windermere High School — Windermere, FL **Verbally committed to Cal** (Previous Rank: 11)
Best Times:
- 1650 free: 15:24.48
- 500 free: 4:19.87
- 200 free: 1:36.13
- 100 free: 44.40
- 400 IM: 3:48.42
- 200 IM: 1:48.77
- 200 fly: 1:46.59
It’s not that Erisman got worse compared. It’s just that this distance class is so deep, and other swimmers have made bigger jumps than him. Erisman’s biggest development was in the 500 free, where he dropped nearly four seconds. But as impressive as a 4:19 is for a high school junior, he’s “only” the tenth-fastest swimmer in the class. He also made incremental improvements in his other good events, and remains a rangey freestyler who is strong in the IMs and 200 fly as well. He’s the seventh-fastest 200 freestyler in the class, as well as the eighth fastest 400 IMer.
Don’t get us wrong, Erisman is still a phenomenal recruit. But his stock hurts when so many other swimmers are good at what he does.
Norvin Clontz — SwimMAC Carolina — Charlotte Latin High School — Charlotte, NC **Verbally committed to Cal** (Previous Rank: 7)
Best Times:
- 200 free: 1:36.70
- 500 free: 4:19.43
- 1650 free: 15:14.12
- 400 IM: 3:50.44
- 200 breast: 1:56.63
Clontz was the biggest faller in this class — he’s been stagnant for the past two years, with both his 500 and 1650 free times being from 2022. However, the fact that he’s still an honorable mention shows just how fast he is even without improving. His 500 free time ranks ninth in the class, while his 1650 free time is sixth. That being said, he did see development in breaststroke, dropping from a personal best of 2:00.39 to 1:56.63 to become the fifth-best in his class for the event.
The bright side is that Clontz saw long course improvement in his 200 and 400 free at Olympic trials (though just incremental in the latter event), getting named onto the Junior Pan Pacs team. This means that he could be due for a yards breakthrough this fall.
Bucky Gettys — Texas Gold — Round Rock High School — Round Rock, TX **Verbally committed to Texas A&M** (Previous Rank: BOTR)
Best Times:
- 200 free: 1:37.85
- 500 free: 4:19.26
- 1650 free: 15:27.13
Gettys is the third swimmer in the trio of “fast distance swimmers hurt by the depth of this class,” but unlike Clontz and Erisman, his stock rose instead of falling. This especially applies to the 500 free, where his best time went from 4:24.75 to 4:19.26 in a year, making him the sixth-fastest in his class and the quickest amongst the honorable mentions. His other events still need some catching on, but he’s showed promise — improving nearly four seconds in the 200 free and a second in the mile.
Gabe Nunziata — Old Dominion Aquatic Club — StoneBridge School — Suffolk, VA **Verbally committed to Tennessee** (Previous Rank: N/A)
Best Times:
- 100 breast: 54.02
- 200 breast: 1:56.57
- 200 IM: 1:49.20
- 400 IM: 3:51.66
Nunziata is one of the better all-around breaststrokers in his class — aside from Willis, Cakir, and Bey, he’s the only swimmer to have both sub-54 and sub-1:56 breaststroke times. But the main thing that gives him an honorable mention are his long course times, as he has a best time of 1:00.36 in the 100 breast and a time of 2:11.78 in the 200 breast, approaching the Olympic ‘B’ cut in both events. In addition, he made the semi-finals of the 200 breast at the U.S. Olympic trials.
It remains to be seen whether Nunziata’s impressive long course times can translate during the short course season, but his results from the summer are extremely promising.
Zack Oswald — Suburban Seahawks Club — The Haverford School — Newtown Square, PA **Verbally Committed to Notre Dame**
Best Times:
- 100 back: 46.82
- 200 back: 1:44.25
- 200 IM: 1:47.61
- 20 free: 20.47
- 100 fly: 48.88
The standout time in Oswald’s resume is his 46.82 100 back, which ranks him as the third-fastest swimmer in the class behind Williamson and Amlicke. If he had a faster 200 back or any other standout events, he’d easily be a lock for the top 20, but none of his other events “pop” the way his 100 back does. That being said, that race alone puts him in top 20 contention, as being a strong sprint backstroker is important for relays.
Oswald is also decent in quite a few other events such as the 200 back, 200 IM, and 50 free, making him a versatile swimmer. Considering that he wasn’t even mentioned in our rankings last year, the future is very bright for him given his progression.
Luke Bedsole — Huntsville Swim Association — Huntsville High School — Owen Cross Roads, AL **Verbally committed to Auburn** (Previous Rank: 16)
Best Times:
- 50 free: 20.04
- 100 free: 43.67
- 200 free: 1:38.09
- 100 fly: 48.05
- 200 fly: 1:46.52
- 100 back: 47.72
There were plenty of swimmers in this class that had 19-high/20-low 50 free speed and 43-point 100 free speed, but what makes Bedsole stand out was his proficiency in other events. He’s the fifth-fastest 100 freestyler in the class (and the gap between three and five is pretty close), and on the verge of breaking 20 seconds in the 50 free. He’s also strong in butterfly and backstroke too, though his fly times don’t rank as high as they did last year amongst this class, accounting for his drop down.
Top 20
20. Alex Thiesing — Lakeside Swim Team — Saint Xavier High School — Louisville, KY **Verbally committed to Michigan** (Previous Rank: HM)
Best Times:
- 50 free: 20.25
- 100 free: 43.85
- 200 free: 1:35.61
Thiesing’s 50 and 100 free times are similar to a lot of swimmers in the “honorable mention” and ‘”best of the rest” category, but what sets him apart is his 200 free time — which no other top sprinter in this class (aside from Williamson and Heilman) has been able to approach. In the 200 free, he’s ranked fourth in the class, and is one of just five swimmers who have sub-1:36 times. To be that good at the 200 free in addition to holding strong times in the 50 and 100 free will make him lethal for NCAA relays.
Last year, we wrote that Thiesing’s 200 free was what made him an “honorable mention’ instead of a “best of the rest.” This year, he earns top 20 distinction for the same reason.
19. Jordan Willis — SwimMAC Carolina —Marvin Ridge High School — Waxhaw, NC **Verbally committed to Florida** (Previous Rank: HM)
Best Times:
- 100 breast: 53.75
- 200 breast: 1:55.30
Last year, Willis was one of the final swimmers cut from top 20 consideration. He was and still is one of the top 200 breaststrokers in the class after dropping two seconds this year, ranking third overall behind Josh Bey and Noah Cakir and being just 0.21 seconds behind Cakir. However, his 100 breast held him back last season. This isn’t the case this year, as he improved his personal best time from 56.20 to 53.75. Now he’s the fifth-fastest 100 breaststroker in the class, and can rank as the one of the top all-around swimmers in the stroke.
Willis also continues to gain international experience, qualifying for the 2024 Junior Pan Pacs team after earning a silver medal in the 200 breast at the 2023 Junior Worlds.
18. Caiden Bowers—Eagle Swim Team — McDonogh School — Marriottsville, MD **Verbally committed to Cal** (Previous Rank: 15)
Best Times:
- 100 fly: 47.03
- 200 fly: 1:48.03
- 100 back: 53.95
- 200 breast: 1:58.56
- 200 IM: 1:46.88
B0wers is a phenomenal sprinter across two strokes, in addition to being one of the best 200 IMers in his class. He ranks third in his class for the 100 fly behind Heilman and Williamson, as well as eighth in the 100 breast and ninth in the 200 IM. He moves down a bit in the top 20 this year because his event rankings amongst other swimmers have dipped, but his speed across other events in addition to being a top sprint butterfly keeps him in this article. Additionally, he also has a formidable 200 breast time. In fact, breaststroke is where he has improved the most since last season, dropping from a time of 2:01.23 to 1:58.56. He also dropped over two seconds in the 200 IM.
17. Gavin Keogh— Flatiron Athletic Club — Monarch High School — Erie, CO **Verbally committed to NC State** (Previous Rank: HM)
Best Times:
- 100 back: 47.28
- 200 back: 1:42.88
- 200 IM: 1:49.74
- 400 IM: 3:54.8o
Last year, Keogh was labeled as a one-trick pony who was only good at the 200 back. It’s still his best event, as he is the second-fastest swimmer in his class for the event. But now his 100 back time—which he improved from 48.88 to 47.28 in a year—is strong compared to the rest of his classmates as well, with only three swimmers being better than him. This 100 back time gives him added relay value, and also makes him one of the best all-around backstrokers of his year.
Keogh’s IM times are nowhere near his backstroke times, but his development in them over the course of a year open up the potential for him to add a third event.
16. Ethan Ekk — Area Tallahassee Aquatic Club — Lawton Chiles High School — Tallahassee, FL (Previous Rank: 19)
Best Times:
- 200 free: 1:35.66
- 500 free: 4:19.35
- 1000 free: 8:56.73
- 200 back: 1:43.81
- 200 IM: 1:48.54
- 400 IM: 3:49.26
Ekk snuck into the top 20 last year because of his long course achievements, but now his short course resume alone merits inclusion on this list. He stands out as one of the top mid-distance swimmers in the class after significantly improving in freestyle (even given how deep it is), given that his 200 free time is just 0.05 seconds slower than Thiesing’s and that he has a sub-4:20 500 free. But to complement his mid-distance abilities, he’s also got a strong 200 back time that ranks top ten in the class, making for a good third event. He’s also got promising IM times, further proving his versatility.
15. Crash Ackerly — Nova of Virginia Aquatics — Maggie L. Walker Governors School — Richmond, VA **Verbally committed to Yale** (Previous Rank: N/A)
Best Times:
- 100 back: 47.57
- 200 back: 1:42.89
- 100 fly: 47.96
- 200 IM: 1:47.73
Ackerly came out of nowhere this year, going from someone who was not mentioned in our previous rankings to being a top-20 ranked swimmer. Like Keogh, he’s one of the class’s top overall backstrokers, being one of just three swimmers to go sub-1:43 in the 200 back. He also dropped over a second in his 100 back and nearly two seconds in his 100 fly, making him a multi-stroke sprinting threat that will be very valuable on Yale relays — especially in the Ivy League, where there are not that many super high-level recruits like him coming in compared t0 Power Four schools. To cap things off, he’s got a great 200 IM, which gives him an event to swim on day one of championship meets if he doesn’t want to do a 100 back-100 fly double.
14. Campbell McKean— Bend Swim Club — Caldera High School — Bend, OR **Verbally committed to USC** (Previous Rank: 14)
Best Times:
- 100 fly: 48.00
- 200 fly: 1:46.75
- 200 IM: 1:44.23
- 400 IM: 3:46.55
- 100 breast: 53.36
- 200 breast: 1:59.63
- 200 free: 1:39.85
McKean earned the No. 14 rank last year by virtue of being a top two-distance butterflier. He’s barely improved in the 100 and 200 fly since then, but he retains his spot because he’s now become strong IMer as well. Both his 200 and 400 IM times rank fourth in the class, and he notably dropped nearly six seconds in the latter event. He also developed a standout 100 breast time out of nowhere, improving from 57.18 to 53.36 to rank as the third fastest swimmer in the class (plus, he’s also got a sub-two minute 200 breast).
Last year, we mentioned that McKean’s 30.3 breaststroke split in his best 200 IM time then (1:46.77) indicated that he could probably be much faster than 57.18 in the 100 breast. And it turns out, we were right. His 28.99 breaststroke split from his current 200 IM best is otherworldly — only one swimmer in the NCAA ‘A’ final outsplit him in that stroke.
13. Blake Amlicke — Nashville Aquatic Club — Pope John Paul II High School — Clarksville, TN **Verbally committed to Virginia** (Previous Rank: N/A)
Best Times:
- 50 free: 19.99
- 100 free: 43.63
- 100 back: 46.62
- 200 back: 1:43.77
In a class that is weak in the sprints, Amlicke stands out. He’s not only one of five swimmers in the class to have a sub-20 and sub-44 50 and 100 free, but he’s also a top ten 200 backstroker and the second-fastest 100 backstroker in the class. In fact, Williamson is only 0.4 seconds faster than him in the event, which is a smaller margin than other swimmers who rank third or second in the class behind swimmers like Heilman and Williamson.
Amlicke’s skillset makes him perfect for multiple relays, and has him joining a long list of Virginia sprinting recruits headed to the university in the next few years.
12. Noah Cakir — Team Suffolk Swim Club — Saint Anthony’s High School — Deer Park, NY **Verbally Committed to Indiana** (Previous Rank: BOTR)
Best Times:
- 100 breast: 53.28
- 200 breast: 1:55.09
- 100 free: 44.86
- 200 free: 1:37.72
- 500 free: 4:25.98
- 200 IM: 1:45.32
- 400 IM: 3:47.12
How many top breaststrokers are also good at distance freestyle? Not many, but Cakir is one. In the past year, he’s developed into the clear-cut second-best breaststroker in his class, ranking only behind Josh Bey in the 100 and 200 breast. However, unlike most breaststrokers, he’s extremely versatile and can swim from the 100 up to the 500 free as well. In addition, he’s also got the sixth-fastest 200 IM in the class and a sub-3:50 400 IM. This is a big difference from last year, where his only standout events were breaststroke and the 500 free. Now, he’s got range that isn’t seen by many other swimmers.
11. Max Carlsen — Las Vegas Swim Club — Palo Verde High School — Las Vegas, NV **Verbally committed to NC State** (Previous Rank: BOTR)
Best Times:
- 1650 free: 14:59.44
- 1000 free: 8:57.77
- 500 free: 4:18.87
- 200 free: 1:37.06
- 400 IM: 3:55.24
Now we get to our long list of top distance swimmers in the class, starting off with Carlsen. He’s one of four (!!!) swimmers to have a 1500 free time under 15 minutes in this article, and is just a few seconds away from qualifying for NCAAs. In addition, he’s got the fifth-fastest 500 free time in the class and a formidable 200 free time that will make him a valuable asset for the 800 free relay. It seems unfair to put him this high when there are so many swimmers faster than him, but his times in itself are too hard to ignore as he’s getting closer and closer to being an immediate impact college swimmer as a high schooler.
10. Marvin Johnson— McCallie GPS Aquatics — McCallie School — Chattanooga, TN **Verbally committed to Florida** (Previous Rank: 6)
Best Times:
- 50 free: 19.56
- 100 free: 43.31
- 200 free: 1:38.28
- 100 fly: 48.95
Johnson is the fastest sprinter in this class not named Heilman or Williamson (how many more times are we going to say this?), and his 50 free time is—once again— nearly three-tenths clear of the fourth-fastest 50 freestyler in his year. We’ve spoken many times about how important relay value is in the NCAA and it is clear that Johnson will make Florida very happy with his abilities. That being said, his 200 free seems to have developed into his third event rather than the 100 fly, as he dropped over a second in the former event but stayed stagnant in the latter.
9. Thomas Mercer — Lakeside Swim Team (KY) — Saint Xavier High School — Louisville, KY**Verbally committed to Virginia** (Previous Rank: 8)
Best Times:
- 200 IM: 1:43.74
- 400 IM: 3:46.31
- 100 back: 47.71
- 200 back: 1:44.30
- 100 fly: 47.70
- 200 fly: 1:44.62
- 100 breast: 55.42
- 200 breast: 2:02.33
- 200 free: 1:38.77
Mercer remains the third-best IMer in the class behind (let’s say it again) Heilman and Williamson, having gotten significantly better in both the 200 and 400 IM within the past year. In fact, his 200 IM time is now within 1% of the NCAA ‘A’ cut, and makes him just one of three swimmers in the class to go under the 1:44 barrier in the event.
Last year, we said that Mercer was one of the few recruits that were strong in all four strokes, and that he could easily be a relay threat if he dropped a second in all his 100s. He only did so in the 100 fly and 100 back, but that’s good enough. However, he does seem to trend toward being a mid-distance swimmer, with his 200 back and 200 fly times being exactly the same. In fact, what gives him the leg up to go into the top ten again is that 200 fly time, as only Heilman is faster than him in the event.
8. Josh Bey — Highland Hurricanes Swim Club — Hinsdale Central High School — Hinsdale, IL **Verbally committed to Indiana** (Previous Rank: 9)
Best Times:
- 100 breast: 52.98 (best in class)
- 200 breast: 1:54.34 (best in class)
- 200 IM: 1:44.89
- 400 IM: 3:50.09
Even when his fellow breaststroker classmates like Cakir and Willis have made significant jumps, Bey remains the top breaststroker in the class by an even bigger margin this year. He’s the only swimmer to have a sub-53 100 breast and sub-1:55 200 breast, and he dropped nearly three seconds from 1:57.31 to 1:54.34 in the latter event just this year. After leading the class by less than 0.15 seconds in both breaststroke events, he’s now unquestionably on top.
Bey has developed into a typical breaststroker than swims the 200 IM as a third event, posting the fifth-fastest time in his class for the event. He’s a perfect fit for Indiana, where he will continue the tradition of strong breaststrokers competing for the university.
7. Sean Green — Long Island Aquatic Club — Archbishop Molloy High School — Garden City, NY **Verbally committed to Georgia** (Previous Rank: 5)
Best Times:
- 1650 free: 14:57.10
- 500 free: 4:18.63
- 200 free: 1:36.20
- 200 back: 1:45.31
- 200 fly: 1:47.78
- 200 IM: 1:47.91
- 400 IM: 3:47.06
Green didn’t improve in the mile, but it doesn’t matter because of how good he is in the event. The first 15-year-old to break 15 minutes in the event is almost two seconds off of NCAA qualification, and ranks as the fifth-fastest swimmer in the class with a time that would have topped the 2024 and 2023 junior rankings. In addition, he also dropped two seconds in his 500 free to rank fourth for his class in that event, as well as a second in the 200 free.
Last year, Green saw massive progression in the 200 back and 200 fly. He hasn’t improved in either event this season, but instead developed in the IMs. He dropped a second in the 400 IM and from 1:51.65 to 1:47.91 in the 200 IM, allowing him to add another event to his already versatile repertoire.
6. William Mulgrew — Shamwut Aquatic Club — Xavieran Brothers High School — Walpole. MA **Verbally committed to Harvard** (Previous Rank: BOTR)
Best Times:
- 1650 free: 14:48.25
- 500 free: 4:21.56
- 400 IM: 3:54.23
Mulgrew is the lowest-ranked swimmer in this class to have an NCAA-qualification-worthy time, and it’s in the 1650 free. Since last year, he’s improved over 30 (!!!) seconds in the event, and he now ranks as the fourth-fastest swimmer of all-time in the 15-16 age group. In addition, his time would have finished second at the Ivy League Championships and 18th at NCAAs — less than a second off scoring territory. This type of resume in just one event is good enough to have him ranked this high, and makes up for him having not as good of a 500 free time compared to some of his other classmates.
That being said, Mulgrew’s 500 free still has a tone of upside. He improved from a time of 4:26.93 to 4:21.56 in a year, and would likely be a top swimmer in his class for the event if it weren’t for the ridiculous distance depth of this year.
5. Jason Zhao— Mason Manta Rays — Indian Hill High School — Cincinnati, OH (Previous Rank: 10)
Best Times:
- 500 free: 4:19.96
- 200 free: 1:33.61
- 100 free: 43.46
- 50 free: 20.09
- 200 breast: 1:59.17
- 100 free: 53.64
- 200 IM: 1:46.11
Zhao stands out for the same reason that he stood out last year, having freestyle prowess ranging from a near sub-20 50 free to a sub-4:20 500 free. But now, he’s a top five recruit because of his 200 free time, which he improved from a 1:36.16 to a 1:33.61 in the span of a year and makes him the third-fastest swimmer in the class. That 200 free time sits less than a second away from NCAA qualification, and would make him close to the top of the class (or on top of the class) in any other year. In addition, he’s developed quick breaststroke speed as well, ranking as the fifth-fastest swimmer in his year. The same goes for the 200 IM, where he’s dropped from 1:52.36 to 1:46.11 — he could potentially use that event as a day one NCAAs event rather than the 50 or 500 free if he wants to.
In addition to being a good short course swimmer, Zhao also has big long course upside. He clocked 48.64/1:47.56 100 and 200 free splits at Junior Worlds last year, and is part of a group of American male swimmers who could potentially shine at the 2028 Olympics.
4. Nathan Szobota — NOVA Of Virginia — Freeman High School — Richmond, VA **Verbally committed to Notre Dame** (Previous Rank: 4)
Best Times:
- 1650 free: 14:53.83
- 1000 free: 8:50.44
- 500 free: 4:18.38
- 200 free: 1:36.93
- 200 back: 1:43.85
- 100 back: 47.93
- 400 IM: 3:49.93
Like Green, Szobota hasn’t improved all year in his primary events, but he’s still one of the top-ranked swimmers in his class. He’s got an NCAA-qualification-worthy mile that has him ranked tenth in the U.S. 15-16 age group, the second-fastest 1000 free in the class, and the third-fastest 500 free time in the class (11th all-time in the 15-16 age group). However, he hasn’t been totally stagnant. He dipped under 1:37 for the first time in the 200 free, and also developed strong backstroke times. In the 100 back, he dropped from 50.24 to 47.93, and then in the 200 back he dropped from 1:46.26 to 1:43.85. Both his progressions in the 200 free and backstrokes increase his range, as well as his relay value.
3. Luke Ellis — Sandpipers Of Nevada — Homeschooled — Las Vegas, NV **Verbally committed to Indiana** (Previous Rank: 3)
Best Times:
- 1650 free: 14:29.48 (best in class)
- 1000 free: 8:45.19 (best in class)
- 500 free: 4:17.02
- 400 IM: 3:45.21
- 200 back: 1:46.17
- 200 fly: 1:47.23
Now, we go from the elite prospects to the generational prospects. And we start off with the fastest high school miler in American history.
Ellis’ 1650 free time is not only nearly seven seconds faster than what any high schooler has gone, but it also would have won NCAAs this year by over a second. How many high school male recruits come in and become instant title threats? In any other year, this time alone would have made him the No. 1 recruit in his class by a landslide, but unfortunately, he has to be placed behind a literal Olympian and a guy who leads his class in seven different events.
In addition, Ellis has also developed other events to complement his mile. He’s dropped three seconds in his 500 free and is not far off Williamson’s class-leading time, and he’s also got a 400 IM time that only the two guys in front of him can beat. He may not be as versatile as the future Virginia duo, but when we talk about how good this 2025 class is, he has to be in the same conversation as them.
2. Thomas Heilman — Piedmont Family YMCA — Western Albemarle High School — Crozet, VA **Verbally committed to Virginia** (Previous Rank: 1)
Best Times:
- 100 fly: 44.67 (best in class)
- 200 fly: 1:40.73 (best in class)
- 50 free: 19.24 (best in class)
- 100 free: 42.00
- 200 free: 1:32.46
- 500 free: 4:19.00
- 200 IM: 1:41.41
- 400 IM: 3:43.63
It feels absolutely absurd to be putting a 17-year-old Olympian and a guy who is the fastest high school butterflier of all-time at No. 2. But that’s where we are right now.
Heilman absolutely deserves his flowers for the reasons stated above. He only saw incremental improvements in his best three events (the 100 fly, 200 fly, and 200 IM) this year, but it doesn’t even matter because he’s still capable of ‘B’ finaling at NCAAs in all three events. In addition, he also developed NCAA qualification-worthy times in the 100 and 200 free relay, and a 50 free time that continues to rank first in his class. With those sprinting times, he’ll be able to get on Virginia’s relays as soon as he sets foot on campus.
At the end of the day, Heilman will be favored to final and maybe even medal at the Olympic games, so his short course yards recruit ranking will be a mere smudge on his resume. But for reasons we are going to go over below, we had to put his future teammate at No. 1.
1. Maximus Williamson — Lakeside Aquatic Club — Keller High School — Southlake, TX **Verbally committed to Virginia** (Previous Rank: 2)
Best Tmes:
- 400 IM: 3:39.83 (best in class)
- 200 IM: 1:40.81 (best in class)
- 500 free: 4:16.84 (best in class)
- 200 free: 1:31.37 (best in class)
- 100 free: 41.84 (best in class)
- 200 back: 1:40.88 (best in class)
- 100 back: 46.29 (best in class)
- 200 fly: 1:44.84
- 50 free: 19.45
Williamson was already a generational recruit last year, but somehow, he managed to make a bigger jump than anyone else this past season.
Now, Williamson is the fastest high schooler of all-time in the 200 IM, 200 free, and 100 free, as well as the third-fastest high schooler of all-time in the 400 IM. In addition, he’s got other class-leading times in the 500 free, 200 back, and 100 back. He’s got four times—the 400 IM, 200 IM, 200 free, and 100 free—worthy of NCAA qualification in 2024 (and he’s close in the 200 back). If he competed at NCAAs this year, he would have finished eighth in the 200 free, sixth in the 400 IM, and seventh in the 200 IM. And to add on, he’s the second-fastest 50 freestyler and third-fastest 200 flyer in the class.
These are video game times from Williamson. Last year, Heilman had had advantage on him because of his sprinting abilities, but that’s not an issue anymore for Williamson because of his 100 free. There is not a single swimmer in this class who is able to immediately impact across multiple events the way he’s able to, and for that reason, he’s our top recruit in the class of 2025.
BONUS LOOKBACK:
Feeling nostalgic? Here’s a look back at our historic recruiting class rankings, plus our retrospectives of those classes after four NCAA seasons:
| BOYS | ||||
| Recruiting Class | ||||
| High School Class of 2025 | ||||
| High School Class of 2024 | Ranks As Juniors | |||
| High School Class of 2023 | Ranks As Juniors | Re-Rank As Seniors | ||
| High School Class of 2022 | Way Too Early Ranks As Sophomores | Re-Rank As Seniors | ||
| High School Class of 2021 | Way Too Early Ranks As Sophomores | Re-Rank As Seniors | ||
| High School Class of 2020 | Way Too Early Ranks As Sophomores | Ranks as Juniors | ||
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High School Class of 2019
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Ranks as Juniors | |||
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High School Class of 2018
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Ranks as Juniors | Re-Rank As Seniors | ||
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High School Class of 2017
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High School Class of 2016
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High School Class of 2015
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High School Class of 2014
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High School Class of 2013
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Read the full story on SwimSwam: Top 20 NCAA Swimming Recruits In The Boys’ Class Of 2025