Piedmont’s swimming teams were fresh off championship titles from the 2023-24 season, and their success continued this year.

The men’s team repeated as conference champs on Feb. 15, with senior Leandro Forero winning Conference Swimmer of the Year honors.

“I never thought I’d be a two-time conference champ coming into college or become a conference swimmer of the year,” said Forero.

Another record-setting year for the men’s team included two program records for Forero in the 1000 free and 400 IM. Records also came from sophomore Perry Westbrook’s time of 1:46:71 in the 200 free. Westbrook contributed to program records in the  400 and 800 free relay events as well.

On the women’s side, the lions fell short of Southern Virginia in the conference championship, coming home with a runner-up title.

The women finished with an official record of 6-2, their only regular-season losses coming to Mars Hill and Southern Virginia.

The final score of the Southern Virginia dual meet earlier in the season was 133-127, with the Lions losing, so the conference matchup was bound to be close. The Lady Lions finished with 26 points in the conference championship, but Southern Virginia edged them out with 32.

Kelly Mashburn continued her record-smashing campaign in the 2024-2025 season, setting the new program record for the 500 free. She now holds four solo records and is involved in four relay records.

Other program bests from the women’s season include three new relay records (200 free, 200 medley, and 400 medley), as well as a time of 1:01.09 in the 100 fly by sophomore Olivia Smith.

Coach Teddy Guyer’s tremendous 5th season coaching at Piedmont ends with a repeat conference championship and a runner-up – his legacy in Demorest continues, and his win percentage improves to .833. 

Guyer and his two teams have a long offseason, but the Lions will again be back in an attempt to win the Independent South Conference for the 2025-2026 season.