Cangealose and Cichocki to be inducted into Olivet College Athletic Hall of Fame

OLIVET, Mich. – The Olivet College Athletic Hall of Fame will officially welcome Jill (Lingbeek) Cangealose and Dustin Cichocki during Homecoming weekend in September. The ceremony will take place inside The Cutler Event Center, as part of the college’s Alumni Awards Celebration Sept. 29. They will also be recognized the next day prior to the football game vs. Hope College. Cangealose is the first swimmer in school history to be inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame.

Jill Cangealose ’06 is the most successful women’s swimmer in Olivet’s history, as she earned All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) honors in 2004, 2005 and 2006. At the 2004 MIAA Championships, Cangealose placed third in the 100-yard butterfly, fourth in the 100-yard backstroke and seventh in the 200-yard butterfly.

At the 2005 MIAA Championships, she won three individual events (100 backstroke, 100 butterfly and 200 butterfly). Cangealose broke the MIAA record in the 100 butterfly with a time of 57.32 seconds. A month later, she became the first women’s swimmer in school history to compete at the NCAA Division III Championships. Cangealose earned Honorable Mention All-American honors with an 11th-place finish in the 100 backstroke and 16th-place performance in the 100 butterfly.

At the 2006 MIAA Championships, Cangealose placed first in the 100 backstroke, and second in the 100 and 200 butterfly. At the NCAA Championships, she became the first swimming All-American in school history by virtue of finishing seventh in the 100 backstroke and eighth in the 100 butterfly. Cangealose was also selected to the College Swimming Coaches Association of America Individual Academic All-American team and the MIAA Academic Honor Roll at the conclusion of her senior season.

Cangealose’s best times in 100 backstroke (:58.66), 200 backstroke (2:10.48), 100 butterfly (:57.15) and 200 butterfly (2:08.78) still stand as the school record. She also swam the butterfly leg of both the school-record setting 200 and 400 medley relays.

A native of Plainwell, Cangealose is currently living in Vicksburg while her husband, Joe, is deployed overseas with the U.S. Air Force. They have two sons, Mitchell and Nolan.

A two-year captain, Dustin Cichocki ’01 earned three varsity letters as member of the wrestling team. He won the 2000 and 2001 NCAA Midwest Regional Championship to qualify for the NCAA Division III Championships both seasons. Cichocki’s most successful trip to the NCAA Championships came in 2001 when he placed sixth in the 165-pound bracket to earn All-American honors. In 2000, Cichocki competed in the 174-pound bracket. In 2000 and 2001, he also won his weight class title at the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference championships. In 1999, Cichocki was part of the Division III All-Star team which wrestled in Bulgaria and Italy. At the conclusion of his senior season, he was selected the Olivet Male Student-Athlete of the Year.

Overall, Cichocki finished his career with a 98-17 record and holds the school record for the fastest pin in the 174-pound weight class at 13 seconds. During his three seasons at Olivet, the Comets posted a 52-3 dual match record.

In addition, Cichocki excelled in the class room during his time at Olivet. He was a three-time National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American.Cichocki has served as the ninth grade principal at Lowell High School for the last six years. Prior to that, he taught and coached in the Lowell school district for seven years. Cichocki also spent time in the Carson City Crystal school district as a teacher and coach.

Cichocki lives in Lowell with his wife, Cody (Osborn), a 2002 Olivet College alumnae, and their two sons, Carter and Cole.