By Terin Frodyma on SwimSwam
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Mason Manta Rays’ Dana Fairbanks has announced her commitment to the University of Minnesota as a member of the Gopher women’s 2026 recruiting class.
Fairbanks wrote the following regarding her commitment.
I am so beyond excited to announce my verbal commitment to continue my academic and athletic career at the University of Minnesota!! I would like to thank my family and friends for all their constant love and unwavering support. I would also like to thank all my coaches and teammates at the Mason Manta Rays and Mason for always believing in me and helping me throughout this process. And a special thanks to the coaching staff at Minnesota for giving me this incredible opportunity. I cannot wait to be apart of such an amazing program! Go Gophers!
Fairbanks hails from Mason, Ohio, and represents Mason High School. This past season, as a senior, she finished in the top three in both of her individual events at the OHSAA Division I State Championships in February. She finished runner-up in the 500 freestyle in 4:59.85, which was about four and a half seconds slower than her best of 4:55.24 from the Speedo Winter Junior Championships in December. She also swam to a 3rd-place finish in the 200 IM with a lifetime best of 2:03.82. Fairbanks served in crucial roles on relays for Mason, splitting 51.49 in the 2nd-place 400 free relay and a 26.13 opening split on the 200 medley relay, which finished 5th.
The skill set that Fairbanks possesses is heavy on middle-distance races, including a solid 400 IM best of 4:16.37 from the Tim Meyers Senior Championships in March. That IM ability also bleeds into other strokes, primarily within the 200 distances. She boasts a 200 free best of 1:51.14 from February of 2025, a 200 back career best time of 1:58.71 from February of 2025, and a 200 fly top time of 2:02.31 from this past March.
Best Times SCY:
200 Free: 1:51.14 500 Free: 4:55.24 200 IM: 2:03.82 400 IM: 4:16.37 200 Fly: 2:02.31 200 Back: 1:58.71 View this post on Instagram
The Gopher women finished 6th at the 2026 Women’s Big Ten Swimming and Diving Championships this past season.
Based on Fairbanks’ best times, she would have finished 23rd in the 400 IM, tied for 23rd in the 200 back, and 37th in the 500 free at those 2026 Big Ten Championships.
The wide range of middle-distance events is a very useful trait, and the several recent bests, which show progression upward, are another green flag for Fairbanks.
Based on how Minnesota performed at the Big Ten CHampionships a season ago, Fairbanks is a useful pickup, though it does not address the biggest holes from last season, which were primarily in the 100 breast and 200 IM. However, the IM ability she brings could still translate to the shorter of the two IM distances.
Fairbanks joins Mia Thomas, Faith Lamah, Claire Conklin, Emmy Meyer, and Sara Reppucci in the incoming class for Minnesota.
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to Recruits@swimswam.com.
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