Palmer was named the Empire 8 Swimmer of the Championship Meet at the 2026  Empire 8 Championships, held at the Webster Aquatic Center. He won individual titles in the 200-yard individual medley, 100- and 200-yard breaststroke events and was also part of the winning 200- and 400-yard medley relay teams. He began the meet by shattering a 13-year-old record in the 200-yard individual medley with an NCAA “B” cut qualifying time of 1:49.57. He also broke an E8 Championship meet record in winning the 100-yard breaststroke in a time of 54.30 seconds and won the 200-yard breaststroke, also in an E8 record time of 1:59.47. Palmer was also part of two Empire 8 Championship record-setting relay teams, the 400-yard medley relay (3:20.51) and 200-yard medley relay (1:29.85), which were also NCAA "B" cut times. It is Palmer’s fifth E8 weekly honor of the year.