Emily Escobedo Shines On National Stage

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

By Chandler Brandes, Swimming World College Intern

When she stepped foot onto University of Maryland Baltimore County’s campus four years ago, Emily Escobedo never thought she’d be where she is now.

As a five-year-old swimming on her local summer league team, the New Rochelle, New York, native continued swimming because the team helped her fall in love with the sport. Although she said she went through a slump in high school with very minimal improvement, something changed when she got to UMBC under the leadership of head coach Chad Cradock.

The current senior etched her name into the record books time and time again throughout her college years, consistently getting faster each season. Her momentum carried her throughout her historic career and propelled UMBC, a mid-major school that often flies under the radar, into the national spotlight.

Photo Courtesy: UMBC Athletics

UMBC, located about 10 minutes from downtown Baltimore, competes in the America East Conference for their women’s swimming and diving program. Escobedo dominated the conference over her career, earning the Most Outstanding Swimmer award for four consecutive years. She led UMBC to their third-straight team title this past season, finishing her college years with an astonishing 17 gold medals out of 24 races swum, including relays.

But her success did not end at the conference level. A four-year participant at the NCAA Championship meet, Escobedo cited the conference championships and NCAAs as two totally different meets. Nonetheless, she swam fast at both meets, which are five weeks apart.

“America East has such a relaxed, fun atmosphere. It is my favorite meet because it’s all about the team,” Escobedo said. “NCAAs is fun, but it is a lot more of an individual meet for me. There is a lot more stress and pressure at NCAAs.”

Photo Courtesy: UMBC Athletics

As a freshman, Escobedo became the third female swimmer in UMBC’s history to advance to the NCAA Championships. As a rookie on the big stage, she finished 52^nd in the 200 IM, 44^th in the 100 breast, and 32^nd in the 200 breast.

Her sophomore year she improved to 32^nd in the 200 IM, 42^nd in the 100 breast, and 14^th in the 200 breast—becoming the first UMBC and America East swimmer to ever score points at NCAAs.

Then she continued to get faster.

And faster.

And even faster.

By her junior year, Escobedo had established herself as one of the nation’s best breaststrokers, especially in the longer distance. She earned her first All-American honors after finishing third in the 200 breast. She also tallied a 15^th-place finish in the 100 breast and a 23^rd-place showing in the 200 IM.

“I try not to go into any meet with expectations, because anything can happen,” said Escobedo. “I set high-reaching goals for myself every year and do my best to achieve them.”

Photo Courtesy: UMBC Athletics

Escobedo did not disappoint, capping off her senior campaign by making finals in all three of her events a few weeks ago. She took ninth in the 100 breast and 12^th in the 200 IM, and on the final day, finished third for the second-straight year in the 200 breast. Her time of 2:05.20 is the eighth-fastest swim history.

At a meet heavily dominated by powerhouse swim schools, Escobedo represented the smaller, mid-major schools. She noted that it can be intimidating being the only swimmer at the meet where many teams bring so many athletes, but credits her family, coaches, and teammates for being her support system.

The pool deck at NCAAs was covered with swimmers from Stanford, Cal, Texas A&M, Georgia, and other top swimming and diving schools in the country. Not be lost in the crowd, Escobedo, donning UMBC’s black and gold, let her swimming do the talking.

“The most memorable part of NCAAs for me was being able to stand on the podium and represent UMBC and all of the mid-major schools,” said Escobedo.

2016.03.19 2016 Womens NCAA Swimming Championships_UMBC Emily Escobedo

Photo Courtesy: Reagan Lunn/Georgia Tech Athletics

The psychology major, who plans on getting her masters in Special Education upon graduation, has helped establish UMBC as an up-and-coming program. Coming from a mid-major school that does not have as long of a history of swimming success, Escobedo has thrived in the national spotlight, making the most of her four years as a Retriever.

“When I came to UMBC four years ago I never expected to be where I am now,” said Escobedo. “I have loved representing UMBC and I’m so thankful to have been given the chance.”

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