Cheers rang out through the George W. Woodruff Physical Education Center as senior members of Emory University’s swim and dive team ran under a bridge of their younger teammates’ arms. The swimmers’ parents greeted them at the end of the tunnel, paralleling where their careers as an Emory Eagle started — four years ago, when they were talented high school swimmers being recruited by a Division III powerhouse.
The athletes, who have since grown into valuable members of the team, honored their final season at Emory during their Senior Day meet on Jan. 18. They celebrated their contributions to the team and celebrated Emory for shaping them into the people they are today, with senior swimmer Sarah Daly even donning a Swoop-themed onesie during her entrance.
The deck was a sea of flowers and embraces, made all the sweeter when the Eagles left the meet victorious over Berry College (Ga.) and the Savannah College of Art and Design (Ga.).
Captain and senior swimmer Jada Chatoor recalled how the team’s Class of 2025 began their first year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Emory was still under COVID-19 protocols, which made the season difficult. However, Chatoor believes that it was because of those uncertain times that the senior class was able to bring the joy that they are now known for to every practice and meet.
“From the beginning, there was just so much infectious enthusiasm that made the toughest practices more enjoyable,” Chatoor said. “You would see the worst set ever and someone would crack a joke and it would just become so much more of an opportunity for laughter and encouragement, but at the same time leaning towards success.”
The underclassmen notice and admire this quality in the seniors. Freshman swimmer Allison Greeneway described how the seniors’ constant support and effort helped her break two records during her first semester at Emory. Greeneway said she was particularly motivated by the high standards senior swimmer Jeff Echols sets for himself in practice.
“He is the hardest worker I have ever seen in my life,” Greeneway said. “I remember before I swam my [200-yard individual medley] and broke the record, I saw him and he went crazy and I was like, ‘If he can do it, I can do it.’”
Greeneway said her biggest takeaway from the senior class is how important it is to enjoy her time on the team because they are “never going to be able to experience this again.” Further echoing this message, Chatoor said she hopes the freshmen continue to follow in her wake and “find fun in every moment.”
Head coach Jon Howell described how competing during the COVID-19 pandemic was not the only experience unique to the class of graduating seniors. Captains were elected much later this year than usual, but he believes that the team’s senior leadership stretches beyond the captains and that they all lead with their love for the sport.
“They’re very close and they work really well together,” Howell said. “It’s not just a captain-led leadership, it really is a senior class-led leadership system and they’ve really embraced that.”
This year was particularly special for sophomore swimmer McKee Thorsen, as this will be his last season swimming alongside his brother, senior captain Crow Thorsen. McKee Thorsen looks up to his older brother and is glad the other underclassmen also see him as a role model. However, McKee Thorsen said every senior has played a part in making the team what it is now.
“There are a bunch of different quiet leaders in the senior class that are very, very willing to put in the hard work every day,” McKee Thorsen said. “They’re doing the right thing when nobody else is looking and that attitude has shaped, especially the men’s team, over the past few years into what it is today — which is, I’d say, the start of a dynasty.”
The Class of 2025 will graduate at the end of the year, but Chatoor said she hopes the underclassmen remember to have a team-first attitude even after she’s no longer on deck.
“Be the team that everybody wants to be,” Chatoor said. “Remember whenever you're down on yourself, or whenever you feel like you can't do it, or whenever you feel like you're struggling or the world is against you, you have been chosen to be part of such an amazing, phenomenal team, and you are competing for something so much greater than yourself, and that's something that you should be really proud of.”
