Ava Kennedy will get to compete for her favorite college program.
Kennedy, a senior swimmer at Athens Academy, signed to continue her career at Georgia. Kennedy made her future plans official last Wednesday, Dec. 16, during a signing ceremony held at Athens Academy.
The star swimmer said she could not pass up the opportunity to compete for the program she’s closely followed for years.
“I grew up here,” Kennedy said. “I love the Dogs. I love the coaches. I've known them for a while being in Athens. So, I know what a good opportunity it is.”
Georgia’s offer was no small accomplishment.
The Swim Dogs are a perennial SEC and national title contender. The women’s program has seven national championships to its credit.
Georgia’s swimming and diving prestige speaks for itself. That’s why Kennedy chose to join the Bulldogs regardless of the fact she received offers from other programs.
Competing for a program with high expectations fits right into what Kennedy wants to do at the next level.
“I got offers from a lot of smaller, more academic schools,” Kennedy said. “But I want to push myself, so I went to the big school. And I'm always going to be a Bulldog fan so it's a good fit.”
It was a big deal for Kennedy to receive a scholarship from one of the nation’s best collegiate swimming and diving teams, but it was also a major coup for the Athens Academy program.
Athens Academy athletic director Kevin Petroski spoke during the scholarship ceremony. He said that Kennedy’s scholarship snapped a long streak for the Spartans.
“She is the first swimmer that we've had from Athens Academy to sign since I've been at Athens Academy. This is my 16th year,” Petroski said. “I know there was one (who signed) right before me so this is an impressive accomplishment both for Ava and Athens Academy in general.”
Kennedy said she was proud to achieve such an accomplishment on behalf of the Athens Academy program.
“I think I've definitely made my mark and helped the school out,” Kennedy said. “I'm hoping to make the swim program a little bit bigger and a little more well-known. I think I'm doing a good job with that.”
After Petroski contextualized the historic importance of Kennedy’s accomplishment, one of her coaches told the crowd that it was Kennedy’s dedication to her craft that led to the milestone.
John Foggin, one of Kennedy’s swimming coaches, praised the star swimmer for overcoming the challenges she faced along the way.
“This is particularly significant for Ava because she's had to overcome a lot of adversity to get to this point,” Foggin said. “Over the past several years, she has worked very, very hard, struggled through some tough times but had a lot of triumphs, too. That's a testament to her character and her hard work but also to her family, her school community and her teammates.”
All of that hard work culminated in last week’s ceremony, which saw a large crowd gather inside the Sinkwich Spartan Center.
“It's really exciting,” Kennedy said about the elaborate celebration. “I'm glad to have all my friends and peers here to support me. It makes me feel good.”
Kennedy did not always think about a post-high school swimming career. However, once she reached the high school level, that was a dream that began to crystallize.
Considering how hard she worked since then to set herself up for a college opportunity, Kennedy said that it was a special occasion when she was finally able to put pen to paper.
“I was honestly really thankful, really grateful and really proud because I worked really hard to get here,” Kennedy said. “It's a big moment.”
Kennedy is undecided on what she will study. She said that her academic path might lead her to sports medicine.
One thing she knows for sure, though, is that she wants to make her mark at Georgia.
“I want to push myself and see how good I can get and how far I can make it,” Kennedy said. “I know it's not going to be easy but I'm willing to work as hard as I can because I have world-class coaches so I'm going to make sure I utilize that and get as good as possible.”
