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Natalie Stuart from Jeffersonville, Pennsylvania has announced her verbal commitment to swim and study at the University of Richmond in the fall.
“I chose the University of Richmond for its close-knit team, great coaching, and high standards. Their swimmers excel in the pool and in the classroom, and are a true inspiration to succeed. Go Spiders!”
Stuart is a distance freestyle specialist who competes for the Suburban Seahawks in Newtown Square, PA under Head Coach Charlie Kennedy. Swimming for the Seahawks, Stuart holds NCSA qualifying times in the 1650 free, 1000 free, 400 IM, and 200 fly. She is also a senior at the Academy of Notre Dame High School. At the 2022 Eastern Interscholastic Swimming Championships, the primary high school championship for private schools in Pennsylvania, Stuart was a 2-time finalist, placing 16th in the 200 freestyle (1:57.71) and 10th in the 500 freestyle (5:05.13).
Best Times:
- 1650 freestyle – 17:04.17
- 1000 freestyle – 10:14.85
- 500 freestyle – 5:00.58
- 400 IM – 4:27.06
- 200 butterfly – 2:05.76
With her best times, Stuart already ranks as one of the top freestyle swimmers on Richmond’s roster. Her personal best in the 1650 freestyle would have ranked 3rd on the roster last season, while her 500 freestyle would have ranked 5th. Though the 1000 freestyle is often not contested at the NCAA Division I Championship level, her time would have been 1st among Richmond’s swimmers last season as well. Stuart may also prove to be valuable in the 200 butterfly and 400 IM, as her times in both events would have been third on Richmond’s roster.
At the 2022 Atlantic 10 Championships, Richmond placed 3rd overall out of 11 teams, scoring 487 points. The team saw a significant boost from junior Claire O’Shaughnessy who was the conference runner-up in the 200 butterfly (2:00.60) and a finalist in the 500 freestyle (4:56.39). It took a 4:59.65 to final in the 500 freestyle, a 17:12.10 to score in the 1650 freestyle, a 2:05.02 to final in the 200 butterfly, and a 4:30.50 to final in the 400 IM, putting Stuart within range of scoring in multiple events.
With her commitment, Stuart is set to join Julia Krichev, Caitlyn Hughes, Katie Chignell, and Caroline Weldon in Richmond’s class of 2026.
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Great choice Natalie! Congratulations!