Camille Spink, Tennessee Women Pushing for Third Straight National Top-Five Finish
The University of Tennessee swimming program gets the most attention for the exploits of its male sprinters. Jordan Crooks recently completed an incredible run with the Volunteers in which he joined Caeleb Dressel as the only swimmers under 18 in the 50-yard freestyle, became the first ever under 20 in the short course meters 50 free and broke Dressel’s NCAA record in the 100-yard free. With Crooks now graduated, Gui Caribe remains one of the best sprinters in college swimming as he prepares to contend for individual NCAA crowns this season.
At the same time, don’t sleep on a Tennessee women’s roster that has the pieces in place for a third consecutive top-five finish on the national level and possibly to challenge for a third SEC title under the leadership of head coach Matt Kredich (and the first since Texas joined the league prior to last season). While there are no national-title favorites among the Lady Vols, the team has swimmers poised to challenge for points across the board nationally.
The program’s likely top scorer, once again, is junior sprinter Camille Spink. Last season, she finished third in the 100 free and fourth in the 50 at the NCAA Championships. She entered among the top seeds in the 200 free but fell to 17th in prelims. For this year, Spink owns the fourth-best time in the country in the 50 free (21.25) and 100 free (46.54) while sitting 14th in the 200 free (1:42.57). In the team’s dominant win at Georgia last week, Spink split 20.78 anchoring her team’s 200 medley relay before coming back minutes later to go just off her season best in the 200 (1:42.62). In her third race of the day, she was only a half-second behind her top time this year in the 100 free (47.02).
McKenzie Siroky — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Also returning is McKenzie Siroky, who achieved a third-place national finish in the 100 breaststroke as a freshman. Siroky went on to qualify for the U.S. World Championships team by virtue of a swim-off win in the 50-meter breast at U.S. Nationals. Currently, Siroky ranks fourth in the country in the 100 breast at 57.78, and she is part of the country’s deepest group of sprint breaststrokers. Even after the graduation of Mona McSharry, Tennessee still has Emelie Fast and Simone Moll currently ranked among the national top-20 in the event.
A pair of Siroky’s sophomore teammates have brought themselves into difference-making positions through their recent performances. First is Canadian Ella Jansen, who was the B-final winner in the 500 free and 400 IM at last season’s NCAA meet. Jansen brings skills in a variety of events, with current national rankings of ninth in the 400 IM (4:04.72), 12th in the 200 IM (1:55.33), 13th in the 500 free (4:37.33), 13th in the 200 fly (1:53.90) and 15th in the 200 free (1:42.62), and she has the sprint skills to make a difference in the freestyle relays.
Emily Brown has made a significant jump this season after taking 12th in the 200 fly at the 2025 NCAA Championships. Against Georgia, Brown broke the Tennessee school record in the 200 fly with a time of 1:52.39, a time that only four swimmers have surpassed this season.
Tennessee did lose a strong senior class, with McSharry, Josephine Fuller, Brooklyn Douthwright and Sara Stotler all exhausting their eligibility. Aside from Spink, Siroky, Jansen and Brown, the team’s only other returning individual scorer on the national level is Regan Rathwell, a Canadian Olympian who took 12th in the 200 back last season.
New to the mix this year is Mizuki Hirai, a Japanese butterflyer who finished seventh in the 100-meter race at the Paris Olympics. Hirai holds the world junior record in the event at 56.33, and in short course yards, a sub-50 performance is well within reach. The Georgia meet marked her first competition for Tennessee, and she came through with a win in the 100 fly in 51.49.
Even without established stars, Kredich’s team is positioned well for championship season. The team hosts Duke for one final dual meet this weekend before preparing to host the SEC Championships in mid-February. The Lady Vols have successfully navigated the last two NCAA Championships, earning 277 points for fourth place in 2024 and 298 points for fifth last season, and they have sights set on doing so once again in 2026.
