Swimming (College of William & Mary)
Grace McCardle (Class of 2020), now a junior at William & Mary, still thinks often about her Peabody years, especially the teachers and projects that made learning memorable. She remembers Mr. Merrick’s class as one of her favorites, including a scrapbook project built around themes she chose herself. “I started in first grade and went all the way through eighth grade,” she says. “I really loved how engaging the classes were.”
Grace started swimming at age nine and joined a year-round program at age 11. She remembers that her first introduction to the sport came through swim classes at Boar’s Head, where she spent her first lesson swallowing pool water and coughing! Despite an inauspicious start, Grace remembers begging her mom to let her try again. It didn’t take long for Grace to fall in love with the sport, and to know she wanted to swim in college.
After her Peabody graduation during the Covid-19 pandemic, Grace attended Western Albemarle High School, where she found herself drawn to humanities classes, particularly her AP courses. Grace continued swimming at Western Albemarle and eventually joined a year-round club team. When college coaches began reaching out during her junior year, William & Mary stood out. She visited in the spring of her junior year and immediately connected with the coaches, team, and overall atmosphere. “I couldn’t have found a better group of people,” she says.
That sense of community has remained one of her favorite parts of college swimming. Grace describes the men’s and women’s teams as one big family, with teammates and coaches who are genuinely supportive of one another. “You can’t enjoy the sport if you aren’t enjoying the people and coaches,” she says.
Grace’s sophomore season was a standout. William & Mary won its conference championship and finished ranked No. 44 nationally and No. 8 among mid-major programs. Grace competed primarily in the 100 and 200 backstroke and 50 freestyle, dropping time across her events throughout the season. At the 2026 CAA Championships, she reached three finals and posted personal-best times in both the 100 backstroke, finishing fourth, and the 200 backstroke, finishing sixth.
Balancing Division I swimming with academics has taught Grace the value of organization. As an English major with a history minor, her coursework involves plenty of reading and writing, while also training and competing throughout the school year. Relying on calendars, apps, and careful planning has transformed what initially felt overwhelming into something manageable.
For Grace, swimming has also been a lesson in mental toughness. “It’s SO mental,” she says. “There are always points when you feel like you might want to quit, but you just have to stick with it and don’t let the bad days get to you. It takes practice to develop mental toughness, but that discipline and grit can take you so far.”