Olivia Stewart has announced on Instagram she will transfer to Kentucky after spending her freshman season at Auburn. Stewart was a Best of the Rest (BOTR) ranked recruit in the high school class of 2024.
Stewart arrived last fall as one of two BOTR recruits for a huge class of 15 women at Auburn. She was off her lifetime bests as a freshman and did not swim at SECs. She instead finished her season at the Auburn last chance meet swimming times of a 1:02.15 in the 100 breast and a 2:17.89 in the 200 breast.
Stewart’s Time Progression:
| Before Auburn |
Freshman Season
|
|
| 100 breast | 1:00.24 | 1:01.72 |
| 200 breast | 2:12.52 | 2:15.13 |
The Kentucky women finished 11th out of 13 teams at the 2025 SEC Championships, two spots below Auburn. The Wildcats were led by breaststroker Bridget Engel who scored 39 points. She finished 9th in the 100 breast (59.33) and 6th in the 200 breast (2:08.72). Engel went on to swim both events at 2025 NCAAs.
Engel led the team in both breaststroke events but just finished her fifth year. This means that the team will be in search of another breaststroker to lead the way. Based on her best times, Stewart would have been the #2 swimmer behind Engel in the 100 breast this season. The team also graduates their #2 200 breaststroker (2:11.65) Olivia Mendenhall as she just finished her senior season.
Stewart will arrive this fall with three years of NCAA eligibility remaining. She is originally from Statesboro, Georgia.
