Kara Lucenti Verbally Commits to Vanderbilt

Kara Lucenti of the New Trier Swim Club has verbally committed to Vanderbilt, her coach Andrew Hodgson tells us today.

Lucenti is one of the better breaststrokers in the class, with yards bests of 1:03.0 and 2:15.4 in the 100 and 200.

Vanderbilt had two swimmers break team breaststroke records last year, as a part of a record-crushing season, but only one of those is still on the roster. Jennifer Mann, who was a freshman last year, has apparently left the program with the 200 breaststroke record, but Elly Faulkner returns as a junior with the 100 yard record of 1:01.80 – a record she took away from Mann, in fact.

In other words, Vanderbilt’s breaststroking group has some momentum behind it, just as the whole team does. Lucenti joins a very good recruiting class that includes, among others, Summer Brown, Maddie Hunt, and Bailey Bowden.

Lucenti swims under Hodgson at the New Trier Swim Club, as well as under the soon-to-be-retired Mark Onstott at New Trier High School. She took 5th at last year’s state championship meet int he 100 breaststroke, and this year should contend with Oak Park senior Paulina Kaminski and Iowa commit Shea Hoyt for that state title.