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Maeve Kelley of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania has committed to swim at Amherst College in the fall of 2023. The Division III school is located in Amherst, Massachusetts, and competes in the New England Small College Athletic Conference or NESCAC.
“I am so excited to announce my commitment to continue my academic and athletic pursuits at Amherst College! I couldn’t have done it without the endless support from my family, coaches, and friends. Go Mammoths!!”
Kelley attends Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh and swims year-round for the Fox Chapel Killer Whales. She recently competed for them at the Speedo Sectionals in Richmond meet, where she finished 14th in 1500m (18:11.03) Also in Richmond she hit personal bests in the 200m fly (2:27.40) and 400m I.M. (5:08.57)
In a yard pool, Kelley is noted for her prowess in the distance freestyles. She currently holds 2023 LCM Futures cuts in both the 400 and 1500 free via conversion from her yard times, 4:59.95 in the 500 and 17:06.07 in the mile. Both of those swims were swum at the Speedo Winter Juniors – East meet, where she also swam the 200 back (2:05.95).
Best SCY Times
- 200 Free – 1:52.71
- 500 Free – 4:58.93
- 1650 Free – 17:06.07
- 100 Back – 58.03
- 200 Back – 2:03.54
While strong in the backstrokes, her distance free abilities stand out for Amherst Mammoths and whomever their new head coach. Nick Nichols, who recruited Kelley, retired after 25 years of coaching. At the 2023 NESCAC championship meet, her mile time would have placed 3rd. The top Amherst swimmer was Megan Lee in 4th with a 17:17.97. Her 500 time would also have put her into the top eight, her 4:58.93 would have been good for 6th. Senior, now alumni, Jessie Gordon finished in 3rd with a 4:56.17.
Like her 1650, Kelley’s best backstroke times would also have led the team at the NESCAC Championships. Cora Spelke swam 58.15 in the 100 back to qualify in 14th for the final while Emory Tudor swam 2:06.57 in the morning, good for 11th in the 200 back.
Amherst finished third out of 11 teams at the NESCAC Championships. At the 2023 Division III NCAAs Championships, the Amherst women finished in 12th. Diver, Sydney Bluestein, led the scoring, finishing 1st in the 1m springboard competition (11 dives).
The 2023 NCAA D3 invite times in the 500 and 1650 were 4:59.17 and 17:18.75, respectively. Her best 500 time would have qualified her in 13th for the consolation final and she would have placed 11th in the 1650 timed final.
Joining Kelley at Amherst in the fall are Paige Arnold, a freestyle/butterflier from California and Emily Kim, an I.M./Butterflier frommaeve kelley New Jersey.
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Let’s go Maeve!!
Good luck to Maeve. However, I’m pretty sure Jessie Gordon won’t be her future teammate (she graduated) and Nick Nichols won’t be her coach (he retired). Thanks.
Good Catch! The team website still lists him as head coach, guess I didn’t do my due diligence in looking further.