By Laura Veach
Photo by Nicholas Hummert
Sammi Thiele ’24 has made history during her undergraduate career at Austin College. As a regular on the Dean’s List, her academic achievements are worthy of note, but her accomplishments in the pool will be remembered long after she graduates. As a junior, Thiele broke the SCAC Championship 100M backstroke record with a 56.22 time, qualifying her to compete at the NCAA Division III National Championships. And, in 2023, she bested her own time with 55.35— marking the first time in SCAC history a woman has finished the 100M backstroke in under 56 seconds. She’s also a dual-sport athlete, contributing to the nationally ranked women’s water polo team as a member all four years of her career.
One might assume climbing the podium to collect such a prize could top this champion’s list of greatest moments; however, Thiele says the biggest rewards have been the memories made during training trips and her time spent with the team. This is what makes swimming memorable for her— relationships with the coach and teammates who helped her get there.
Thiele, an English major with a minor in education, plans to earn her Master of Arts in Teaching in the Austin Teacher Program then follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a high school teacher. She also hopes coaching will be a part of her future. Thiele’s face lights up when she talks about her experience coaching water polo club teams with athletes ranging from six to 18 years old. She knows she can’t swim competitively forever, but she can share her love of the water by employing her teaching skills. “I know there will come a time when my body gives out, but my heart hasn’t,” Thiele says. She plans to pour her heart into the next generation of champions.
Sammi Thiele has earned many medals in the pool, and she has been named SCAC Elite 19 Award Winner as a top female swimming student-athlete, honored twice with the Austin College Gene Day Female Athlete of the Year, and was chosen by her teammates for the 2023 Hannah Award for Most Outstanding Female Swimmer. She is a leader on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and a member of Sigma Tau Alpha, the international English honor society.