Although the majority of high-end recruits in the high school class of 2024 have announced their collegiate commitments over the past number of months, there are still a few instant-impact swimmers available in the class.
On the girls’ side, this includes three recruits ranked in our top 10 last year and another who earned a spot in the top 20, led by top-ranked Katie Grimes.
#4 Levenia Sim, #10 Annika Parkhe, and#15 Emily Thompson are also uncommitted.
The reason for these swimmers not being committed yet could be any one of a number of things, including:
- They haven’t made a decision yet
- They’ve committed privately but haven’t made it public yet
- They’ve chosen a school with special entrance requirements. These schools, like the Ivies and U.S. Military Academies, have long eschewed earlier commitments.
- We’ve missed their commitment announcement (we looked really hard though).
- They’ve decided to skip college and go pro.
- They’ve decided to go to college and not swim.
Note that this doesn’t include international recruits.
RANKED SWIMMERS REMAINING
*HM = Honorable Mention, BOTR = Best of the Rest
1. Katie Grimes – Sandpipers of Nevada – Las Vegas, NV
Best Times:
- 400 IM: 3:57.02 (best in class)
- 1650 free: 15:26.17 (best in class)
- 1000 free: 9:22.11 (best in class)
- 500 free: 4:29.53 (best in class)
- 200 free: 1:43.83 (best in class)
- 200 fly: 1:52.28 (best in class)
- 200 IM: 1:55.33
- 200 back: 1:51.46
- 100 back: 52.89
- 100 fly: 52.63
Grimes isn’t just the top recruit in this class, she’s one of the best female swimmers in the United States.
As the 2022 World Championship silver medalist in the women’s 1500 free and 400 IM, Grimes’ clear focus is on Worlds this summer in Fukuoka and ultimately the Paris Olympics in 2024.
It’s possible that Grimes opts to turn professional and not go the NCAA route, but that seems unlikely. She’s a better long course swimmer than she in short course, but still would’ve won the 500 free, 1650 free and 400 IM at the 2023 NCAAs with her best times.
4. Levenia Sim – TNT Swimming – Spanish Fort High School – Spanish Fort, AL
Best Times:
- 100 back: 51.03 (best in class)
- 100 fly: 51.69 (best in class)
- 200 back: 1:53.53
- 200 fly: 1:56.56
- 200 IM: 1:58.45
- 100 free: 49.26
- 50 free: 23.20
Sim has the ability to step in and score at NCAAs right away based on her personal best times, with her 100 back and 100 fly PBs both the fastest in the class. Her 100 back best of 51.03 would’ve made the ‘A’ final at the 2023 NCAAs.
She’s also elite in the 200 back, 200 fly and 200 IM and will bring a versatile skillset to whichever schools she opts for.
10. Annika Parkhe – Patriot Aquatic Club – Deerfield High School – Deerfield, IL
Best Times:
- 200 free: 1:45.21
- 500 free: 4:45.67
- 100 fly: 52.13
- 200 fly: 1:57.18
- 100 back: 53.15
- 200 back: 1:58.48
- 100 free: 49.44
- 50 free: 22.79
Parkhe is one of the top mid-distance freestylers in the class, and leveled up her 100 fly in November in 52.13 to give her a third true top-tier event.
She’s also coming off of lowering her best times in the 50 free (22.79) and 100 free (49.44) at the Illinois Senior Championships in March.
15. Emily Thompson – Greater Somerset County YMCA– Ridge High School – Basking Ridge, NJ
Best Times:
- 400 IM: 4:09.05
- 200 IM: 1:56.85
- 200 fly: 1:56.42
- 100 fly: 52.51
- 100 back: 54.41
- 200 back: 1:56.21
- 200 breast: 2:15.36
- 50 free: 23.09
- 100 free: 50.25
- 200 free: 1:49.36
Thompson is incredibly versatile and continuously improving, having reset her best time in all of the events listed above over the past 11 months.
She’s a very strong medley swimmer, with her PBs in the 200 and 400 both under the time required to earn an NCAA invite last season, and is within striking distance in the fly events.
Update: Sofia Plaza, previously listed in this article, has committed to Florida.
OTHER NOTABLES
- Lila Heffernan, North Bay Aquatics – 23.0/49.8/1:46.3 free
- Ana Hazlehurst, North Baltimore Aquatic Club – 1:01.3/2:14.5 breast, 53.8 fly, 2:00.2 IM
- Tawannah McLemore, TS Aquatics – 23.3/51.4 free
- Karina Kanary, Longhorn Aquatics – 1:02.0/2:12.5 breast
- Olivia Suarez, Magnolia Aquatic Club – 1:57.7 fly, 16:58 free
North Bay Aquatics’ Lila Heffernan is certainly a name to watch for, as she took a significant leap forward in March at the Speedo Sectionals in Carlsbad, bringing her best time down from 1:49.27 to 1:46.38 in the 200 free. She also broke 50 seconds for the first time in the 100 free at that meet, and earlier this month, went another PB 49.41 to take third at the CIF State Championships.
NBAC’s Ana Hazlehurst is another swimmer who has burst onto the scene this year, setting sizeable lifetime bests to hit a Junior Nationals cut in the 100 fly in early February and then doing the same in the 100 and 200 breast later that same month.
Levenia sim just committed to stanford…yikes
Kate Grimes confirmed Villanova Wildcat
I think the other day Brett Hawke let slip that Katie Grimes may be going to Florida, they were talking about her not having chosen a college yet and then he said ‘I thought she was going to Florida’ and then a little bit later he said he’s spoken to her parents and ‘they’re wonderful people’ so maybe I’m putting 2×2 together and making 5 but I saw that as they’ve chosen but not announced it but maybe I’m wrong
He might have been confusing her with Sims too?
what do we think the odds are that its Stanford? tldr for the below: its very rare for commitments to be announced to be this late outside of Stanford/Ivy Leagues
I looked through the past 2 years of recruits and out of the 40 female swimmers in the top 20 each year, there was only a single non-Ivy/Stanford commitment announcement this late, which came from Katie Crom in November of her senior year. Out of the other 39 commitments, 30 of them came before January 1st of junior year, with the 9 (besides Crom) that came after that date being Kozan to USC and Howley to UVA, both of which were announced in February, Wilhelm announcing her Harvard commitment in… Read more »
I would guess Sim, Parkhe and Thompson are headed to Stanford but I highly doubt Grimes is. She seems to be much more focused on swimming than academics, probably Florida or ASU (as a pro or NCAA).
Another notable uncommitted athlete is Julia Strojnowska of canada. Not sure if she’ll swim NCAA, but certainly someone coaches should look for. 4:13.6/8:48/16:47 free.
Grimes will probably either go pro, go to Florida, or go to Stanford.
I believe Sofia Plaza committed to Florida.
BOTR Plaza committed to Florida