Smoky Mountain Today

Rachel Peden was named SAC Women's Swimming Scholar-Athlete of the Year this afternoon, Mar. 24.

Rachel Peden is a senior for the Eagles majoring in psychology with a 3.94 GPA. She was voted SAC Women's Swimming Scholar-Athlete of the Year on Friday, Mar. 24.

SAC Scholar-Athlete honors are rewarded to those student athletes with high levels of academic and athletic achievement who also contribute their community through service and leadership.

Academically, Peden is a member of the Alpha Chi National Honor Society which honors the top 10% of all juniors, seniors, and graduate students on a given campus. Peden's name has shown up on the Dean's List for four straight years, and she has received either Platinum or Gold Scholar recognition each year during her time at Carson-Newman. Gold and Platinum Scholar honors are part of the Eagle Scholars Program that highlights academic achievement among student athletes at Carson-Newman.

This year, Peden was honored as part of the CSC Academic All-District team and was laureled with Third Team Academic All-America honors. 

Peden has also proven to be successful on the athletic front. She is a three-time school record holder. Peden won the Nancy Claire Smith Award her freshman year at Carson-Newman which is awarded to one swimmer at the end of each season. Peden received the Eagle Award her sophomore year and was named team MVP after her junior season.

Peden is a two-time All-American and has earned Honorable Mention All-American honors at this year's NCAA DII Swimming and Diving Championships. She is a 2023 SAC Division II Champion in the 400-yard IM and SAC runner up in three separate events.

Earlier this year, Peden was named the South Atlantic Conference Varsity Gems Women's Swimmer of the Week for her performance during the eighth week of the 2022-23 swim season. The Eagles competed against Emory & Henry where Peden took gold in the women's 1000-yard freestyle event with a time of 10:59.31. Peden was the only swimmer who completed the race in under 11 minutes, and she finished 14 seconds ahead of her second-place competition.

Peden concluded her senior season at the NCAA Division II Championships that began Wednesday, Mar. 8. Peden was selected for four separate events. Her 500-yard freestyle (4:54.54), 400-yard individual medley (4:22.61), 1,650-yard freestyle (17:06.28), and 1,000-yard freestyle (10:10.32) each afforded her a spot to compete in the national meet.

During nationals, Peden placed ninth in the women's 1,650-yard freestyle finals with a time of 16:58.37, a season best performance in the event. Her efforts earned her Honorable Mention All-American honors at the meet.

At the South Atlantic Conference Championships, Peden won gold in the women's 400-yard IM with a qualifying mark in 4:22.61, and she secured three silver medals throughout the meet. Her 500-yard freestyle (4:57.92), 1,000-yard freestyle (10:10.32), and 1,650-yard freestyle (17:08.05) each allowed her a spot on the podium.

Peden has eight first place finishes on the season. She swam against high levels of competition throughout her senior year and secured multiple spots on the podium. Peden placed second in the 500-yard freestyle (5:06.46) during the Eagles' trip to Georgia Tech and third in the 400-yard IM (4:36.21) against the University of Tennessee.

Women's swimmer Rachel Peden is Carson-Newman's latest SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. She will graduate this upcoming May with a degree in Psychology after contributing four years to the Carson-Newman swim program and Carson-Newman University as a whole.

Original source can be found here