Kelsey Stuck will pursue her collegiate swimming career at the University of Kentucky, signing to join the Wildcats and moving to Lexington, KY, in the fall of 2025 as part of the class of 2029. A backstroke and sprint freestyler, Stuck hails from Wilmington, NC, where she competes for the Waves of Wilmington Swim Team and Hoggard High School.
In her junior year at Hoggard, she achieved notable success at the NCHSAA 4A State Championship, finishing seventh in both the 100 backstroke and 50 freestyle. A week prior, at the NCHSAA 4A Eastern Regionals, she secured victories in the 100 backstroke and placed second in the 50 freestyle. She also clinched both events at the 2024 3A/4A MEC Conference Championship in January, contributing to Hoggard’s overall championship title.
Stuck’s most recent participation was at the 2024 Winter Junior Championships – East, where she recorded her best season times in the 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, and 200 backstroke, with her best placement being 48th in the 200 backstroke (2:00.50).
Throughout 2023, Stuck achieved her personal bests in her main events, although she has come close to matching them in 2024.
HER BEST TIMES (SCY):
– 50 freestyle: 23.55
– 100 freestyle: 52.13
– 200 freestyle: 1:54.35
– 100 backstroke: 54.87
– 200 backstroke: 2:00.01
The Kentucky Wildcats are currently in a rebuilding phase, aiming to improve after finishing ninth at the 2024 SEC Championships. Stuck’s best times would not have scored at the 2024 SEC Championships, particularly as competition intensifies with the addition of the Texas Longhorns this season.
Nevertheless, Stuck will enhance the Wildcats’ backstroke and sprint freestyle squads, providing much-needed depth. Her lifetime bests would rank her tied for fifth in the 50 freestyle, fifth in the 100 backstroke, and eighth in both the 200 freestyle and 200 backstroke, and ninth in the 100 freestyle on Kentucky’s 2023-24 depth chart.
The Wildcats have been active in recruiting from the high school class of 2025, with Stuck joining fellow signees Arianna Wertheim, Elizabeth Summa, Hadar Karp, Ava Fuller, Zalika Methula, Abby Dunford, Charlotte Driesse, and Sarah Shaffer in the class of 2029.
