After dedicating more than a decade of her life to swimming, Annie Kannady (12) officially signed with Hendrix College, a private liberal arts college in Conway, AR, on Dec. 10. By committing to Hendrix, Kannady has solidified her place as a member of the Women’s Swimming and Diving team for the Warriors. 

Leading up to her decision, Kannady also received a number of offers from other schools, including Millsaps College, Millikin University, Centre College, Rhodes College, Birmingham-Southern College and Sewanee: The University of the South. 

“Hendrix is a very unique school all around, but for me the distance to home was very important to me,” Kannady said. “The close-knit community at Hendrix is also something that really stood out to me.”

Regardless of Hendrix’s appeal to Kannady, the swim team recruitment process was no walk in the park.

“I…went on a recruitment trip to meet with the coach and had to send my times and how I have competed to the coach before I was offered a spot on the team,” Kannady said.

As she advances on to a competitive college level, Kannady’s swim routine will start to look a little different than it did in her time on the White Station swim team. 

“I was given [Hendrix’s] basic training schedule, which is very similar to my schedule now, except it will be much more personalized, and I will be in the weight room more than I am currently, which I am looking forward to,” Kannady said. “The season for college is only September [through] February, but I plan on training throughout the year because it is a good stress reliever for me as well.”

Although Kannady signed for swimming, she does not plan to continue after college. Instead, she will pursue a double major in biology and Spanish before going on to medical school. 

“I have been competitively swimming for over a decade, so it has been a very long term goal of mine,” Kannady said. “I knew I was not ready for my athletic career to be over after high school, and I truly enjoy the competing and training that swimming has given to me.”