Finding Joy in the Water: Audrey Mahoney’s Final Chapter at UNH

After 14 years in the pool, Audrey Mahoney is finishing her career with more than just records to show for it.

Over the last four years at the University of New Hampshire, the senior sprinter has built a decorated career filled with conference titles, relay wins, broken pool records and milestone performances. But as Mahoney closes out her time with the Wildcats, the biggest lesson she learned is not just how to compete, it's how to enjoy the sport that has changed her life for the past 14 years.

"I would say the level of pressure I put on myself decreased," Mahoney said. "The more I enjoyed it, the more I enjoyed showing out, the more I enjoyed getting on the blocks and seeing my teammates."

That shift in perspective helped shape the final chapter of Mahoney's collegiate career, one that recently brought her back to her home state of Illinois to compete at the TYR Pro Swim Series at the FMC Natatorium. A meet showcasing some of the top swimmers in the country, Mahoney had been invited in years prior, but during her senior season the stars finally aligned for her to attend and mark her last swim meet at home with her entire family in attendance.

For Mahoney, the experience was both surreal and full circle.

"My last meet was at home, which was kind of why I wanted to do it," she said. "If I had the chance to end it back where it all started, why not?"

Mahoney's first experience with swimming is credited to her parents, who put her and her sister in swim lessons to learn water safety. What started as a childhood activity quickly became more serious when she joined a club team at eight years old and has now spent 14 years swimming competitively. Even then, she did not always picture swimming taking her this far.

"I didn't even think I would make it to college swimming," Mahoney said.

This mindset changed her sophomore year of high school, when college coaches began showing interest. Eventually, UNH stood out to Mahoney not just because of swimming, because it offered everything she was looking for outside the pool and beyond her home state.

Mahoney, who is finishing a degree in Health Management and Policy, said that while academics played a major role in her decision, she also found herself drawn towards life in New England.

"I knew I didn't want to be surrounded by just farmland," said Mahoney with a laugh. "I wanted a beach, I wanted a city, and I wanted options."

She fell in love with the versatile atmosphere and location of UNH and it was everything she wanted.

Once she arrived at UNH, Mahoney quickly made an impact as a sprint freestyler, competing in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle events. Some of the biggest highlights of her career came early, including helping the Wildcats win the conference title as a freshman and earning the Team Rookie of the Year award.

One of the moments she still remembers most came during her first conference championship meet, when she swam the anchor leg of the 200-medley relay.

"As a freestyler, you're the last leg, so it all came down to me," said Mahoney. "We won by a small margin that day, I just remember a senior grabbing me and saying, 'You did it, you pulled it together.' It felt amazing".

The competitive edge she felt her first season has long fueled Mahoney's success.

"I really don't like to lose," she said. "I go into meets and I'm like, well, I want to win it. So I have to do my best."

Despite this mentality some of the most defining parts of Mahoney's career came during the less visible challenges along the way.

As a sophomore, she dealt with shoulder pain that made it difficult to get through intense training. At the same time, she was coming off a standout freshman season, the combination of physical pain and self-imposed pressure began to wear on her.

"I was very in my head," said Mahoney. "I didn't want to race it [50 freestyle] anymore because I was putting too much pressure on myself."

Eventually, she said speaking honestly with her coaches helped her begin to move forward.

That lesson returned this year, when Mahoney dealt with another challenge in the pool, episodes of blacking out while swimming that were eventually diagnosed as vertigo.

"I had to stop at practice because I couldn't see, I couldn't hear anything," said Mahoney. "It just made me realize if you can push yourself to get through that, you can push yourself to get through anything at this point."

Rather than letting those moments define her, Mahoney expressed they helped reshape the way she approached swimming.

"It's really not all about that," she said of the pressure she once placed on herself to win every race. "Just stop putting that pressure on yourself and just enjoy it."

That mindset helped produce one of the strongest seasons of her career.

This year, Mahoney broke former U.S. Olympian Jenny Thompson's record a total of three times during her career including one of her most memorable moments when she broke the 35-year-old record at UNH's first home meet of the season, with her father in the stands. She set a Tootell Aquatic Center pool record and meet record in the 100 fly at URI's Harold Anderson Invitational on Nov. 23. Mahoney also broke the Siena Swim Center pool records in the 100 free, 50 free (broke her own record) and UVM's Forbush Natatorium in 50 free. Mahoney was named America East Women's Swimming and Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive year.

Even now, she admitted it still does not always feel entirely real.

"I came to college not even thinking times like this were possible," she said. "And then I did it and was like, wow, that's insane. So, I'm happy I got to leave something at UNH".

However, Mahoney said much of what she will remember most about UNH has little to do with times on a scoreboard. Instead, it comes from her team, which she describes as competitive in the pool but uplifting and supportive outside of it. The kind of environment where teammates push one another but also know how to make each other laugh after a difficult day.

"It's very uplifting and encouraging," Mahoney said. "You could have one of your worst days in school or in general and you come to practice and the team is just automatically like, 'What can we do to help?'"

This culture became especially important to Mahoney this season as one of the team captains.

"To me, it's leaving the team better than you found it," she said.

As a leader, Mahoney said one of her biggest priorities was making sure younger swimmers remembered the sport should still be fun. Speaking from her own experiences, she emphasized that being a student-athlete should not mean losing yourself in the process.

Her perspective was shaped in part by one of the most important people in her life: her older sister, who played Division III softball and remained a constant source of support throughout her career.

"If I had a hard practice I would call her, if I had a good day I would call her," Mahoney said. "She was always there for me."

As Mahoney's college career has come to a close, she said she is still figuring out exactly what comes next post-graduation. She hopes to begin a career after graduation and is interested in public health analysis. For now, she is also enjoying the freedom to explore fitness beyond the structure of college athletics.

She may not be done with the pool forever. Mahoney said masters swimming could still be in her future, but for now she is stepping into the next chapter of life with everything the sport has given her.

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