As a high-school senior on an official recruiting trip, Madeleine Stanton sat poolside next to UCLA swim coach Cyndi Gallagher, soaking in the team atmosphere and the California sunshine.
She took note of it all ““ the attitude, the focus, the cohesiveness ““ then turned to Gallagher and said, “I don’t think I have reached my full potential yet.”
She still needed time.
After just a brief pause, Gallagher looked back, smiled and said, “I’m glad.”
Raised in Texas by parents who had once been athletes themselves, it didn’t take long for Stanton, now a senior at UCLA, to develop an active lifestyle that mirrored those of her parents.
She began swimming competitively at 9 and, being the oldest of four siblings, perhaps spurred her brother and two sisters to take to the pool as well. At one point, the whole family would go to swim meets together.
Both the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center and the Student Recreation Center Natatorium at Texas A&M would, over the years, become more than just competition venues to Stanton.
“I’ve swum in both of those pools for over a decade ““ probably three to four times every year before college,” Stanton said. “These pools mean a lot to me.”
Eleven All-American first-teams and four All-Region MVP honors later, Stanton had the opportunity to visit five different colleges that all sought her in-pool excellence.
“In high school there was never a question of whether I could swim in college; I knew I wasn’t done yet,” Stanton said. “I knew I wanted to join a D-I program out of high school, but it was just a matter of finding the right fit.”
For most, the familiarity of home would be the deciding factor.
For Stanton, a place where she could train and swim for four years was important, but the perfect fit would consist of much more.
“UCLA was the perfect package,” Stanton said. “The team was probably one of the biggest reasons why I came, as well as the awesome coaching staff and excellent academics.”
Gallagher knew she had prioritized her recruiting efforts well and it seemed that nothing could hold Stanton back.
“She was mature, focused, articulate, well-spoken; a great student and swimmer ““ she’s the type of person you want in your program,” Gallagher said.
Stanton, however, came in wide-eyed, unsure of what to expect. And the trials began.
“I thought I knew how to swim pretty well until I came to college and realized that I had to learn so many new things here,” Stanton said.
As a freshman, she got sick during the conference season and although she was able to close out strong ““ she still missed the NCAA cut.
Sophomore year brought more tribulations.
“I had some family issues that I had to deal with and I was also trying to figure out some stroke technique that I couldn’t seem to grasp,” Stanton said. “My mind really wasn’t there.”
She said she had so many things going on in her head that it haunted her all the way back home, to a meet in Texas. With a poor 24th-place showing in the 200-meter backstroke in the early-morning portion of the meet, she said she felt as if nothing was right ““ nothing was connecting.
Stanton said that assistant coach Erika Hansen-Stebbins grabbed her by the shoulders and, looking her in the eyes, told her that she was faster than she had been swimming and that she knew it.
That one moment has been ingrained in Stanton’s memory ever since.
“That’s why what we have here is special,” Stanton said.
Perhaps it was just a sophomore slump.
As a junior, Stanton was named team co-captain along with Kristen Fischer. Yet again, she was met by heartbreak in conference meets.
“I had some success in the dual meets,” Stanton said. “You can have individual success, but when you have team success, it means that much more.”
Her team-oriented goals have earned the respect of her teammates ““ so much, in fact, she’s been called the “team mom.”
“She takes care of everyone,” Gallagher said. “It can be a burden when you take care of everyone because sometimes you forget to take care of yourself.”
With a year of learning, Stanton has grown wiser and made huge strides her final year at UCLA.
She attributes much of this sudden turnaround to the motivational speech that coach Sue Enquist, who coached the Bruins to 11 NCAA softball championships, had given to the team prior to the Texas Invitational earlier this season.
Simplifying abstract ideals into concrete and feasible goals, Enquist delivered a message that Stanton instantly connected with.
Enquist gave the team an ultimatum, asking the team if that day were the last day the players could ever wear swimsuits, how different would they prepare for it and how much more motivated and inspired would they be?
With that fresh in mind, Stanton looked to capitalize on a momentous opportunity.
“I realized that I only have three months of this left in my life,” Stanton said. “It’s now or never.”
Stanton came back to Texas under all sorts of pressure. Memories of the sophomore meet still lingered.
Yet when the pressure was on, she followed Enquist’s advice, swimming as if each event was her last.
And she swam her way to lifetime bests in the 100 back (54.14), the 200 back (1:56.18), and the 200 IM (2:01.22).
“She had a quiet confidence and a quiet determination, more so than ever,” Gallagher said. “You don’t know how that comes, but you hope that it comes at some point in their career. She had a confidence and a determination that this was her year.”
After a tough offseason and consistent dedication to practice, her hard work has paid off.
“The light went on and she broke through the ceiling,” Gallagher said. “Once you can see no limits for yourself in swimming, you can do that for everything in your life.”
And sometimes it does take a long time. For Stanton it took three years to have everything fall in place. In a sense, there are two types of seniors: ones who have one foot out the door and ones who won’t leave until they reach their goals.
It’s obvious which type she is.
Stanton’s success, she feels, transcends the pool. She’s on the honor roll as an international development studies student, specializing in the examination of underdeveloped countries in southeastern Asia and the sub-Sahara. She’s planning to intern over the summer and hopes to get a master’s degree.
“The best thing I’ve learned is to be in the present,” Stanton said. “When you’re in class you’re only going to be in class. The same thing goes for the pool. If you can really master that, you can be real successful in college and in life.”
And all roads lead back to Texas. The NCAA Swim and Dive Championships will be held at Texas A&M, in the Student Recreation Center Natatorium pool. It’s the same pool Stanton swam in growing up in Texas. It’s the same pool that holds a soft spot in her heart.
“They are kind of the pools that I grew up with and I have great memories in them,” Stanton said.
“This will be the last collegiate swim meet of my life and it’s going to mean a lot.”
There will be a big cheering section there to greet Stanton ““ her mother, her friends, her family. It’s a triumphant ending to her collegiate career.
And somehow, it should all feel connected.
It should feel right.
For Madeleine Stanton, it has just been a matter of time.