Swimming/Diving
Favorite athlete: David Boudia (Olympic Gold Medalist, London 2012)
Favorite team: Do not have one at the moment
Favorite memory competing in sports: AAU Nationals in Riverside, California, with all of my best friends, also competing in synchronized diving with my best friend.
Most embarrassing/funniest moment competing in sports: When I had to re-do a dive at USA Zones in Virginia because I forgot to wait for my name and dive to be announced.
Music on iPod: Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift
Future plans: Attending the University of Pittsburgh and dive on the team.
Words to live by: “Never Say Never” “Believe” “Live in the Moment” “You cannot change the past, but you can always look to a brighter future.” “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
One goal before turning 30: Enjoy and finish college and then get a successful job.
One thing people don’t know about me: I traveled to China and walked the Great Wall of China.
By Mary Jane Souder
Rachel Saunders is one of the state’s elite divers.
The Central Bucks West senior has not only advanced to the PIAA championship meet every year since she was a freshman, Saunders also was named to the 2012 National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association (NISCA) All-American Team.
But Saunders is special, according to her coach, for reasons that go well beyond her accomplishments on the diving board.
“Oftentimes divers set themselves apart from the swim team,” West coach Vibeke Swanson said. “Rachel became really good friends with a lot of the swimmers, and because of that, diving and swimming have become one team.
“I really think Rachel has a lot to do with that. She was voted captain this year, and it’s not often you have a diver as a captain.”
It’s also uncommon to see a top-flight diver compete in swimming events, but that’s exactly what Saunders is doing this year. Since West has such a small squad, the senior captain swims a leg in the 200 freestyle relay.
“It’s fun, but I never practice, so I’m kind of bad, but it’s fun to do at every single meet,” Saunders said.
How does her relay team measure up to the other teams in meets?
“Sometimes we get second to last,” she said with a laugh. “It’s fun.”
While Saunders might not be able to compete with the best in the pool, she is still fiercely competitive.
“She’ll look at her time and say, ‘I want to be faster,’” Swanson said. “She’s just a dedicated and hard working person, and she’s actually a pretty decent swimmer.”
While Saunders doesn’t mind swimming when pressed into duty, it is on the diving board that the senior standout is creating her legacy at West. She already holds the school diving record for six of 11 dives.
“Rachel is very easygoing on the outside and charming and friendly but yet very competitive with herself and very demanding of perfection,” Swanson said. “Every year you want to improve, and Rachel, being who she is – she’s no exception.
“She would definitely want to improve her scores first and foremost, and if that moves her up a place, that’s even better.”
The groundwork for Saunders’ successful diving career was laid when she became involved in gymnastics at the age of eight and competed on the gymnastics circuit for three years.
When she was 12, Saunders began diving. It was a natural transition.
“Diving was kind of similar since you do flips, and it’s kind of like the same motion, so I decided to try diving,” she said.
Saunders got her start in competitive diving with the Council Rock Aquatic Club. She took to diving immediately and made an immediate impact as a freshman at West. Saunders finished fourth at the District One AAA championships and earned a spot in states where she finished 18th.
“I was pretty surprised because when I went to districts I didn’t even know about states until I made states,” she said. “I didn’t really know what it was, so I was surprised when I made it.”
As a sophomore, Saunders, who began competing on the USA Diving circuit, once again finished in the top five in districts and captured a fourth place medal at the PIAA Championship meet.
As a junior, Saunders finished seventh at districts and was the final state qualifier.
“The competition gets harder and harder each year because I had a pretty good meet at districts last year,” she said. “I messed up one dive, but I was really happy I made it with seventh place.”
Once at states, she excelled, this time finishing third in the elite field.
“The diving world is really small, and I have a lot of friends who made it to states, like girls from my club team,” Saunders said. “Just knowing I made states makes me happy. I try not to get nervous because then I don’t do as well.”
Saunders has a rigorous training schedule that three days a week includes practicing with her high school team from 3-5 p.m. and then practicing with her USA Diving team from 6:30-9 p.m. Saunders estimates she practices around 20 hours a week, but she has reaped the dividends of her hard work.
The Bucks’ senior captain participated in the 2011 and 2012 USA Diving Junior Zone A Championships and also advanced to the 2012 Junior East National Chamiponships, finishing 28th in the 1M competition.
“She’s just incredible,” Swanson said. “She has such great presence, and she’s fun to watch. She’s just amazing off the board.”
What sets Saunders apart?
“Her persistence for excellence and her drive to constantly get a little sharper and achieve the next level,” Swanson said.
Saunders’ talents have landed her a diving scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh. She chose Pitt from a final list that included East Carolina, Penn State, Wisconsin (Madison) and Pitt.
“I tried to keep an open mind, but I visited Pitt when I was a junior just for a campus tour, and I fell in love with the campus,” Saunders said. “I visited Pitt four times before my recruiting trip.
“The team is really nice, and I felt really welcomed.”
Saunders, who plans to pursue a career in the business field, made a verbal commitment to Pitt in late November, and with the weight of that decision off her shoulders, the senior captain can enjoy her final high school season.
“I still put pressure on myself,” she admitted.
An excellent student, Saunders is a member of the Key Club, a community service club at West. The fact that she has early release this semester has allowed her additional time to complete her schoolwork before her practice schedule begins.
“Sometimes when I’m really stressed out with schoolwork – whenever I dive, it makes me less stressed,” Saunders said.
Making the season more enjoyable for Saunders is the fact that she shares a special bond with her teammates.
“My freshman year I wasn’t really that close with the swim team just because I guess it was my first year and I was pretty shy,” she said. “The end of my freshman year and my sophomore year I started communicating with the team more, going to all the pasta parties and doing all the team activities, and I became close friends with the girls, so I’m always with them.
“It’s a lot more fun because a lot of teams in high school – swimming and diving are really separated, so I like how we’re together.”
And Saunders has played a major role in bringing the team together.
