Tennessee Swimming & Diving Announces 2025 Signing Class

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Loaded with swimmers from around the world, Tennessee swimming & diving announced its 2025 signing class Tuesday.

Made up of 10 girls, Lady Vols class boasts an Olympian and world junior record holder, a top-20 recruit from Germany, a six-time USA Diving Junior Nationals qualifier and numerous state champions. The Vols signed four swimmers, including one of the best breaststrokers as well as a top-tier distance freestyler in the class, the top-ranked recruit from Washington state and a Brazilian sprinter who's top converted 50 free time comes in at 19.19.

Here's a breakdown of each signee:

Lady Vol Signing Class

Julianna Bocska – Free – Mülheim, Germany – Startgemeinschaft Essen e.V.
Julianna Bocska ranks 16th overall in the 2025 signing class, according to Swimcloud, making her Tennessee's top signee of the group. In November, she won bronze in the 200 free at the German Short Course Championships. She also placed fifth in the 50 free at the 2024 European Aquatics Junior Championships. Her top times converted in the 50 free and 100 free are just off marks that would rank on the Tennessee top-10 leaderboard.

Top Times (Converted from LCM): 50 Free (22.09), 100 Free (48.31), 200 Free (1:46.63)

Alyssa Claborn – Back/Fly – Lake Norman, N.C. – Lowe's YMCA
Specializing in the backstroke and butterfly, Alyssa Claborn's top time in the 100 back (53.44) is exactly one second from being inside the top time on the Tennessee leaderboard. She clocked that time at this year's North Carolina state championships, where she brought home gold in the event. She also won silver in the 200 medley relay, posting the fastest 50 back split in the field at 25.1. At the 2024 YMCA National Championships, she brought home the bronze in the 100 back. At the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championships East, she finished 13th in the event and was 23rd in the 200 back.

Top Times: 100 Back (53.44), 200 Back (1:57.87), 100 Fly (54.41), 200 Fly (2:03.13)

Mizuki Hirai – Fly/Back/Free – Kariya City, Japan
A massive pickup in the 2025 class, Mizuki Hirai arrives on campus as one of the top up-and-coming swimmers in the world. At just 17 years old, she's already an Olympic finalist, finishing seventh in the 100 fly in Paris last summer, and the world junior record holder in the event (56.33) for Japan. Her top time in the event converted to short course yards is 49.48, which would rank second in program history and would've been good for second at last year's NCAA Championships. Although not ranked on any recruiting service, she checked in at No. 52 on SwimSwam's Top 100 World Rankings for 2025. In addition to the 100 fly, her converted time in the 100 back (51.61) would rank sixth in program history.

Top Times (Converted from LCM & SCM): 100 fly (49.48), 100 back (51.61), 100 free (48.64), 50 free (22.29)

Milly Leonard – Breast/Free – Columbus, Ohio – Dublin Community Swim Team
Milly Leonard is a state champion in the 200 free and 500 free from Ohio, but she's also a versatile swimmer who can develop in multiple areas. In December, she finished 18th overall in the 200 breast at the Speedo Winter Junior Championships East, touching the wall in a personal-best time of 2:14.86.

Top Times: 200 Free (1:49.16), 500 Free (4:52.77), 100 Breast (1:03.18), 200 Breast (2:14.86)

Avery Luedke – Free/Back – Chicago, Ill. – Academy Bullets Swim Club (IL) & Aquajets Swim Team (MN)
Avery Luedke was the Illinois state champion in the 500 free and state runner-up in the 200 free during the 2024 championship meet. At the Speedo Winter Junior Championships West, she finished 13th in the 1650 free and was 15th in the 200 back.

Top Times: 1650 Free (16:37.57), 500 Free (4:48.42), 200 Free (1:47.83), 100 Back (53.98), 200 Back (1:57.64)

Amelia Mason – Free/Fly – Boulder, Colo. – Flatiron Aquatics
Amelia Mason is a versatile swimmer who earned a spot on SwimSwam's Best of the Rest list for the sprint freestyle for her class. Her top time in the 200 free (1:45.62) is less than one second from placing on the top-10 leaderboard for Tennessee history. At the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championships West, she finished 12th overall in the 200 free.

Top Times: 50 Free (23.08), 100 Free (49.65), 200 Free (1:45.62), 100 Fly (54.02), 200 IM (2:01.89), 400 IM (4:17.23)

Emma Rhines – Diving – Midland, Texas – COM Diving
Ranked as the No. 5 diver in the 2025 class by SwimSwam, Emma Rhines is a six-time USA Diving Junior Nationals qualifier. Most recently, she was a finalist on 3-meter in 2024 and also advanced to finals on both 1-meter and 3-meter in 2022.

Lilly Robertson – Free/Back – Nashville, Tenn. – Ensworth Aquatics
Lilly Robertson is the top-ranked swimmer in the Volunteer State for the 2025 class. This past weekend, she capped off a decorated high school career by winning gold in the 50 free, 100 free, 200 free relay and 400 free relay. Throughout her career, she was an individual state champion six times (3 in 100 free, 2 in 200 free, 1 in 50 free). At the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championship East, she finished 15th overall in the 100 free.

Top Times: 50 Free (23.08), 100 Free (49.80), 200 Free (1:49.61), 100 Back (55.20), 200 Back (2:03.32)

Mere Whelehan – Free/Back – Cary, N.C. – TAC Titans
Mere Whelehan specializes in the sprint freestyle, being named to SwimSwam's Best of the Rest list for the class. She's a multi-time state champion in both the 100 free (4x) and 200 free (2x) for North Carolina.

Top Times: 50 Free (22.98), 100 Free (49.88), 200 Free (1:46.85), 100 Back (54.91), 200 Back (1:59.88)

Nicole Zettel – IM/Free – Holly Springs, N.C. – TAC Titans
One of the top recruits in the class, Nicole Zettel was an honorable mention for SwimSwam's top-20 rankings. She specializes in the distance freestyle and the individual medleys. During the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championships East, she finished fourth overall in the 500 free and 400 IM. She's a three-time North Carolina state champion in the 500 free and also holds a title in the 200 IM.

Top Times: 500 Free (4:45.52), 400 IM (4:11.10), 200 IM (1:58.08), 200 Free (1:47.80)

Vol Signing Class

Mac Clark – Free/IM – Pittsburgh, Pa. – Team Pittsburgh Elite Aquatics
Mac Clark specializes in the distance freestyle and individual medley. During the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championships East, he took fifth in the 1650 and was 14th in the 500 free. During the 2024 NCSA Summer Championships, he finished inside the top eight in the 1500 free (2nd), 800 free (3rd), 400 free (6th) and 400 IM (7th).

Top Times: 1650 Free (15:09.17), 500 Free (4:23.57), 200 IM (1:53.09), 400 IM (3:52.30)

Jake McCoy – IM/Back – Pullman, Wash. – Cougar Aquatics
The top-ranked recruit from Washington state, Jake McCoy arrives on Rocky Top as a specialist in the individual medley and backstroke. During the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championships West, he finished third in the 400 IM, 10th in the 200 IM and 16th on 200 back. He's won four state titles during his time in high school, bringing home the 200 IM title three times and the 100 back once. His top time in 400 IM (3:47.43) would rank ninth in school history.

Top Times: 400 IM (3:47.43), 200 IM (1:46.49), 100 Back (49.04), 200 Back (1:44.58)

Gabe Nunziata – Breast/IM – Suffolk, Va. – Old Dominion Aquatic Club
The highest-ranked recruit in the Vols' class, Gabe Nunziata is one of the best breaststrokers this year. During the 2024 Speedo Winter Junior Championships East, he brought home gold in the 200 breast and was second in the 100 breast. At the U.S. Olympic Trials, he placed 13th in the 200 breast. The SwimSwam top-20 honorable mention selection's personal-best time in 200 breast (1:54.36) would rank eighth in program history, while is 100 breast mark (52.83) is 0.06 seconds from being tied for 10th. Recently, he garnered Swimmer of the Meet honors after posting two titles at the VISAA Division II Invitational Swimming and Diving Championship. He won gold in the 100 breast (53.42) and 200 free (1:38.39), both of which marked meet records.

Top Times: 200 Breast (1:54.36), 100 Breast (52.83), 200 IM (1:47.30), 400 IM (3:49.84), 200 Free (1:38.39)

Lúcio Paula – Fly/Free – Sao Paulo, Brazil – Esporte Clube Pinheiros
Lúcio Paula brings a wealth of international swimming experience to Rocky Top, as he's competed at the Brazilian Olympic Trials, the South American Championships and the School World Cup in Bahrain. During the South American Championships, he finished second in the 100 fly, and at the Brazilian National Championships, he finished fourth overall in the event. When converting his top times to short course yards, Paula's 50 free mark would rank seventh in school history, and his 100 fly is just 0.25 seconds from ranking inside the top 10.

Top Times (Converted from LCM & SCM): 50 Free (19.19), 100 Fly (46.19), 200 Fly (1:51.90), 100 Free (43.96)

University of Tennessee Athletics