WSU senior swimmer Haley Anderson has always been driven, both in and out of the pool.

“Her and her team would go through some of the most miserable workouts I’ve ever seen a swimmer have,” said Anderson’s former Olympic Cascade Aquatics club coach John Walker. “But at the end of the day, she was always dedicated to excellence both in the pool and in the classroom.”

Anderson is a natural resource science major and a leader on the women’s swim team, a position head coach Tom Jager said didn’t come easy.  

“She’s learned the way we all learn, by making mistakes. She has taken on a leadership role; she has made mistakes, and she’s learned through experiences to be a great leader.”

Anderson made her mark early when, as a walk-on freshman, she finished third at her first collegiate meet in the 500-meter freestyle race. Anderson also swam against an Olympic silver medalist on the USC swim team, and then understood the magnitude of racing in the Pac-12 conference.

“That was the point when I realized I was a part of something bigger than myself,” Anderson said. “There are so many great moments that I’ve had with the team, but that moment stands out the most.”

However, Anderson hesitated to even apply to WSU as a high school senior, and said she was determined to dislike the campus. Anderson grew up in a community full of University of Washington graduates and families, which at first put her in the mindset of a Husky, she said.

After visiting the campus and meeting with the WSU swimming head coach at the time, Erica Quam, Anderson said she fell in love with the campus and committed to being a walk-on at WSU.

As Anderson enters her senior season, she now helps the underclassmen on the team with the various challenges of college life, both as students and athletes.

“She knew what it was like to come in as a freshman,” WSU swimming assistant coach Adriana Quirke said. “Over the summer she helped the freshmen by organizing get-togethers and helping them out whenever.”

But even before she applied to WSU, Anderson had lived with the legacy of a swimmer.

Her father swam as a child and ended up swimming for the University of Utah. Anderson started swim lessons when she was 2 years old, and said she enjoyed the swim team atmosphere, even at a young age.

“My dad put me in the little kid swim team when I was young,” Anderson said. “We got to race 25-meters back then, and I’ve been racing ever since.”