Drive for 25 Blitz

Since 2013, the Virginia Tech women’s swimming and diving program has broken 19 of the 23 possible event records, while the Virginia Tech men’s program has broken 22 of the 23 possible event records.

In the history of scoring at the NCAA Championships, the Hokies have earned 177 All-American honors with more than a third of those coming in the last five years:

• 1956-2003  2 All-American performances

• 2004-2016  106 All-American performances

• 2013-2017  55 All-American performance

• 2018-2019  14 All-American performances

Head Coach Sergio Lopez Miro likes to talk about “sustainable success” when he addresses recruits and his team.  He looks for a growth mindset where individuals and the team as a whole do the small things daily that add up to yearly improvement.  When Coach Sergio asks “how fast is fast?” the answer is always “faster than you think”, because expectations and mental limitations are often what hold athletes back or limit their potential.  As a donor to Virginia Tech Swimming & Diving you can help us set up sustainable success and go faster than you think! Here is how your gifts will help the team:

• Team Travel:  As we grow each year we must seek out higher levels of competition.  That means traveling to race against some of the top schools in the country as well as adding in meets like US Nationals for both swimming and diving in December.  The athletes we’re recruiting want to compete at the highest level, both in the NCAA and internationally, and we look to provide them with both these opportunities during our collegiate season.

• Team Training Trip: This is one of the biggest expenses in any budget and with our donor’s support we can enhance our swimmers’ and divers’ experiences, as well as build team unity and cohesiveness. The typical training camp is in the winter for us and we have generally traveled to the sunny state of Florida for about seven days of focused training.  Once every four years we would like to have a training camp outside of the USA, and the goal is to take our swimming and diving team to train while experiencing a new culture in a different country. Besides the training the goal is to have our Hokies better understand that the world is very small and we have to have an open mind.  In the past I have taken my teams to places like Spain and Argentina…with your support, we can make it happen!

• Recruiting: The rules have changed and now we can bring juniors to official visits and that will place a big dent in our yearly budgets. Also, we need to keep tapping into the international market for top talent.  Our coaching staff needs to be able to visit swimmers or divers, their families, and other coaches internationally. It is very important for the parents of a student-athlete to know and understand that we care and by visiting them in their home country really sends a positive message to them.

• Facilities enhancements: It is extremely important for us to keep updating our facilities, replace and repair equipment to be on the cutting edge for training, competition and recruiting.

• Endowing scholarships and coaches’ salaries: In non-revenue sports like swimming and diving, it is of vital importance to have as many or all scholarships endowed, as well as have the head coach’s salary endowed as well.

"After having had the opportunity to coach in the SEC, Big10 and Big East Conferences I can say without hesitation that the Hokie Donors are the best. As the head coach of a non-revenue sport I feel blessed to have such a great support with donations that allow us to recruit nationally and internationally and to travel to top level competition with our student-athletes to keep moving forward.  The Drive for 25 is a great opportunity to help Hokie student-athletes keep having access to top coaches, facilities, support staff and to develop their potential to the fullest. Please, if you are already a member of the Hokie Club make sure that you help us bring more followers to become members. Our goal is to reach 25,000 members and we have almost reach 16,000 to this date. Become a Hokie Club member and keep making the Hokie Nation a great one. #GoHokies"

- Sergio Lopez Miro, Head Coach

"I am a senior computer science major, as well as a swimmer on the Virginia Tech Swimming & Diving team. As I go into my last year, I am grateful for all the friends, coaches, support, and opportunities Virginia Tech has provided. Being a student athlete has taught me many important life lessons that will continue to aid me in my career after college. The scholarships that are awarded to student athletes are only made possible by our charitable donors. As a scholarship athlete, it is an honor for me and my family and to attend a prestigious university while being a student athlete. The donations the swimming and diving team has received over my four years has allowed us to maintain different locations including an Olympic size pool, locker rooms, team rooms, and the dry land facility, attracting top athletes from around the world. This allows the staff members and student athletes to do what we love. The Virginia Tech swimming and diving team thanks you for your continued generosity and for gifting us athletes the ability to pursue perfection in our craft."

- Simon Shi, Senior Swimmer

"Being a student athlete at Virginia Tech has created so many opportunities for me to succeed in my academics, athletics, and even life after college. This would not be possible without the donors that generously support our athletic department. I think I can speak for every student-athlete when I say that being a Hokie is something to be incredibly proud of, and something that lasts a lifetime. We cannot thank the donors, who believe in us and our potential as students-athletes, enough for providing us with the foundation for success."

-Kayla Purcell, Senior Swimmer