Built in the water: Wanezek emerges in standout sophomore season
Maggie Wanezek's sophomore season is one for the record books
Molly Sheehan
1/13/2026
The water and the feel of the pool deck resonated with Maggie Wanezek from a young age, long before her standout sophomore season as a part of the Wisconsin women’s swimming program.
In Waukesha County, Wis. the Wanezek name has been long tied to swimming. An Elm Grove native, Wanezek and her two sisters began swimming competitively at age six, following in the footsteps of their dad. Her dad, Tom, swam down the Elmbrook Swim Club lane before competing collegiately at Indiana University and her mom, Emily, swam collegiately at DePauw.
All three sisters continued on the path to compete at the Division I level — and as Badgers, nonetheless. Wanezek joined the Wisconsin Badgers swim team the same season her older sister, Abby, entered her junior year with the team.
“It’s super nice to know that no matter what, I always have [Abby’s] support on deck, whether things go really well or not as I planned,” Wanezek said. “I love that we can have this family thing here.”
In her tenure at Elmbrook Swim Club and Brookfield East, Wanezek made her mark early. At only 12 years old, she was making waves in her national National Age Group.
The transition from the small community of swimmers at the high school level in Wisconsin to collegiate swimming was a big jump, Wanezek noted. With everyone around her at the top of the rankings, competition grew.
“This year, a big piece of that was focusing more on myself and what I can control,” Wanezek said.
Yet Wanezek grew with the competition. In her freshman year, she claimed Freshman All-Big Ten and Second Team All-Big Ten honors with standout performances across the season.
This year, in her sophomore season at Wisconsin, she built on her success to emerge as one of the fastest backstrokers in the country. At midseasons in November, the sophomore blasted a 1:48.39 in the 200 back for a lifetime best — and the second fastest time in the NCAA season at the time.
In that same meet, Wanezek broke the 50-second mark in the 100 back for the first time in her career, touching the wall in 49.95. Her time marked the fourth fastest time in the NCAA in the event.
“Seeing some of those best times that have been my goal times for so long, and some times that I haven’t seen in a while, was super rewarding. I was at a point where I was going the same times for three-ish years. Seeing the big drops was really relieving, and just knowing that all the hard work I had been putting in was paying off.”Maggie Wanezek
For Wanezek, collecting such blisteringly quick times during midseasons alleviates some pressure moving into bigger meets in the remainder of the season, especially as Big Tens and NCAA Championships inch closer.
“It makes me really excited to know that I just go out there and have fun and no matter what I'm going to be happy with what I throw down,” Wanezek said.
Several Wisconsin swimmers, like Wanezek, have seen significant improvements in times in a season marked by change, including a coaching staff transition over the summer. In his inaugural year at Wisconsin, Head Coach Dr. Jack Brown has brought a philosophy of positivity and energy to the pool deck as the team’s season continues to develop.
That same energy has been carried between practices and between meets.
“It made it really easy for me this year to have a better attitude about what I’m doing,” Wanezek said.
Away from the pool, Wanezek carries the same positive, energetic attitude to uplifting those around her. A student-athlete volunteer with Badgers Give Back, Wanezek takes part in providing literacy support to students at local elementary schools.
With The Miracle League of Dane County, Wanezek volunteers alongside some of her teammates to help foster a welcoming, accessible environment where every child can enjoy the game of baseball. It’s something that brought a new perspective.
“We all get kind of caught up in the things that we're doing, or the stressful things in life, but taking the time to spend time giving back to the community puts a new perspective on everything,” Wanezek said. “It just kind of gives a reason to keep doing what I'm doing.”
Looking forward to what’s to come, Wanezek returns to action against Northwestern on Jan. 17 for the last dual meet of the season.