Straight-A Team: Melissa Roemmele
6/16/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
June 16, 2009
This is the second in a series of 13 features about Miami University's brightest student-athletes. Their exceptional academic performance during the recently completed spring semester earned them a spot on the roster of the RedHawks' exclusive Straight-A Team. In addition to their rigorous schedules on the athletic fields, each of these individuals earned a perfect 4.0 grade-point average this past semester.
OXFORD, Ohio -To say Melissa Roemmele finished her Miami career on a high note is an understatement.
Helping the RedHawks to their first women's swimming and diving Mid-American Conference championship in four years, earning MAC All-Academic honors for the third consecutive year, being accepted to graduate school and being named to the Straight-A Team for the second year in a row during her last semester at Miami can be best described in Roemmele's own words.
"It was the perfect ending to my career."
The conference championship was especially satisfying for Roemmele and her senior teammates.
"When we came to Miami, the team had won MACs four years in a row," she said. "We didn't win during the first three years. We finally did it. It's just a great way to go out."
Roemmele played a crucial role in the RedHawks' championship season, making the victory even sweeter.
In dual meets, she won the three-meter event seven times and the one-meter four times. She also took first place in both events at the Miami Invitational.
None of those wins, however, measured up to her performance at the MAC championships.
"It was terrifying and exciting at the same time," she said of the pressure. "My teammates were counting on me and I needed to do well to help the team. Everything just came together and I hit all of my dives."
She finished third in the three-meter, the best finish at the conference championships in her career. She also finished fourth in the one-meter, another personal best.
Amazingly, Roemmele's accomplishments in the pool only tell half of her Miami success story.
Through hard work and dedication she was able to balance the busy schedule of an athlete with the heavy workload that comes from being a double major and excel as both a student and an athlete.
Each year she was eligible (freshmen are ineligible for MAC All-Academic honors), Roemmele was named to the MAC All-Academic First Team.
"I developed a good work ethic early on," she said. "I started diving competitively in eighth grade, and all through high school I developed good habits and a pattern."
That determination to succeed in the classroom helped her earn degrees in linguistics and psychology.
Next year she will attend Indiana University where she will work toward a master's degree in linguistics. She leaves Miami with valuable life lessons.
"I'm very fortunate to have had the experience of diving in college," she said. "Knowing how to balance everything, I'm confident I can handle a heavy workload."
She also plans on staying close to the pool.
"I'm coaching youth diving right now," said Roemmele. "I would really like to stay involved in diving, maybe coaching in the future."
With the lessons she's learned as a student-athlete, she's certain to have the skills to balance a career in linguistics and diving in the future.
STRAIGHT-A TEAM
Name: Melissa Roemmele
Hometown/HS: Lexington, Ky./Lexington Catholic
Year: Graduated, May 2009
Major: Linguistics/Psychology
Spring Semester GPA: 4.00
Notables: Won 34 duel meet events in her career; two-time NCAA Diving Zone Championships qualifier; three-time MAC All-Academic First Team.
Favorite Miami athletic memory: "Winning the MAC Championship senior year ... the perfect ending to my career."
Advice for younger Miami athletes: "Appreciate the bonds you make with your teammates at practice. Going through the same challenges together will make your friendships stronger."
Players Mentioned
