Senior Marie Schobel of Sea Girt has a reputation at CHS for being an award-winning swimmer. She has also made a name for herself by becoming the first senior to commit to a college this year.

In the fall of 2018, Schobel will attend Pennsylvania State University and she will be bringing her love for swimming with her.

Schobel started swimming at the age of seven at Silton Swim School in Wall Township. She established her place on her first swim team at The Atlantic Club in Manasquan. Then at ten years-old, Schobel switched to the Red Bank YMCA where she currently swims.

Even though Schobel has been swimming for a decade, she did not know she wanted to pursue the sport in college until her sophomore year of high school.

“I have been working from there. Once I qualified for YMCA Nationals I started to love swimming. I practiced as hard as I could from that point on and college is just the next step in the process,” Schobel said.

The recruitment process for Schobel started in the summer of 2017. Schobel reached out to college coaches and accepted calls from other coaches. There were numerous emails that were sent and received until she created her recruiting trip list.

Schobel visited Penn State and Villanova universities in Pennsylvania. Those schools invited Schobel to stay at their facility for three days and follow a current Division I student swimmer to see their daily routines.

“Going on these trips really gave me a good feel for each school I visited, especially getting to know the people I’d be spending the next four years with,” Schobel said.

She was also being recruited by Ohio State University and William and Mary University. But, Schobel’s mind and heart were already set on Penn State.

“It was non-stop fun between a crazy football game and bonding with the swim team. I loved the academic programs, swim program, my teammates and the campus itself. After this trip I absolutely knew Penn State was the place for me,” Schobel said.