Lee signs to swim with Fresno Pacific University

Lauren Lee loves being in the water.

"From a young age, I fell in love with the water and I don't want to leave," she said.

Lee jokes that when she's unable to swim, her parents' water bill goes up.

After swimming with the Lady Wolves for four years, Lee will be leaving to go to school at a college within diving distance of the ocean and giving her the opportunity to study marine biology -- a field she's long been interested in.

Last Wednesday, she signed a letter of intent to swim for Fresno Pacific University in California. Lee, who has lived in Wyoming her whole life, admits this will be a massive change for her, but said she looks forward to it.

"Lauren is someone who gives you 110%," Randy Walker, her longtime coach for the Sweetwater Aquatics team said.

Walker said she has always had a positive outlook and was very supportive of her team. Rick Barker, her coach from the Lincoln Middle School team, said she's always been fun to watch in competition.

"It's exciting to see her move up to a collegiate career, he said.

Lee has held several swimming records over the years, but the one she remembers most fondly is the 11-12 year-old 200 butterfly record she traded with her friend Lauren Jensen as the two competed in USA Swimming. The two traded it so frequently, Lee said people started calling it the "Lauren Record."

Walker is looking forward to seeing what Lee will do with Fresno Pacific University.

"She'll do very well for them," Walker later said. "They're very lucky to land Lauren Lee."