UC SANTA BARBARA
2013-14:
Won 800 yard freestyle race (7:34.11) in Tri Meet on Oct. 25
2012-13: Placed eighth in the 500 freestyle (5:00.70), 10th in the 200 freestyle (1:49.91), 13th in the 1650 freestyle (17:27.30) and contributed to a third place finish in 800 free relay (7:21.76) at the MPSF Championships…Finished first in the 1000 freestyle (10:46.44) against Pacific and LMU on Feb. 2.
2011-12: Placed seventh in the 500-yard freestyle – posting a personal best time in the prelims of that event with a time of 4:55.32 – placed sixth in the 200-yard freestyle (1:50.95) and finished eighth in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 17:09.43 at the MPSF Championships…Set a personal record in the 1,000 freestyle with a time of 10:27.45 in a dual meet against Cal Poly.
HIGH SCHOOL
Attended Valencia High School where she swam for Mike Bechtholdt…Was a four-year varsity letterwinner and served as the Vikings’ team captain as a senior…Won three consecutive team MVP awards and was Most Inspirational as a senior…Was a three-time All-SCV Girl’s Swim Team honoree and earned All-American consideration in 2010 and 2011…Honored with the Valencia High Senior Award for Outstanding Achievement in Swimming…Also won the 2011 United States Marine Corps Distinguished Athlete Award…Twice earned Scholastic All-American honors…Set Valencia High School records in the 200 and 500 freestyle…Also set a Foothill League 200 free record, the event in which she won two consecutive league titles…Was a four-time member of the Principal’s Honor Roll, two-year member of the National Honors Society and a three-year member of the California Scholarship Federation…Swam club with Canyons Aquatic Club under the tutelage of coach Jeff Conwell…Was named Canyons’ Most Improved in 2009.
PERSONAL
Micaela Ashton Velasquez was born on Nov. 22, 1993 in Valencia, Calif.…Majoring in Sociology with a minor in Women, Culture, and Development...Her dream career would be creating a program where children with special needs could swim with dolphins...Enjoys surfing, longboarding, kayaking, and running in her free time...Outside of swim at UCSB, she is involved as a Special Olympics Swim Coach, DPHS Assistant Women's Swim Coach, Co-Chair of UCSB Student Athlete Advisory Board (SAAB), Chair of UCSB ICA Governance Board, and GKIDS Athlete Spotlight...Lists her top pre-race pump up song as "Stolen Paradise" by Milky Chance...Began swimming at age 5...Favorite aspects of college swimming are cheering, team camaraderie, making friends, and making memories...If she could add an event to each meet it would be a partner swim...Being voted co-captain by her teammates is the proudest achievement of her swimming career.
"The sun will come up tomorrow."
