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Katrin Otaegi from Dublin, California, has announced her intention to remain in the San Francisco Bay Area to swim and study at the University of California, Berkeley, beginning in the 2028-29 school year. She wrote on social media:
“I’m thrilled to announce my verbal commitment to swim and study at the University of California, Berkeley!
Thank you to Coach Dave, Maya, and Noah for this extraordinary opportunity.
A huge thanks to Coach David for creating the environment I needed to grow as an athlete and a person, and Coach Natalie for helping me fall in love with this sport when I was 12.
Thank you to my friends on SRVA for pushing me every day and making me laugh at ungodly hours in the morning.
To my parents and sister— thank you for your unconditional love and support, and eskerrik asko to the rest of my family for cheering me on from far away!
You’ve all helped me get so far, but I’m not done yet. GO BEARS!! 💛💙🧸”
Otaegi swims with San Ramon Valley Aquatics and specializes in sprint free, fly, and back. She is very versatile, with Summer Juniors cuts in free, back, breast, fly, and IM. We named her to the “Honorable Mention” category on our Way Too Early list of top girls’ swimming recruits in the high school class of 2028. Cal has also scored verbal commitments from “HM” Stella Canoles and Germany’s Noelle Benkler for their women’s class of 2032.
Otaegi is coming off a hot summer in which she was crowned Junior National Champion in the 50 fly at Summer Juniors. She also finaled in the 50 free (9th), 100 free (8th), 50 back (23rd), 100 fly (14th), and 200 IM (21st) and finished the meet with PBs in the 100 free (56.34), 200 free (2:04.65), and 50 fly (26.78). Just a few weeks earlier, she had notched PBs in the 100 free (56.40), 200 free (2:05.33), 50 breast (33.72), 100 breast (1:13.18), 50 fly (26.91), and 100 fly (1:01.21) at Walnut Sectionals, while winning the 50 free, 50 fly, and 100 fly.
In short course yards, she kicked off the 2025-26 season at Winter Juniors West. There, she placed 9th in the 50 free, 13th in the 100 free, 5th in the 100 back, 10th in the 100 fly, and 6th in the 200 IM, and took home PBs in the 50 free (22.67), 100 back (53.29), 100 fly (53.18), and 200 IM (1:59.96). She added PBs in the 50 back (24.85) and 50 breast (30.04) at CA/NV Sectionals a week later.
At Roseville Sectionals, Otaegi finished 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in all her events (50/100 free, 50/100 back, 50/100 fly) and lowered her best times in the 100 free (49.57), 100 back (53.28), and 50 fly (24.19). She added a 1:48.36 in the 200 free at Far Westerns, bolstering her potential as a five relay swimmer in college.
Otaegi’s best time in the 100 fly would have scored for Cal at the 2026 ACC Championships, where the Golden Bears placed 3rd behind UVA and Stanford. It took 52.61 in the 100 back, 22.56/48.91/1:46.88 in the freestyles and 1:59.35 in the 200 IM to earn second swims in those events at the conference meet.
Best SCY times:
- 100 fly – 53.18
- 100 back – 53.28
- 200 IM – 1:59.96
- 50 free – 22.67
- 100 free – 49.57
- 200 free – 1:48.36
- 200 back – 1:58.58
- 400 IM – 4:22.73
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to [email protected].
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