When the high school swim season began in the fall, Mingus senior swimmer Emma Warner knew that she was strong in the 100 yard breaststroke and felt good about making the podium in the event —but acknowledged that she didn’t think that winning a state championship was a realistic expectation.
However, Warner reached the podium and then some during the state championship in November, touching the wall first, with a time of 1:08.20.
She finished fifth in three other events — the 200 individual medley, the 200 medley relay [along with Bailey Hartman, Jade Bach and Zoey Arwine] and 200 freestyle relay [along with Brooke Peterson, Bach and Arwine].
For her accomplishments in the pool, the Cottonwood Journal Extra is naming Warner as the Mingus Female Athlete of the Year.
“I knew who my competition was from my years of club swimming which meant it was going to be a battle for which place,” Warner said. “[Winning] became a realistic goal when at the first qualifier I broke the school record and hit a personal best time seeding me in the No. 1 spot, which I held the entire season.
“At the state meet you can’t be too confident going in because a lot can change,” she added. “But I knew after prelims while still holding the No. 1 spot that it was possible and that I had good competition that would push me.”
Winning the state title with the Marauders and getting to step atop the podium proves to be her fondest memory of her time swimming for Mingus.
Next school year, Warner will attend Northern Arizona University as a public health major with a minor in psychol-ogy. Following that, she plans to take part in NAU’s accelerated nursing program and eventually hopes to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist.
While at NAU, she will also be a part of the swimming and diving team. She will get to swim in college, and was a successful high school swimmer despite having been diagnosed with a rare thyroid cancer in middle school. She had to overcome the significant obstacles that came with that. Warner hopes that her achievements can inspire others going through similar ordeals.
“When you are diagnosed with cancer, that alone impacts your life,” Warner noted. “Being able to achieve all that I have, given the adversity I have faced, only gives me hope that others look at the obstacles I have overcome and see that none of it stopped me from living my life.
“Perseverance and grit are two key qualities that anyone has to attain to achieve what they never thought was possible and they are what I strive to live by.”
Outside of the pool, Warner carries a 4.0 GPA, is president of the National Honor Society, is a school spirit leader, a link crew leader and is a member of the Mingus Captain’s Club.
“High school was a great experience, but my time in leadership created the most memories,” Warner said. “As the school Spirit Leader, being able to lead my first and last pep assembly was my all-time favorite memory.”
As a leader of the Class of 2020, Warner said that she wants her senior class at Mingus to be one that grew stronger as a result of the losses they’ve dealt with.
Personally, Warner wants to be remembered “as someone who always had a smile on her face, worked really hard and was a leader in all things she put herself into.”
Warner also expressed a great deal of gratitude towards the people who have helped her reach her accomplishments.
“There are so many people that have been there and supported me through everything that I can’t name them all,” she said. “But most importantly my family and coaches.”
