BALTIMORE — On the campus of UMBC resides Elze Bielskute, a senior from Lithuania.
She's a swimmer at UMBC who recently set a school record for the 100 individual medley.
She began swimming competitively at age 12. When it was time to pursue higher education, she knew, in order to pursue swimming and learning, she had to leave her home country.
"A lot of people, when they graduate from high school they quit because it's really hard to balance sports and academics back home," says Bielskute.
VIDEO: UMBC standout swimmer comes to America to thrive
So she jumped in the deep end and decided as a teenager to come to America, all alone.
"One day, I would wake up, and I'm like, Oh, I wanna go. I really want to go. I really want to experience that, and then the other day I will wake up like, No, I'm too scared. I don't wanna do this. I want to stay home," says Bielskute.
She made the decision to attend Saint Leo University—but just two short years into her American journey, the university got rid of the swimming and diving program, a decision Bielskute says didn't feel real.
"We didn't really think that we were leaving. We thought it was like a fever dream. But then at the end, when we started packing our stuff and going home over the summer and realize Oh no, we're not coming back, and that's when it really hit," says Bielskute.
She wondered if that was a sign she was meant to stay home and never return to America.
But she entered the transfer portal and found UMBC head coach Matt Donovan, who says Bielskute was everything the program needed.
"When you talk about the perfect athlete, you thought you could ask any coach in any sport you know she shows up the practice every single day she works hard. She never complains, and she puts up results," says Donovan.
As her senior season winds down, she's able to lock in on the final tournament of the year all while reflecting on her courageous journey from Lithuania to Baltimore.
"You just have to do it. I was scared too, but once you do it, you realize that it's not that bad. You're always scared before you do it, but then you just need to take gather all of your courage and take that step, and then you realize, oh, it's actually it's not bad. I'm really happy with my decision," says Bielskute.
Coming up for Elze and the swim and dive team is the America East Championships tournament beginning February 19 in Lexington, Virginia.
