The Rutgers sophomore was in a dark place. The pressure to succeed as a swimmer in the Big Ten had pushed her into a deep depression -- so deep that, on a December night in 2015, she said she considered driving into oncoming traffic to end her life.
One month later, she told Rutgers swimming and diving coach Petra Martin that she was struggling with the grueling practices, the emphasis on cutting weight and the overbearing nature of the program under Martin's guidance. Martin put her arm around her, the swimmer told NJ Advance Media, and said they would get through this.