BUIES CREEK, N.C. – To see what's right in the world of college athletics in 2026, one doesn't have to look farther than the women's swimming team at Campbell University.
 
In 2025-26, Campbell won the Coastal Athletic Association's Team Academic Excellence Award, which recognizes the member institution with the highest collective grade point average in each of 22 sports.
 
In addition to the CAA honor, Campbell was honored as a College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Spring 2026 Scholar All-America team.  With a combined 3.74 team GPA over the 2025-26 season, Campbell was the only CAA women's swimming program that earned CSCAA Scholar All-America status (3.0+) and stayed above 3.7 over both the fall 2025 and spring 2026 semesters.
 
Twenty-three Campbell swimmers earned a spot on the CAA Commissioner's Honor Roll in the Spring 2026 semester for compiling a GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.  Five of those posted a perfect 4.0 average.
 
Included among those five are juniors Julia Garcia and Nicole Rubino, who maintain perfect 4.0 GPAs as engineering majors, and without the benefit of English as their primary language.
 
Not only are Garcia and Rubino among the top performers on the team in the swimming pool and in the classroom, but the pair has found a second home in a small, close-knit community across the Atlantic Ocean from their homes in Europe.
 
Just over two years ago, the juniors did not know each other.  Now, they are inseparable around campus, and readily share their feelings about this place, sometimes even finishing each other's sentences.
 
Why Campbell?
For both Garcia and Rubino, the opportunity to pursue a college degree while at the same time competing in their sport at the highest level required a move to the United States.
 
"In Europe, you can't really swim (competitively) in college," said Garcia, who lives in Castrillon in northern Spain.  "Coming here was my option to continue swimming and to do a hard major."
 
During her third year of high school, Rubino became interested in pursuing her degree overseas after she met some swimmers who were already studying in the States.  Shortly thereafter, she was contacted by an agency that helps place Italian athletes with American college programs.
 
"The agency contacted me because I had good enough times to come here and get a scholarship," said Rubino, who lives just outside Milan.  "My parents were excited because they thought it was a great opportunity but didn't put any pressure on me."
 
Both agree that the relationship they developed with Campbell head coach Zak Bagby and the opportunities they had to meet and talk with members of the team made their decision to study, train and compete in Buies Creek much easier.
 
"(Zak's) message was the first I ever had (from a college coach)," said Garcia, who also considered Toledo, Northern Arizona and Virginia Commonwealth among other schools before choosing Campbell.  "He was nice, and able to give me what I needed financially to come here.  He (wanted) me to do a media call with some teammates."
 
On that video call, Garcia still clearly remembers Abby Lederer and Caroline Lucas walking around campus in the rain in order to show a future teammate the area.  She was also attracted by Campbell's engineering program.
 
Rubino echoes her roommate's sentiments about what attracted her to the place.
 
"I talked with other coaches all around the country, but Zak was really nice to me," said Rubino, who also considered options from schools all over the country.  "We had a media call with some of the people here and I really liked the impression I got from them."
 
Bagby's recruiting method included setting up conversations with current team members.  The fact that five members of the 2023-24 team were international students – including two from Spain and one from Italy – also helped Garcia and Rubino in their decision-making process.
 
"The international swimmers told me that this place feels like a second home," Rubino recalled.  I didn't want to be in a big place where I didn't feel at home and just missing my family."
 
Campbell's engineering program was also a determining factor for two highly-motivated students.  Both Garcia and Rubino were drawn to a challenging academic program.
 
Garcia initially was interested in studying physics but decided on chemical engineering because of future employment opportunities.
 
Rubino, who is studying mechanical engineering, had similar goals.
 
"I didn't know what I was going to do in high school.  I was good in the hard subjects that everyone hates like math and physics," said Rubino.  "One of the main reasons I chose physics were the job opportunities after graduation."
 
For both Garcia and Rubino, athletic and academic scholarships made their goal of competing and studying in the U.S. possible.
 
"It's the opportunity to be here," said Garcia of what her scholarship means to her.  "If it was not for my scholarship, I would not be able to be here, I would not be able to swim and study engineering in the U.S."
 
Rubino's feelings are similar to those of her teammate.
 
"(My scholarships) gave me the opportunity to study engineering and swim at a high level and I wouldn't be able to do that in Italy."
 
The generosity of Fighting Camel fans, alumni, family, and friends truly makes a difference in the lives of student-athletes at Campbell University.  The Fighting Camel Club's goal is to make that experience even better for our student-athletes.  To join the Fighting Camel Club, click HERE.
 
How it started
Julia's earliest memories include jumping into the pool where her father, Francisco, was waiting to catch her.  A swim class in third grade started her competitive path.  Her ability attracted the attention of her coach who asked if she wanted to join the local team.
 
"I finished school at 2:30, and at 3:30 was in the pool until 6:30," said Garcia of her routine.  "It was basically my life, swimming and school."
 
Nicole followed her mother, Judith, into competitive swimming.
 
"My mom told me that I used to swim with her when I was a baby," Nicole said.  "When I was younger, I was fearless, and would jump in everywhere in the pool, even in the deep water, where I wasn't supposed to.  I started swim (club) when I was six and that became my second home."
 
Francisco followed Julia to her races all over Spain.  Judith, who was a competitive swimmer while growing up in the Netherlands, also leant her expertise to Nicole.
 
"My mom was a swimmer when she was younger," said Rubino.  "When I was younger, she would give me advice like 'you need to do the turn this way, or you need to dive better.'  Now she follows my times and results online whenever we have a race."
 
Coming to America
Not only did Julia and Nicole need to adjust to a different language, culture and dietary habits, they also had to adjust to the requirements of training and competing in a Division I program.
 
Their teammates, classmates and the Campbell faculty and staff made the process much easier.
 
"My parents came with me when I moved in, saw the place, and met Zak," said Garcia.  "My mom said, 'I want to know where you are going to be the next four years.' By the second semester it felt like home here."
 
Nicole arrived alone, but Julia and her family quickly invited her to join them during the move-in process.  Early on, their teammates made them feel welcome.  Madelynn Twigg even invited her international teammates to go home with her to Virginia over the Thanksgiving holiday.
 
Even though Julia and Nicole took English classes for years in school and were exposed to the language – especially in larger cities while traveling in Europe – the learning curve was steep when they began their college course work.
 
Imagine trying to understand a lecture in a language that was not your native tongue.  Julia and Nicole had to do that every day.
 
"The first week was really hard," said Nicole.  "I was going to sleep, and my head was hurting because you were thinking every day in a language that is not your language.  And we were trying to understand what they were saying and communicate with them."
 
Even though they were having to translate conversations in their mind, both Julia and Nicole finished their first semester with straight-As.  They've repeated that performance every semester since.
 
"It took one semester (to feel comfortable with the language)," said Nicole.  "I feel like we're still learning. Every day I find a new word.  The first semester was definitely the one we learned the most."
 
Five o'clock wake ups also required an adjustment.  Back home, neither Julia nor Nicole had early morning practices on weekdays, and just occasionally on weekends, although workouts didn't typically start until 8 or 9 a.m.
 
For Campbell's swimming team, 6:00 a.m. weekday practices are the norm.
 
"At first when the alarm sounds, I jump and I'm sleepy," said Julia.  "But then you get to practice, see your teammates, can talk, and the water's cold, so you wake up."
 
Nicole's morning reaction is similar.
 
"Every time the alarm sounds, I wish I could stay in bed, but once I'm in the water and practicing, it's fine," she said.
 
Throughout their first five semesters at Campbell, Julia and Nicole have developed close ties with their fellow engineering majors, international students-athletes and their professors.
 
"After we came here, we liked it even more because it's a small community," said Nicole.  "You know the professors and the Dean (Dr. Jenna Carpenter) is always so nice to us."
 
Both point to time management as the key to being able to maintain their high academic performance in a difficult major while competing at the highest level in collegiate athletics.
 
"For hours after practice, I expend so much energy, I'm just tired, but you get used to it," said Nicole.  "Time management is important.  You know that when you get back from practice, you have to do this assignment, you have to study. When you have free time on the weekend, you have to study."
 
Success in the water and in the classroom
Julia competes in the 100 and 200 butterfly, the 200 backstroke, the 200 and 400 individual medley as well as the 200 and 400 medley relays.  Last season, she won the 200 fly "B" final at the CAA Championship.
 
Nicole specializes in the freestyle (50/100/200) while also competing in the 50 and 100 butterfly and is involved in all relays, including the 800 free.  She won the 100 free in the season opening meet at UNC Asheville in the fastest dual meet time of her college career.
 
In addition to their CAA academic honors, both Garcia and Rubino have been invited to be inducted into Tau Beta Pi, the nation's oldest engineering honor society, which requires that members be ranked in the top 1/8 of their junior class, and top 1/5 of their senior class.
 
Outside of sports and studies, the first two and one-half years of college have already provided a number of memorable moments.
 
Julia thinks fondly of a cardboard canoeing activity for engineering students during her freshman year and eagerly anticipates this year's event.  Students formed teams to design and construct a canoe out of cardboard, then they had to launch and row the vessel to the opposite side of the swimming pool and back without sinking.
 
Nicole especially remembers a team project where her group assignment was to design a stool attachment for a shopping cart that allowed for shorter people to reach higher shelves.
 
"We went to Carlie C's and we asked if we could take the shopping cart (back to campus)," said Rubino.  "And they let us take it!"
 
Julia's command of English has allowed her to accept an on-campus job as a teacher's assistant in engineering.  Nicole has added a part-time lifeguard job to her list of activities.
 
See one, see the other
The roommates typically travel together around campus, oftentimes to class and practice – one on a bicycle and the other on a scooter.
 
Both have similar goals in the pool – to continue to post personal best times, reach the final eight in their events at the CAA Championship and ultimately to earn a spot on the podium (top three).
 
After graduation, both Garcia and Rubino plan to pursue graduate degrees, either in the States or back home in Europe, then enter their chosen field.
 
Now two of the most experienced athletes on the 2026-27 Campbell swimming team, the pair readily offers advice to those just starting their college journey.
 
"You need to make friends," said Julia.  "Find someone who's going to be your family when you are away from home.  Make friends outside your sport, get an outside point of view, don't close in the circle."
 
Nicole suggests that younger students should be patient in their adjustment to college life.
 
"It's normal at the beginning to miss your family," she said.  "Give yourself time to adapt. Ask for help if you need to, but everything's going to be fine.  There are so many people around you that care about you and can help you.  Whatever you do, do your best.  Do it for yourself, for your team, and your family.  I don't think I could do this without my team; there's always someone there to push you and believe in you."
 
Even across the ocean, Buies Creek can become a second home.