A three-time NCAA champion and NCAA record holder in the 200 butterfly at the University of Texas, Emma Sticklen begins her first season as an assistant coach at Penn in 2025-26.
Sticklen comes to University City for her first coaching job after graduating from Texas in the spring of 2025 following a standout five-year career in Austin.
A 23-time All-America selection, Sticklen is one of Texas’ most decorated student-athletes after clinching her third consecutive NCAA title in the 200 fly in March, becoming the Longhorns’ first women’s swimmer since Leigh Ann Fetter in 1989-91 to win a national championship three years in a row. At the 2025 NCAA Championships in Federal Way, Wash., Sticklen hauled in seven All-America honors.
Heading into NCAA Championships, Sticklen had won three individual conference titles at the 2025 SEC Championships in the 200 IM, 100 fly, and 200 fly, as well as two relays in the 200 medley and 200 free. She also smashed her own then-SEC record in the 200 fly and dismantled the conference meet record after taking the gold medal.
During her senior season in 2023-24, Sticklen won the NCAA title in the 200 fly with a pool record of 1:50.99. She also took silver in the 100 fly with a school-record 49.70 and finished 11th in the 200 IM (1:54.19) to earn All-America laurels. During that national meet, Sticklen was named an All-America five times in addition to her second national championship. She also put together a strong effort in UT’s final appearance at Big 12 Championships, earning the conference title in the 100 fly.
Sticklen amazed during the 2022-23 season, as the Big 12 Swimmer of the Year excelled in the pool at 2023 NCAA Championships to win her first-ever national title in the 200 fly. She also captured All-America honors in the 100 fly, 200 fly, and 200 IM, in addition to the 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, and 400 medley relay. Sticklen took home a gold medal in the 200 fly at Big 12 Championships for the second consecutive year, winning conference titles in all three relay events as well.
She earned two individual All-America honors in the 100 and 200 fly at the 2022 NCAA Championships as a sophomore, also placing among the top eight in the 200 medley relay and 400 medley relay. Sticklen won the first four Big 12 titles of her career in the 200 fly, 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, and 400 medley relay events.
In addition to her accomplishments in the pool, Sticklen was named a first-team CSC Academic All-American in both 2023-24 and 2024-25, earning third-team laurels following the 2022-23 season.
Sticklen has also been a member of the United States national team and was a two-time qualifier for U.S. Olympic Trials.
She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Exercise Science, earning a master’s degree from UT in Communication and Media Studies from the Moody College of Communication in 2025.
Born and raised in Katy, Texas, Sticklen attended Taylor High School and swam club for Katy Aquatics.
