MOULTRIE – Lauryn McCalley Niday, one of the most decorated athletes ever from Colquitt County, was inducted into the University of Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame on April 11.
And she was able to share the moment with her Tennessee coach Dave Parrington, who had announced his retirement the day before.
An outstanding junior representing the Moss Farms Diving program, she won nine individual National Championships and three National Synchronized Diving Championships with Diving Tigers teammate Lane Bassham Winchester.
A two-time Georgia high school champion, she was named the female Georgia Diver of the year from 1995-1999.
While competing for Moss Farms, she was coached by Moose Moss, Jay Lerew and Wenbo Chen.
And after making her way to Knoxville, she went on to become a five-time All-American at Tennessee.
But she was much more than just a championship diver for the Volunteers.
She also was a four-time Academic All-American and in 2004 was named to GLAMOUR Magazine’s Top 10 College Women list.
In 2005, she received her degree in microbiology and earned the prestigious H. Boyd McWhorter Southeastern Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award.
She also was named as the 2005 NCAA Woman of the Year, honoring her achievements in athletics, academics and community service.
After graduating from Tennessee, she attended the University of Georgia’s school of pharmacy where she was honored as the R.C. Wilson Outstanding Student in 2009.
Niday was inducted into the Colquitt County Sports Hall of Fame in 2012 and into the Georgia Aquatic Hall of Fame in 2016.
She and husband Mark are the parents of son Mark and daughter ElliReese, who, like her mother, is a Junior National Champion diver.
The University of Tennessee’s 2025 Hall of Fame class also includes Eric Berry, football; A.W. Davis, men’s basketball; Jenny Connolly, swimming; Mike Masters, swimming; Lindsay Schutzler, softball; Mike Sposa, men’s golf; and Tony White, men’s basketball.