With a strong core of returning talent, the boys swimming and diving team looks to build off of their success at the end of last season.
“We had a really good end of the season last year,” said head coach Keith Moon of the Bearcats, who punctuated their day hosting New Englands with a new school record in the final event, the 4x100m relay.
Although all four of those swimmers (including current captains William Wildish ’21, Royce Shey ’21, and Jeffrey Lim ’21) will have graduated after this season, Moon noted that the majority of the current roster are upper mids and lower mids, so the work being put in by swimmers this year could augur another successful year next year.
Offsetting the mid-season layoff was the opportunity for several winter teams, including swimming, to begin their practice in a special season this fall when they returned to campus. The emphasis thus far this season has been mostly on skill work and perfecting various techniques like turns and stroke mechanics, said Moon.
Although the usual meet schedule had to be set aside, the team is looking forward to the opportunity for some “virtual meets” in March, when both the boys and girls teams will compete against nearby schools, with each team swimming in its own pool and then comparing times afterwards.
“It’s really exciting,” said Moon. “The kids will be thrilled to compete against somebody.”
One advantage of the fall season, with fewer numbers of interested swimmers, was that the boys and girls were able to swim together in the pool as in a typical season. This year, practice schedules have to be structured differently, with two swimmers per lane starting at opposite ends for each set.
Moon was full of praise for his three captains but also singled out some up-and-coming younger swimmers, including returners James Yae ’23 and Ryan Tse ’23, as well as newcomer Daniel Li ’24.
Outside of the lanes, the boys program has also seen a renaissance this year on the diving board, with Jack Johnson ’22 and Jason Shan ’23 joined by Carter Levine ’22, who will make history of sorts by being the first Hotchkiss athlete to compete in both diving and an individual swimming event (the breaststroke) in more than two decades.
