Local boys swim teams have high aspirations

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Greenfield-Central

Head Coach: Mark Logan

Key Returners: Zach Cook, Chris Joven, Sam Jennings, Ethan Kile

Outlook: Greenfield-Central’s swim team will enjoy having several state-tested returners this year, said head coach Mark Logan. They plan to meet expectations and keep their name up top as they progress through the season.

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State champion Zach Cook is returning for his final year. Cook has officially signed to swim at Indiana University next year, a team ranked No. 1 in the nation by the college swim coaches association.

Sam Jennings, who had his first experience at state last year, is showing potential to make it into the top 16 this year, Logan said. The bar is also set high for the other athletes who raced at state last year, including Chris Joven, who placed fifth in the 100 freestyle and ninth in the 50 freestyle.

The Cougars will also add three freshmen to their ranks, all of whom are showing promise of becoming valuable assets, Logan said. The athletes are primarily focused on competing against themselves to improve upon last year.

“Our focus is hitting hard at the state meet,” Logan said. “It’s important that we don’t take anything for granted.

“We want to focus on carrying on our legacy and working real hard to hit team goals.”

First up: The Cougars will compete away against Franklin Central High School on Nov. 21 at 6 p.m.

New Palestine

Head Coach: Steve Maxwell

Key Returners: Louis Holbrook, Nico Martin, Marlon Cabrara, Tyler Corey

Outlook: The New Palestine Dragons are hoping to make up for lost ground after losing some of their top competitors.

“We lost quite a few guys last year,” said Dragons head coach Steve Maxwell. “We lost four senior boys who were important to our performance at sectionals last year… it’s definitely going to be an uphill battle for us.”

The team has counted their losses and believes that the quantity of new athletes will help carry them forward. The boys swim team will be 25 strong this year as opposed to last year’s 17. With improvement and steady contribution, the Dragons may replace those lost points.

“I’m hoping that we see a number of these boys improve enough to see that we can chip away at all the points we lost and recover them in smaller amounts,” Maxwell said.

First up: The Dragons will compete away against Pendleton Heights High School on Nov. 20 at 5:30 p.m.

Eastern Hancock

Head Coach: Derek McCormick

Key Returners: Chris Walton, Elijah Harris

Outlook: Starting up this season with higher numbers is an immediate game changer, said Royals head coach Derek McCormick. Last year the Royals had five boy swimmers. This year they have nine.

The door is open for the Royals to compete in relays at sectionals this year. The team has already set expectations with their new additions. Incoming freshmen Gage Deiser, Ethan Bolding and Aaron Surburg are showing in practice that they have the talent to hang with a high-level high school team.

They’re already outperforming their middle school time from last year,” McCormick said. “We’re excited to put them in some relays and see what they can do.”

While they still don’t have enough swimmers to fill the lineup all the way through, they are not as limited as they were before, making them a more worthy adversary than last year, McCormick said.

“We’re much more competitive from top to bottom,” he added.

First up: The Eastern Hancock Royals will compete away against Centerville on Nov. 20 at 6 p.m.

Mt. Vernon

Head Coach: Brad Grieshop

Key Returners: Timmy Broaders, Eli Thomas

Outlook: The Marauders swim team this year is mainly driven by incoming freshmen, said Mt. Vernon head coach Brad Grieshop. Any hope at success this season is going to depend entirely on the team’s ability to work together.

New blood is to their benefit, as several freshmen are showing promise to be powerful assets to the team. Fans should keep an eye out for newcomers like Aiden Tierney, who is expected to make an immediate impact on the team, Grieshop said.

“We’re young, we’re coaching this team up, and we’re having fun,” Grieshop said. “As a whole, we’re really excited for what the year’s going to entail.

“Every day on deck, we’re talking about how great the kids look, how focused and engaged they are with the workouts,” Grieshop added. “We’re really looking forward to seeing how well they’ll compete in our first meet coming up here against Richmond.”

First up: The Marauders will compete away against Richmond High School on Nov. 21 at 6 p.m.