Boys' Swim/Dive: Season Preview
By: Maddie Greer
Last Year in Review
The boys' swim/dive team ended the 2018-2019 season with their 6th consecutive Sectional win, sent 3 divers to Regionals and won the HCC Championships. Head Coach Keith Gast says this isn't it from last year; "Junior Austin Kehr is our key returner, he was at state in two individual events and two relays and had a great summer. He was HCC Champion in the 50 and 100 Frees. Senior Nate Schaekel qualified for state in the 100 Fly and 100 Breast and senior Will Scott, junior Lee Grimes and sophomores Jake Johnson and Caleb Peschke all competed at state last year in relays." While this may seem like a lot, this team has even more planned for this season.
Returning Talent
The Dogs will be led by 10 seniors this year. All of the key leaders last season are returning as well. Wins over Avon, Lawrence North, Pike, Franklin Central, Terre Haute North Vigo, Plainfield, Ben Davis, Crawfordsville and Decatur Central gave the team a 9-4 record last season. Head Coach Gast is confident in his team's ability to keep up this season; " On the guys' side, we start with sprinter Austin Kehr, breaststroker Nate Schaekel and distance swimmers Jake Johnson and Caleb Peschke. Our relays should be strong by the end of the season as well." The numbers don't lie either. Best times for the Bulldogs last season start with diver Kale Davidson 276 points, Austin Kehr in the 50 Free with a time of 0:21.48 and in the 100 Free with a time of 0:47.17, Noah Berryman in the 100 Breast with a time of 0:59.81,Caleb Peschke in the 200 Free with a time of 01:49.43 and in the 500 Free with a time of 04:54.46 and Jake Johnson in the 200 Individual Medley with a time of 02:02.18. Relay time highs were 01:30.29 for the 200 Free Relay, 01:04.18 for the 200 Medley Relay and 03:20.66 for the 400 Free Relay.
What's to Come
The Bulldogs are well-prepared for the season ahead, which will come in handy with a stacked beginning to the season. The season kicks off against Terre Haute North Vigo, followed by Fishers/Westfield, Zionsville, HSE and Avon. The Dogs won the B&O Rotary Bell against Avon last year and look to do it again on Dec.10 at home. The Bulldog Relays, also won by the Dogs last year, are on the docket for Dec. 14. As for feelings heading into this season, head coach Gast says "We felt like we didn't have our best performance at the state championship and we are looking forward to changing that this season" and "we are looking forward to swimming against Avon at home in December, HCC in January we'd like to prove that last year's success wasn't a fluke, we'd like to keep or improve on the third place finishes."
The Dogs kick off the season on Nov. 26 at 6:30 at Terre Haute North Vigo.
Follow @bhsdogs on Twitter and stay posted to brownsburgathletics.com all season long for updates and information on Brownsburg boys' swimming.
