After 95 days spent in season, nine swimmers and one diver made their way to the state meet at Eastern Michigan University.
The team consisted of three seniors: Cordell Frahm, Bretin Staudacher, and Paul Castle; six juniors: Justin Kneeshaw, Kaiden Livezey, Drew Kamp, Prade Horling, Jack Damstra, diver Mitchell Falkins, and sophomore Gavin Jones.
Left to right (back row): Coach Rob Damuth, Cordell Frahm, Bretin Staudacher, Jack Damstra, Paul Castle, Prade Horling, and Coach Andy Bouwens. Left to right (front row): Gavin Jones, Kaiden Livezey, Justin Kneeshaw, Drew Kamp, and Mitchell Falkins. The boys swim state team smiles for a picture after arriving at the hotel. They finished 11th overall at the meet. Photo courtesy of Holly Damstra.
Early mornings spent lifting weights may make their muscles appear mighty, but there’s no amount of weight that can demonstrate the strength of the team’s bond.
“This team was full of experienced swimmers that understood the concept of a team and knew that becoming a team and working together was what we needed in order to have a successful season,” swim coach Andy Bouwens stated.
Senior captains Staudacher and Frahm, brought the glue needed to keep the team together and established a comfortable environment where each swimmer could thrive.
Drew Kamp, Prade Horling, and Cordell Frahm smile in response to breaking several school records. The Wildcats broke both the 200 and 400 freestyle relays. Photo courtesy of MLive.com
“One time last year, [Frahm] drowned me and said, ‘if you really want to be fast you actually have to swim fast,’” Damstra said.
Following in Frahm’s footsteps, both Damstra and Kneeshaw plan to bring constant humour and dedication to the team next year in his absence. Whereas, Staudacher made his most noticeable impression on young Jones his freshman year by pushing him in the weight room.
“[Frahm and Staudacher] have learned that you only do high school once and they wanted senior year to be a memorable one. They really love the guys on the team and laid the foundation to have the season we had, but also set a tone for years to come,” Bouwens said.
Having influenced the boys on the team while they were young, the seniors were able to experience a team with depths of talent.
On March 8, ten Wildcats arrived at EMU to compete. After a long day at prelims, the 200 yard freestyle relay left everything out in the water. After missing the record by .01 last year, the team was beyond ready to beat it this year. Finishing with a 1:28.24 sec, Kamp, Damstra, Horling, and Frahm finally beat the school record and swam their way into the top 16.
Excited and exhausted from the day before, the boys continued to swim and dive their way into finals. Falkins made a big splash with his consistent dives as he finished seventh in the state. And the 200 yard relay got 5th overall.
The last event of the day (400 freestyle relay) brought nervous energy throughout the entire time. Realizing this was their last chance to break another record, the boys went all out.
Frahm led off for the Cats with a 47.58 sec; followed by Horling with a 48.43 sec; Kamp finished with a 49.24 sec; and Damstra anchored with 49.1 sec, for a total time of 3:14.35 sec and the demolition of another record.
“I finished and I heard my teammates screaming and I was like holy cow!” Damstra said after finding out his 400 relay broke the school record.
Jack Damstra celebrates after anchoring the 400 freestyle relay. After swimming several times throughout the weekend, this last relay aroused lots of emotions. Photo courtesy of MLive.com
Each member of the boys swim team contributed to the tremendous gains made to the record boards.
Compared to other years, the boys swim team created a bond due to their dedicated seniors, which was noticed not only by parents and supporters, but mainly by their coaches.
“We appreciate the leadership that they had this year and we want them to know that the success that we have had in their time with the team is something they should be proud of,” Bouwens said. “We also need them to know that any future success we have is something that they can have pride in as well because they helped lay the foundation that made that possible.”
