Simsbury High School Swim and Dive Team Gets off to a Fast Start

The Simsbury High School Swimming and Diving Team kicked off its competitive schedule on Friday, December 19, with four trips to the medals podium at the Bulkeley Relays, the annual relay jamboree at Bulkeley High School in Hartford.

The event has traditionally served as the unofficial season opener and brings together many of the teams Simsbury will face over the course of this year’s dual-meet campaign. The team of juniors Sean Russell and Graham Clarkson, sophomore Daniel Greenberg, and freshman Jake Royce took the silver medal in the 300-yard butterfly relay, and Simsbury also won bronze medals in the 200- and 800-yard freestyle and the 300-yard backstroke relays.

According to Simsbury head coach Scott Chambers, “we achieved our three goals for the meet: 1. have fun, 2. win medals, and 3. get warmed up for the season.”

With the team’s first dual meet scheduled for Tuesday, December 23, against Northwest Catholic, Chambers is realistic about the challenges his team will face this season, but is optimistic overall. “Graduation cost us a number of last year’s top contributors – swimmers and divers who accounted for more than half of the points we scored in most meets.

“This team has great spirit and many strong athletes. I have a talented coaching staff, captains who are leaders, and a solid group of returning veterans who are stepping up, so I’m excited about the year,” said Chambers.

Assistants Rich Kowalski and Mary Fran Drakely complete the coaching staff. Kowalski has a long association with the team and serves as the diving coach. Drakely joined the staff a couple of years ago and primarily works with the girl swimmers on this co-ed team. The three coaches have been a unit since Chambers assumed the role of head coach in 2012.

Seniors Nikki Kowalski, Ana Deacon, and Cam Schoffstall lead the team as tri-captains.

Schoffstall, a standout diver, was undefeated during the regular season over the last two years, finished first in the 2014 CCC West Championship, was a top-20 finisher in the State Open tournament, and owns the team record for diving. Chambers and Kowalski believe Cam can repeat as CCC West champion this year, and the senior star will continue his career at Boston University next year.

With few seniors on the team this year, Chambers will rely heavily on the contribution of the team’s juniors and sophomores. Juniors Max Braun, Graham Clarkson, Emily Fritz, Kaitlyn May, Allie May, Will Pendergast, and Sean Russell, along with sophomores Corbin Braun, Dan Greenberg, Annika Hildebrandt, and Patrick (“PJ”) Jackson (diving) are strong, seasoned veterans who will help keep the team competitive and provide depth across both individual events and relays.

Chambers also acknowledged freshmen Jake Royce, Jimmy Salina, and Jackson Tully, who all combine strength in freestyle with talent in at least one of the other competitive strokes (breaststroke, backstroke, or butterfly).

“On a small team like ours, it’s important to be flexible and develop beyond freestyle to make the greatest contribution. All our swimmers are doing more diverse stroke work this year than in other seasons. Everybody has to stretch their abilities,” said Chambers.

Looking over the schedule, Chambers identified a handful of meets that should be especially competitive. “We had exciting finishes with Newington and Windsor last year; both went down to the last relay, so I expect those two meets, along with Berlin and Plainville, will be close,” said Chambers.

Only a few of the meets are against schools with co-ed teams, such as Northwest Catholic, Granby, Lewis Mills, and Gilbert. For the bulk of the schedule, including most of the teams Simsbury will face in the CCC West, such as Hall, Conard, Farmington, and Southington, the co-ed Trojans will compete against all-boy teams with many more swimmers.

Chambers and Drakely expect nearly all of the Simsbury girls will qualify for the “Splash Classic,” a late-February tournament event open to girls from Connecticut high school swim teams who compete in the winter season.

Most girls who swim or dive during the winter season rarely compete only against other girls in their events (because winter high school swim teams in Connecticut are mainly either all boys or co-ed, rarely all girls). “Splash” – along with an all-girl, all-sprint-races tournament called “Splish,” which also takes place in February – gives girls on co-ed teams the opportunity to compete in a tournament intended just for them.

The aquatic Trojans also look forward to special team-building events throughout the season, including weekly team dinners at different team members’ homes; the annual Swim-A-Thon, a combination fund-raiser and charity event that takes place in January (the seniors have chosen the Simsbury ABC House as the recipient of this year’s donation); and senior night, a celebration honoring the careers of the departing Trojan swim team seniors.

Support the team and have some fun! For more information about the team and upcoming meets, please visit www.simsburyswimming.com.