There are very few people who can break records .
Even breaking personal records isn’t easy, and breaking school records is even harder. Only top athletes can break and set school records. This season, the swim team has multiple state swimmers returning to the team, and just as many guys who have set school records or are on track to break old times.
Kevin Burke hasn’t set just one record, but three. One of the records he broke was his own. Burke set the school 100 backstroke record with a time of 52.27 seconds, in his sophomore year. He then broke his own school record and set a new PR at the same time, with a time of 51.66 seconds at state last year.
Nate Martell, a teammate of Burke’s commented, “The 100 back record is currently a 51.66 set by Kevin Burke, one of our team captains. That record will be there for a long time, as he is one of the best backstrokers in the state.”
The second school title is the 50 freestyle, in a time of 21.11 seconds, set at state last year. It hasn’t been contested by anyone since. Considering that his previous PR before that was 21.48 seconds, he made significant improvements throughout the season.
His last record was not set alone. It was with a team of great swimmers. The standing 200 medley school record is 1:35.06. The team that set this record was Kevin Burke, Jacob McCredie, Nate Martell, and Nathan McKay.
Colin Kilcoin is only a freshman, but he has already broke high school records. In eighth grade, Kilcoin was set a new PR two second faster than the previous title. Unfortunately, you have to be in high school to be the new record holder. Unlike most of his teammates, Kilcoin is one of the few distance swimmers. His events are the 500 freestyle and the 200 freestyle.
Being on a team that holds a school records comes with a lot of pride. Martell was part of that 200 medley team. But there is a problem. “McKay graduated so we are trying to find a new freestyler to take over that spot,” said Martell. “Our goal for this year is to lower that record down into the 1:34 range.” With plenty of great swimmers coming back to the team, he is confident it won’t be a problem.
Martell is still chasing some big goals. He hoping to match or get near Burke’s title of 51 seconds in the 100 back, “I went a 55.05 at state in February but it would be nice to get around a 53.5 at the upcoming state and get within a few seconds of his record. And then senior year get around a 52.” A second in swimming is a very long time. The second title he is chasing is held by Nick Staver, who set the record for the 200 IM in 2015 with a time of 1:53.64 seconds. Last year at state he clocked in with a time of 2:00.81 seconds.
Another guy on the medley team is McCredie. His event is the 100 breaststroke. He went to state last year for that event and set his PR of 59.4 seconds. The 100 breaststroke time he is trying to break is 56.76 seconds, “…it’s a pretty long reach,” McCredie commented. “I do believe I have what it takes to get the record based on my improvement rate and times that I have already swam this season. Right now I am swimming a lot faster than I was last year and so if I keep focused throughout the season I definitely have a shot”.
With a team this strong, all the athletes are excited to see what their team can do.
