Peters swims way to Ozarks
BRYANT – Bryant senior swimmer Tyler Peters will be competing at the next level after signing with the University of the Ozarks Eagles Thursday at Bryant High School.
Located in Clarksville, the University of the Ozarks was the right fit for Peters.
“I went and toured there a couple of months ago and the atmosphere was really friendly,” Peters said. “I even met a couple of the swimmers and saw their pool, and it was really nice. It was one of the places I wanted to be.
“We were looking at a couple of different schools. Henderson and a lot of different private schools because they’re the only ones with swimming and that’s what I was pretty decided on going forward in my life.”
A four-year letterman for the Hornets swim team, Peters has been a constant in the Central Arkansas Swim League (CASL), qualifying the Meet of Champs every year since 2014, also medaling every year.
Peters picked up the gold medal in the 50-yard freestyle in 2014, gold in the 100 individual medley in 2016, gold in the 100
IM and bronze in the 50 freestyle in 2017, silver in the 50 free and 50 butterfly in 2018, and silver in the 50 butterfly in 2019, with no Meet of Champs in 2020 due to COVID-19.
Though he prefers the backstroke, Peters said he’ll swim whatever event he is asked to swim.
“I like doing the backstroke, but I’ll do whatever I need to do help the team,” he said. “But, the backstroke is one of my strongest ones.”
Peters, who has a 3.2 GPA and is also a member of the Legacy of Bryant Band (French horn and mellophone), has coached the Bryant Barracudas for two years and won the high-point award in the 2018 and 2019.
Bryant Coach Angel Dale believes the Eagles are getting an excellent addition.
“They’re getting an outstanding young man,” Dale said. “He’s pretty strong in the backstroke. He’s a good freestyler and he’s a hard worker. He’ll do anything you want. He’s coachable. He’s obviously got some discipline. He’s been in the Legacy Band, and they practice as much as we do, if not more.”
Peters is currently undecided on a major, but has shown interest in the medical field, or even becoming a coach or teacher.
University of the Ozarks swim Coach David Degeus is happy to have Peters, especially for providing depth on his team.
“He came up, had a good visit with us and it seemed like he would be a good fit for our university as a whole,” Degeus said. “He had good energy about him and just seemed like a genuine person, and has good potential as well.”