Holland picks Stevens Institute of Technology

ROGERS — Blake Holland ultimately wanted to continue what’s become a family tradition of swimming in college.

The Rogers Heritage senior decided to follow in the footsteps of his older brother and sister, signing a letter of intent to attend Stevens

Institute of Technology at a ceremony Wednesday afternoon.

Holland considered several schools, including Arkansas, where his sister Carly is about to complete her first year swimming for the Razorbacks. But Arkansas doesn’t have a men’s swim team.

There was a time Holland thought of just attending Arkansas and not swimming, but a little time away from the pool convinced him otherwise.

“I kinda wanted to swim because that’s all I’ve ever done,” Holland said. “There was a period where I was thinking I would go to the U of A and I didn’t swim for a while and it was weird. I would go home and be like ‘Now what do I do?’”

He also looked at Missouri S&T, since he wants to go into engineering. But after a recent visit to the Stevens campus in Hoboken, N.J., he was convinced of his choice.

“It was scary at first,” Holland said. “Culture shock. At first, I was in shock, then I got a little scared because I’m going to be away from home. But I definitely liked it. It’s diverse.”

Academics was a key part of his decision, too, Holland said. He carries a 4.2-grade-point-average and ranks in the top 10 percent of his graduating class at Heritage.

Holland became the third member of his family to be a high school state champion, winning the 100-yard butterfly as a junior. He was second in that event as a senior. He also finished third in the 100 backstroke this year.

Holland