KNIGHTS READY TO MAKE A BIG SPLASH
Indiana-bound Mason Carlton leads Soquel
Times appear to be tough all around for boys swim teams in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League. Except at Soquel High, that is.
In a sport where teams typically boast 40 to 60 competitors, many SCCAL schools have teams of 20 or fewer. Aptos, traditionally a league powerhouse, has just six boys on its varsity roster. Watsonville — a CIF Division I school in terms of enrollment that, along with three other Pacific Coast Athletic League schools, has joined the temporarily expanded SCCAL for the 2021 season — has just eight swimmers total, counting both boys and girls.
“I am accustomed to having about 60 swimmers with a 14week season and about eight meets,” Wildcatz coach Brooke Lynch said via e-mail. “This is a tough one (season).”
In a time when many Central Coast Section athletes are playing sports outside their normal seasons due to the California Interscholastic Federation lifting COVID-19 restrictions so late in the school year, many athletes who would otherwise come out for swimming come spring must choose between sports — they can only play one per season.
Due to COVID-19 concerns, smaller team sizes may not necessarily be a bad thing — especially since no more than two teams will be able to compete against one another at a given venue.
“Three teams at one site, that’s a lot of bodies at a time when we want to keep people separate,” Aptos coach Jim Triplett said.
Even teams that have swimmers expect to lose significant portions of their squads to other sports before the season’s end.
“Almost half our team plans to switch to water polo in April when that season starts,” Harbor coach Jake Soares said via e-mail.
For that reason, many coaches aren’t emphasizing results — Triplett, for one, expects meets to be “very low-key.” Scoring points and improving times will be secondary to simply getting kids in the water competing and having fun.
“I’m stoked to see the athletes back in the pool and enjoying it,” Scotts Valley coach Mike Ayers said via e-mail.
Soquel is one of the few SCCAL schools whose numbers aren’t down. Coach Jarret Winters estimates that his team has about 50 swimmers, though he expects to lose some to water polo come mid-April.
The Knights also boast perhaps the area’s top swimmer: Mason Carlton, a University of Indiana-bound senior, proved his dominance in distance freestyle events as a sophomore back in 2019.
Carlton placed in the top six in two events — fourth in the 500-yard freestyle, sixth in the 200 free — at the CCS meet that year. He went on to finish 10th in the 500 at the state meet, touching the wall in four minutes, 28.94 seconds.
Also back for Soquel is senior Dane Warren, a sprint freestyler who “did real well as a sophomore” in the 50 and 100 freestyles, according to Winter. The Knights coach also expects big things from sophomore Matthew Elliot.
“He’s All-America-caliber in the 200 (individual medley),” Winter said of Elliot. “He’s also really strong in the 100 butterfly.
“He’s a utility swimmer — he can do a lot of different things.”
Versatility is also a strength of Scotts Valley’s top swimmer, junior Henry Kiesby, whom Ayers expects to contend for titles in both the 200 freestyle and the 100 breaststroke.
Santa Cruz’s top returning swimmer is Austin Vera, who qualified for the CCS meet in the 100 butterfly as a freshman and also competed on two relay teams at that meet, anchoring one. Fellow juniors Cole and Reed Barbour give the Cardinals experienced competitors in backstroke and freestyle events, respectively.
Aptos’ biggest threat is a newcomer, senior Nic Friedley.
Harbor’s team is on the young side. However, between sophomore Conall Barber (butterfly and breaststroke) and freshman Eddie Brooks (freestyle and backstroke), the Pirates should have a lot of their bases covered.
San Lorenzo Valley has opted not to compete this season despite being one of three schools with new
or beautifully renovated pools. Harbor and Monte Vista Christian are the others.
“Harbor has a new pool in the ground, and we are committing to building the momentum necessary to eventually qualify athletes for CCS and win a league title,” Soares said via e-mail.
MVC and Watsonville are two of four Santa Cruz County schools competing in the SCCAL this season
that would otherwise be part of the Pacific Coast Athletic League were it not for COVID-19 restrictions that prohibit athletes from competing outside their counties. St. Francis and Pacific Collegiate are the others.
MVC features a pair of solid freestyle sprinters in juniors Andrew Sullivan and Hunter Houston. A relative newcomer to the sport, Houston has already shown the dedication necessary to be a top competitor, according to Mustangs coach Michele Turner.
“He joined my daughter’s club team over the summer, and since then he’s made huge strides,” Turner said.
St. Francis, meanwhile, has two swimmers whose strength is the 200 freestyle: senior Eddie Vargas and junior Peter Kehoe. Vargas can also swim the 100 backstroke, while Kehoe should be competitive in the 500 free.
Pacific Collegiate is led by senior Sam Levy, the school record-holder in the 100 breaststroke. Pumas coach David Lederman expects Levy to also make an impact in middledistance freestyle events.
Juniors Noah WagnerJauregg and Lucas Schuppek give PCS a solid 1-2 punch in the individual medley. Wagner-Jauregg is also expected to be a solid performer in long-distance freestyle races, as is Schuppek in the backstroke and breaststroke.