Scouting boys swimming / Northwest
Barrington: The Broncos have another strong group in place, led by one of the top returning swimmers in the area, senior Greg Alexander. There's no real weakness on this team, which didn't graduate any of the swimmers from all three of the relays that made the state meet last season. There's sprint freestyle depth with Matt Lee, Jack Strauss, Tom Clement, Dan Comyn; Leo Hayden was an individual state qualifier last season and has had good early season performances, Alex Anderson impressed in a year of sustained development last season and a young group with competitors such as Kyle Ujiye, Connor Kobida, Chris Vega and James Rodney is ready to make a strong contribution at the varsity level. Coach John Valentine can look forward to a season of dominance in the Mid-Suburban League and great representation at the state meet.
Buffalo Grove: Ian Rodriguez had a breakout season as a sophomore last winter and is poised to continue his success for coach Jamie Klotz. Though there's no one else quite at his level, the Bison have shown a solid dual lineup so far with strong contributions from veterans Matt O'Rourke, Matt Schulstad, Phil Irzyk and Jon Mass. Other varsity contributors who will have an impact are KC Lotzer, Justin MacIsaac, Nick Boukas, and diver Julian Vasquez is a cut above most of his Mid-Suburban League competitors.
Conant: The Cougars will miss the loss of graduated standouts Ryan Chiero and Will Landgren, but there's plenty of reason for optimism for coach Brian Drenth. This team has plenty of depth and competitors who can make this team potent by year's end. Junior sprinter Palmer Lynch is one key; others stepping up include sophomore Adam Wojciechowski (sprints, fly), junior Chad Woytus (sprints, backstroke), freshman Jonathan Burke (distance and sprints), sophomore Matt Nagorzanski (breaststroke), sophomore Brandon Grzegorek (breaststroke), sophomore David Wollschlager (back) and Martin Pozniak (IM, back). Diver John Maevski has already hit a career best and can compete with the best in the league.
Elk Grove: First-year coach Keith Kura has a top-line sprinter and backstroker in senior Carl Sugihara and several other quality competitors to go with him, such as Marek Burtan, Jerry Kurty, Krystian Szczepaniak, Michael Kosciarz and Charles Modrich. Participation continues to be strong, but the Grens are in development mode as a team as they try to add depth to the varsity lineup.
Fremd: First-year coach Kristen Newby has a pair of team leaders around which to build a team: seniors Jeff Freund and Dustin Anderson. Freund finished seventh in the state in the 500-yard freestyle last season; Anderson qualified for state in both the 50 and 100 freestyles. Their presence guarantees solid relays for the Vikings, and already others are stepping up and making Fremd formidable breaststrokers Ray Schied and Ilya Skvortsov, all-around standouts Dennis Kostidis and Matt Zhou, sophomore Andrew King and senior Phil Schroeder among them. Fremd is hoping to be a rock-solid conference and sectional team by season's end, qualifying multiple relays to the state meet, and it seems like they have the opportunity to do just that.
Hersey: Coach Dick Mortensen has a team that's young, but in this case that isn't a liability rather, these kids just have some ability. Sophomores Jeff Ruffin and Jamey Hill made an impact last season and are far ahead of where they were last year. Senior Stephen Petro won't have much company from his own class on the varsity, but there's a long list of impact swimmers from all the other classes. Freshman Samuel Kim is showing terrific speed, junior Alex Roznai is a proven varsity performer in the fly, junior Mike Kintzle, freshman John Kintzle and sophomore Alex Niemiec are all giving strong supporting efforts. How far the Huskies go depends upon how much progress they make within the season.
Hoffman Estates: A young team last season for coach Josh Schumacher has evolved into one ready to compete against virtually anyone in the Mid-Suburban League. All the key figures are back and they're performing at a much higher level already. Sprinter Mike Christen leads the way, followed by Sang W. Han, Sang M. Han, Nick Jessee and Adam Pasnicki. The Hawks may still lack depth against some opponents, but this is a team that's taken a big step forward.
Maine West: Coach Ryan Claus calls this a rebuilding year, but the Warriors have an opportunity to build something special. They'll struggle against deeper varsity teams, but there are many positives going forward with this group. Brian Wasicak is a reliable, experience top-notch varsity performer in the IM and breastroke; Joe Heinz and AJ Unander also bring leadership and stability. Developing performers such as Matt Boesche, Mike Conner and Anthony Revegno are among the swimmers already capable of contributing at the varsity level.
Palatine: First-year varsity coach Kyle Sorenson now in charge of the team he once led as a competitor, and he's pleased with a team that has both meet-ready performers and down-the-road potential. Dylan Weissmann, Zach Gray, Kamil Mulawa, John Giuliano are among the familiar names who are performing well; Robert Hank and freshman Mitchell Brustad are contributing already and could be keys to the team's overall achievement by season's end. Diver Carter Sanecki has already been flirting with 200 scores in duals and gives the Pirates a solid performer on the board.
Prospect: The Knights are looking for answers this season as a very young team tries to gain confidence after graduating standouts Tyler Bengtsen and Joe Lakner. The good news is there's no shortage of potential here, and coach Alfonso Lopez is counting on swimmers such as Andrew Younger, Nathanael Ginnodo, Ryan Konieczka and Matthew Rendino to continue developing.
Rolling Meadows: Coach Monika Chiappetta has the program at an all-time participation high, and the good news doesn't end there. Junior Artie Checchin was a near-miss for the state meet last season and is on track for an even better season in the sprints. Others who have given strong efforts in the early going include returning competitors Kevin Fitzsimons and Sam Schmid. The team is still younger than most but figures to take a step up this season relative to its MSL East competitors.
Schaumburg: The Saxons will struggle with depth at times, but coach Tom Gallagher has a group that learned a great deal last season and didn't lose a great deal to graduation beyond distance freestyle standout Ben Epperly. Randy Carr has been solid in the breaststroke, Daniel Hartzman is varsity-ready in the backstroke. Others who will be counted on in the dual lineup include Dylan Giesel, Erik Heitmann and Justin Chen.
Wheeling: Coach Tod Schwager has a senior-led squad that is a clear cut above the most recent Wildcats teams. Shane McDade and Scott Lunardini provide sprint freestyle strength, and Wheeling has a host of contributors that cover most of the dual events with quality. The main players figure to be Andrew Eiter, Mike Boom, Jaron Witt, Tomas Echeverri, Nick Modlin, Bryce Maczko and Ethan Rosengarden. The Wildcats were 3-0 after duals against Schaumburg, Prospect and Maine West, a clear sign that they've improved.