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Training puts St. Charles schools in prime position

Every high school sport gets a preseason. Boys swimming gets two.

First is the traditional preseason, which takes place the two weeks before the early December start to the season. The second of these heavy training periods comes over Christmas Break, when most teams take a competitive break or limit themselves to one meet and train heavily.

That second break is over, school is back in session and competition resumes this week. For area teams, Christmas training was key this year to improve fitness and toughness and prepare for January, which is a month filled with tough invitationals and dual meets.

At St. Charles East, this period is known as the Stoughton training period, and swimmers who emerge from two difficult weeks of practice with 100 percent attendance get a Colonial Ice Cream Kitchen Sink.

"We had Christmas Day off and New Year's Day off, but we went doubles every day other," St. Charles East coach Joe Cabel said. "It was critical for us to have good training over break. We had 12 guys make every practice and we put in 100,000 yards in two weeks."

Cabel said Christmas training left the Saints prepared for the second half of the season as the December meets showed areas in which the team needed to improve.

"We just got started training and had our first meets and we never looked like we were ready to go," Cabel said. "Swimming is a cardio junkie sport. It takes a lot of passion in the sport to excel at it. Thank goodness for the Christmas break."

The heavy training provides two benefits. First, swimmers get in shape. Second, they realize they can handle the heavy workloads and not crumble. January practices are still grueling, but not on the level of Stoughton training.

"The guys are now like 'what can you throw at me?'" Cabel said. "We swam 10,000 yards Christmas Eve. Now they're going 8,000-yard workouts daily, and it's not that big a deal because they've gone 10,000."

A number of leaders have stepped forward through the crucible of that training. John Tarpey, a junior, has been "steady as a rock," according to Cabel.

"He gets in there and works his heart out every day," Cabel added. "I've been guilty at times this year of getting other people out of the water and saying 'watch him and what he's doing.' (Tarpey) works his tail off all the time."

Of distance swimmers who have excelled so far, sophomore Nick Boryk leads the way, Cabel said, and leading sprinters include Nick Milosch and John Cranfill. The Saints also have nine divers this season, and Cabel said that group has made great strides.

January brings strong competition, starting with Thursday's dual meet with St. Charles North, and then the Jan. 17 St. Charles East College Events meet.

"They're going to have to swim fast while tired, just like everybody is," Cabel said. "They're not going to swim lifetime bests, but everyone's in that boat."

St. Charles North also gives Colonial Kitchen Sinks for 100 percent attendance during Christmas training, and North Stars coach Rob Rooney said this year's team had its highest-ever percentage of swimmers to reach that plateau.

"I'm really positive right now," Rooney said. "From where we were when we started the first week of practice to where we are today, I've seen a group of guys who have gotten into what it means to get into a team. We have a long road to grow on, but I've seen a lot of great things over break."

St. Charles North graduated 14 seniors in May, and this year's team is a work in-progress.

"We've had teams with more talent, but there is something about this team that is catching onto what we're trying to do," Rooney said. "They're training hard. There are a few who haven't caught on yet, and they need to, because it's almost too late now if they don't get it done soon."

Rooney said that with a young team, the hard work will pay off. Some of those dividends will be seen this year, but others will show in 2016 or beyond.

"It's a new group of kids coming through and some it's a couple of years out," Rooney said. "The type of kids we have, they're giving everything they've got, and the rewards pay off when you do that. I'm not saying the reward will be a state championship. But we'll be a faster team and they will be better student-athletes."

The North Stars have some talented athletes, including Joe Myhre, a junior. Other key components on this year's team are also juniors, including Stephen Hutchinson, Nathan Bawolek and diver Michael Burke.

"We've got a good group of juniors," Rooney said. "When we get done with this year, we'll recalculate for next year. We have some kids who could be swimming on Saturday at the state meet. (Myhre) is that talented. January is the point in time when questions have to be answered."

In addition to Thursday's dual meet at St. Charles East, the North Stars travel to the Evanston Invitational on Saturday.

Marmion swam some top competition prior to Christmas training, including a dual meet at Fenwick and the Cadets' own Block Relays. January hits high gear immediately with this weekend's Evanston Invitational and the Jan. 17 Sandburg Invitational.

"I think we'll know a lot more about our team in the next couple of weeks," Marmion coach Bill Schalz said. "Christmas training went really well. We had a lot to do coming into Christmas training and the kids responded really well."

The Cadets competed once during their training, a dual meet against Brother Rice.

"It was a really good meet," Schalz said. "Now I'm anxious to see, now that we're in the second half of the season, how we do."

Schalz said the Cadets have talent but lack depth in areas, which means the team's best meets could be at the end of the season.

Marmion has a quality newcomer in freshman Will Kamps, who has already reached 4:51 in the 50 freestyle and who is also strong in the 200-yard IM.

"It's so rare to get a freshman who can come in and be an impact swimmer as a freshman," Schalz said. "Usually they get a little bigger and stronger. Will's a hardworking kid and he's got a lot of talent. A lot of that talent comes from him being a hard worker."

The Cadets have senior leadership in freestyler Andrew Kasper, who can also swim the backstroke.

"He came in as a freshman and then as a sophomore who was a hardworking swimmer but who wasn't quite big enough or fast enough to be a player," Schalz said.

Schalz said Kasper continued to work hard and is seeing the results.

"He worked hard not only in the season but in the offseason and now he's a guy we're expecting to do some great things at the state meet," Schalz added.

Through a competitive January, and with heavy training set to continue despite the strong meet schedule, Schalz said he expects his swimmers to progress when they have a chance to race.

"I want to see guys get state cuts," he said. "The biggest thing is to get our relays under the state cuts so we don't have to rest them so much for sectionals. That's so important. If they're not under the state cut, or if they're not close, you have to suit them up for sectionals and rest them more than that makes it harder at the state meet."

West Aurora has moved from one positive to another this season. First there was the turnout - 28 swimmers as opposed to 18 a year ago. Then there is the talent in the water. Like Marmion, the Blackhawks have a talented freshman: Tyler McLaren.

"He's been stepping up," West Aurora coach Chris Ranallo said of McLaren. "He is a phenomenal swimmer and we are going to be close to state this year with him."

West Aurora competed in the Waubonsie Valley Pentathlon during Christmas training, a meet in which each swimmer competes in the 50 freestyle, the 100 backstroke, 100 butterfly, 100 breaststroke and 200 freestyle. The meet is scored on a points basis, with each time being worth a certain number of points.

"Of the guys in the meet, (McLaren) was 17th overall," Ranallo said. "If you get into the 4,000 club in that meet, it's a pretty special group, and he scored 3,998. I told him that we'll be right there next year for sure."

The Blackhawks had a solid day overall at the Pentathlon. Ranallo said junior Martin Ambre has been dropping considerable time this year while Ian Sewell and Jimmy Iglesias have also been strong swimmers.

"It's nice to see more club swimmers come in here," Ranallo said. "The guys see that when you train in the offseason and then you get in the pool for the high school season, they're in better shape because they've been swimming. Martin Ambre swam in the off-season and he's seeing that all that hard work pays off."

In addition to dual meets with Elgin/Larkin and South Elgin, West Aurora heads to invitationals at Bartlett and Buffalo Grove.

"It's nice to get some January meets in here," Ranallo said. "It's the true test of where we're looking and to see what events we're going to be swimming at sectionals."

Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com ¬ St. Charles North's Joe Myhre, competes in the 200 yard medley relay during the 2014 Boys Swimming and Diving IHSA Sectional Championships Saturday at St. Charles North High School in St. Charles.
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