Boston College Athletics
Photo by: Linda Adams
Swimming Continues Blazing Trail Through Program Record Books
March 07, 2019 | Swimming, #ForBoston Files
The foundation of the culture provided the lift-off for success.
When Mike Stephens became the Boston College swimming and diving coach last season, his goal wasn't just to build a championship-caliber program. He had been the team's assistant coach for the past four seasons, and formerly swam for the program itself before that, so he understood how success meant more than just what happened in the water. He had a vision to sustain the growth of the program with the future hope of competing among the elite programs rooted throughout the Atlantic Coast Conference.
So it wasn't enough when the team broke roughly a dozen records in that first season. Instead, he wanted something more that spoke to what it meant to be a Boston College swimmer.
"There are things you have to understand about in this program," he said. "There are things that we talk about that inform where we are going. We did some things well when I was here as a swimmer and then again as an assistant coach. People had the opportunity to be great swimmers and divers, but they also took advantage of the wonderful academic opportunities. Those don't have to be mutually exclusive. My goal is to maximize all of those areas so everyone has a well-rounded experience."
Last year laid that foundation through its record-breaking performances, so when the team returned this season, there was a much different feeling. They hit the water in the fall with a clearly-defined purpose, and over the course of the 2018-2019 season, the swimming and diving team continued to shatter records. Over two dozen program records fell this season with 35 different record-setting performances as a byproduct of the work put in by the athletes and coaches cloaked in maroon and gold.
"I knew we had potential to break some records this year," Stephens said. "We had a lot of good swimmers returning, and we have a really strong team. It's hard to put that, though, on the list of things you're shooting for. There's so much we can have happen in a year. So on a very basic level, we talked about continuous improvement."
It gave the Eagles an opportunity to shine at the ACC Championships against some of the deepest competition in the nation. On the men's side, the men's 200-yard medley relay and 800-yard freestyle relay obliterated former marks, with the latter shaving a full two seconds off the previous best time. Colin O'Leary broke the 200-yard backstroke, and Taylor Cortens became the first BC swimmer to ever swim the 100-yard breaststroke in under 54 seconds.
Cortens posted two of three NCAA B qualifying times, the firsts in program history. With his 100-yard breaststroke, his 200-yard breaststroke time of 1:57.42 hit the qualifying cut and broke a school record, while Charles Kleinsmith sprinted through a 100-yard breaststroke time just 0.2 seconds behind his teammate.
The women had an even bigger showing. 11 program records fell over a four-day conference meet, including five records set by Maura Grimes. Grimes was part of the 200-yard medley relay and both the 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relay, and she recorded the fastest 50-yard and 100-yard backstroke in Boston College history.
She was joined by three records apiece by Victoria Lin and Ali Kea, both of whom teamed with Grimes on two relays. Lin separately reset the 100-yard butterfly record she previously broke, and Kea separately was part of the 800-yard freestyle relay team.
"We're in one of the deepest swim conferences in the country, so (improving ourselves) has to be our primary focus," Stephens said. "We broke some records that weren't broken in a number of years, but we had some records that we broke multiple times during the year. Every day, every week, every month, we found a way to get better in and out of the water. That's not necessarily something that's done just by the person who broke a record; it's the three or five other people in their training group, pushing them to those levels."
It represented the next step in BC's growth as a program. The Eagles continue to look up at the rest of the ACC, but their strides are starting to close the gap. It's the first steps of progress towards joining the rest of the league in that regard, but the team in its entirety recognizes that the work is never really done.
"Last year, there was a transition," Stephens said. "We had buy-in from the get-go, but we were asking for a lot more than what was asked in the past. That's hard, so having that success at the end of the year cemented the buy-in. All that work from last year helped our culture, and it gave us the physical foundation to come in at the beginning of this year and train at a much higher level. It all came together to cap off the year in the way that we did.
"(Everyone recognizes) it's not the work you do when the lights are on," he continued. "These kids care all the time. It's not just about the big meet or the few weeks leading up to it. They're in the competitive segment all the time - in the summer, in and out of the water. There are choices to make that obviously aren't always going to be perfect but help maximize all the different areas. That's helping everyone become successful, but that's a really hard thing for a (young person) to accept. We work for months and months for an opportunity for three or four days. So you have to understand how those little choices make the difference."
So it wasn't enough when the team broke roughly a dozen records in that first season. Instead, he wanted something more that spoke to what it meant to be a Boston College swimmer.
"There are things you have to understand about in this program," he said. "There are things that we talk about that inform where we are going. We did some things well when I was here as a swimmer and then again as an assistant coach. People had the opportunity to be great swimmers and divers, but they also took advantage of the wonderful academic opportunities. Those don't have to be mutually exclusive. My goal is to maximize all of those areas so everyone has a well-rounded experience."
Last year laid that foundation through its record-breaking performances, so when the team returned this season, there was a much different feeling. They hit the water in the fall with a clearly-defined purpose, and over the course of the 2018-2019 season, the swimming and diving team continued to shatter records. Over two dozen program records fell this season with 35 different record-setting performances as a byproduct of the work put in by the athletes and coaches cloaked in maroon and gold.
"I knew we had potential to break some records this year," Stephens said. "We had a lot of good swimmers returning, and we have a really strong team. It's hard to put that, though, on the list of things you're shooting for. There's so much we can have happen in a year. So on a very basic level, we talked about continuous improvement."
It gave the Eagles an opportunity to shine at the ACC Championships against some of the deepest competition in the nation. On the men's side, the men's 200-yard medley relay and 800-yard freestyle relay obliterated former marks, with the latter shaving a full two seconds off the previous best time. Colin O'Leary broke the 200-yard backstroke, and Taylor Cortens became the first BC swimmer to ever swim the 100-yard breaststroke in under 54 seconds.
Cortens posted two of three NCAA B qualifying times, the firsts in program history. With his 100-yard breaststroke, his 200-yard breaststroke time of 1:57.42 hit the qualifying cut and broke a school record, while Charles Kleinsmith sprinted through a 100-yard breaststroke time just 0.2 seconds behind his teammate.
The women had an even bigger showing. 11 program records fell over a four-day conference meet, including five records set by Maura Grimes. Grimes was part of the 200-yard medley relay and both the 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relay, and she recorded the fastest 50-yard and 100-yard backstroke in Boston College history.
She was joined by three records apiece by Victoria Lin and Ali Kea, both of whom teamed with Grimes on two relays. Lin separately reset the 100-yard butterfly record she previously broke, and Kea separately was part of the 800-yard freestyle relay team.
"We're in one of the deepest swim conferences in the country, so (improving ourselves) has to be our primary focus," Stephens said. "We broke some records that weren't broken in a number of years, but we had some records that we broke multiple times during the year. Every day, every week, every month, we found a way to get better in and out of the water. That's not necessarily something that's done just by the person who broke a record; it's the three or five other people in their training group, pushing them to those levels."
It represented the next step in BC's growth as a program. The Eagles continue to look up at the rest of the ACC, but their strides are starting to close the gap. It's the first steps of progress towards joining the rest of the league in that regard, but the team in its entirety recognizes that the work is never really done.
"Last year, there was a transition," Stephens said. "We had buy-in from the get-go, but we were asking for a lot more than what was asked in the past. That's hard, so having that success at the end of the year cemented the buy-in. All that work from last year helped our culture, and it gave us the physical foundation to come in at the beginning of this year and train at a much higher level. It all came together to cap off the year in the way that we did.
"(Everyone recognizes) it's not the work you do when the lights are on," he continued. "These kids care all the time. It's not just about the big meet or the few weeks leading up to it. They're in the competitive segment all the time - in the summer, in and out of the water. There are choices to make that obviously aren't always going to be perfect but help maximize all the different areas. That's helping everyone become successful, but that's a really hard thing for a (young person) to accept. We work for months and months for an opportunity for three or four days. So you have to understand how those little choices make the difference."
Players Mentioned
IM/Breast/Back
/ Swimming
Free/Back
/ Swimming
Freestyle
/ Swimming
Breast/IM
/ Swimming
Free/Back/Fly
/ Swimming
Back/Fly
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