Swimming to new depths

For senior Matt Margritier, two state records, four gold medals and a spot on the All-American team is all in a season’s work.

He has compiled the most swimming records in Rockhurst history and, according to Mr. Andy Wilcox, assistant varsity swim coach, was the force on the swim team this year.

At the swimming State Championships on Nov. 13th in St. Peters, Mo., Margritier, varsity captain and All-American, displayed his dominance in the sport for the last time in a Rockhurst speedo.

Capturing the gold medal in the men’s 200 and 400 freestyle relays and state records in both the men’s 50 and 100 freestyle races Margritier proved once again why he is probably the best swimmer Rockhurst has ever seen, according to Mr. Paul Winkeler, head varsity swim coach.

“Matt is one of those kids that, once he gets in the water, there is no stopping him. He is going to beat you,” Mr. Winkeler said.

It is his nonstop work ethic and fears of letting the team down that, according to Margritier, keep him focused and motivated.

“[The swim team has] such a strong history. As being both a senior and a captain, I feel a responsibility to uphold the team and set the example for the younger guys. They have history to uphold and someone has to teach them how it’s done,” Margritier said.

For Margritier, swimming has gone from a three months-a-year sport to a year-round lifestyle of daily training.

Margritier admits that when he began swimming for a club at age nine he was not very good. He remembers not enjoying swimming at first, as well as his bad form.

However, as his first year went on, he started working harder in practice and became an elite swimmer on the team. He developed both a love for the sport and the necessary training, and the coaches began to notice that he had potential.

By the age of 10, Margritier switched to a more competitive team and was on a relay of 10 year-olds that missed breaking a national record by a third of a second.

“It ended up being a quick turnaround and was something that ended up becoming really natural to me. I’ve just built on that,” Margritier said.

Even though his successes in swimming have forced him to sacrifice a lot, including much of his free time, school is something Margritier realizes he cannot neglect.

Though enduring a strenuous schedule, Margritier says he maintains a 4.4 GPA throughout the school year. Staying up past midnight during the season is not an uncommon occurance for Margritier, who is also a member of the National Honor Society.

“[During the season] I wake up for practice around 4 [a.m.], go to school, and practice from after school until about 6 [p.m.]. Then I go home and do homework. I don’t remember the last time I went to bed before midnight or checked my Facebook during the weekday,” Margritier said.

Margritier does not think that swimming will be his life-long career, and that his future success in college will greatly impact his decision to continue swimming beyond the collegiate level.

After considering both the University of Notre Dame and Northwestern University, Margritier recently decided Northwestern was the place for him. While the university does not have a top-level swimming program, Margritier says the program is on the rise and that the school will provide a good balance of academics and athletics.

“In my college search, I’ve kind of realized that there are some people out there that can [beat] me pretty bad. It’s put things in perspective,” Margritier said.

Even though the higher level of competition is more difficult, Margritier’s ultimate goal is to make Olympic trials, and eventually the Olympic team, a select group of 16 swimmers who make the finals.

According to Margritier, the only way he can accomplish this goal is through training and working hard.

Mr. Tim Kleiboeker, Margritier’s head coach for the Tsunami Swim team of Kansas City, believes Margritier has what it takes to be successful at the next level. According to Mr. Kleiboeker, Margritier is among the top swimmers he has coached throughout his 18 years of coaching and he thinks Margritier has a bright future past high school.

“He’s well on his way to reaching a peak performance level in college,” Mr. Kleiboeker said. “He well understands that every opportunity he’s faced and will face shall be viewed as a learning opportunity and thus he simply focuses on what he can do to get better.”

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