The Boys’ Swimming and Dive season is just around the corner, and the team couldn’t be more excited. Between welcoming the new freshman swimmers and working hard to top previous team and personal records, the season is predicted to be a great one.

With legends like Coach Dan O’Brien and incredible accomplishments such as once being State Champions for 3 years in a row, Fenwick’s Boys’ Swim and Dive is rich in history. According to The Friar Files, Dan O’Brien was the head coach of Fenwick’s Swim team for 23 years and in that time span, Fenwick won 23 consecutive CCL titles. O’Brien also coached 74 All-American swimmers and was inducted into the FHS Hall of Fame in 1979, which are some of the reasons why Fenwick’s Aquatics Center is named after Dan O’Brien.

Fenwick’s Boys’ Swim and Dive provides an irrevocable sense of community. Senior, Christopher Bajda, who has been a competitive swimmer since he was 5 years old, stated, “My favorite thing of being a part of the Fenwick Swimming team is all of the history and community I am taking part in just by being on the team.”

Swimming at Fenwick is not merely just a sport, but rather a chance to make lifelong friends and memories. Junior, Cameron Estes, is currently a swimmer at Fenwick and has been swimming competitively since 2015. Estes expressed, “It gets me emotional every time I think about it, but looking back, I’m beyond grateful to have experienced the sport with people that I love being around.” The start of a new season also brings about new goals for the Swim team. Estes stated, “My number one goal for the 2022 season is to make it to sectionals with a swimming event
in the 100 breast or in the 100 back.”

The team is also looking forward to meeting the new freshman swimmers and divers. Finn Vahey, a junior on varsity swimming, has been swimming since he was 5 years
old. He commented, “This season we have a lot of good upperclassmen with a good group of sophomores and some freshman guys that could really change our team for the better… I’m really excited to see what these underclassmen can do.”

Overall, it seems the Friars are all pumped up and are ready to start their swim season on a great note!