Swimming: Eddies rise as numbers climb

That’s good news for the Red Eddies, who have had their share of lean years.

After coaching for 14 years, Morrison is quite familiar with a trend that also brings an influx of young talent who could make big waves in the pool.

“We are coming into an Olympic year so it is not unrealistic to think that every time we come into an Olympic year that we might see an increase in swimmers,” Morrison said. “So I am not surprised. … I think that we certainly we have had some success with our team, and our boys’ numbers have been hovering between seven and nine, and we have 12 this year.

“And our girls’ numbers always hovered around 25, so we have more than that this year. We have some really good freshmen this year — boys and girls. Typically, coming into and out of Olympic year, your numbers will rise.”

The Red Eddies have experienced low turnout in recent years, but many teams around the state have also been in the same boat at one time or another.

“This is my 14th season and we have had our share of down years,” Morrison said. “One year, where we just had three boys, so we couldn’t even put together a relay. I felt terrible for the boys. We tried to recruit anyone, no matter who, just to get anyone so kids can swim a relay.

“That happened to St. Dom’s the other night. They only had three boys; so we have the Leavitt boy, so Peter Cornelio swam with the St. Dom’s boys so they could swim some relays.

“A lot of the kid know each other from team to team. There’s a real camaraderie. Does a team really want to win? Sure, but that’s not the biggest thing.”

With a hefty roster bolstered by new talented swimmers, the Red Eddies are enjoying a promising season.

“The boys won their first meet against St. Dom’s the other night. I was really happy for the boys,” Morrison said. “They were competitive in the meet against Waterville. If we had maybe one more swimmer, that might have made the difference, but they swam well.

“The girls, we don’t have a particular superstar. When I say that, I am referring to Olivia Paione and previously to Olivia, Melissa Paione. So we really have a solid, strong teams. There are lots of girls that are very good. Certainly the girls are being led by Maggie Chirayath. She’s a very good butterflyer — a very good swimmer in general. But we’ve got a lot of decent girls this year.”

Fresh faces

A handful of impressive freshmen, including Brendan Whitman, Abby Fisher and Jenna Boucher of Leavitt, have strengthened the Red Eddies’s roster. Their participation helps Morrison embrace the Summer Olympics.

“So Brendan Whitman is a freshman who swims for the local club team,” Morrison said. “The word that I heard about Brendan was he was a good swimmer and would be really nice to add to our relay with Michal Cwik — our outgoing senior who has placed at the states the last couple of years and a nice addition with Kameron Morin.”

“So I am thinking: We have three solid boys in a relay, and if we can get one other boy to step up, because we lost Cooper Mowry. They moved down to Wells and he is swimming with Kennebunk.

“But Brendan has been awesome. Every one of his previous best times he has knocked off significant amount of time. His very first home meet, he broke his butterfly time by like seven seconds. His mom and dad were down on deck and his mom started balling.”

“And then Jenna Boucher swims for Leavitt and she’s a fabulous swimmer. A nice addition to the girls that were already here from Leavitt, with Kristen Morissette scoring points last year for Leavitt and Alana Hartford and Briana Noniewicz.

“I have a ton of new freshmen who are very good swimmers — Abby Fisher, Deanna Legere — just a bunch right across the board. The kids have done a really remarkable job this year.”

A more laid-back approach

A trio of talented freshmen all agree Morrison’s easygoing demeanor and laid-back approach to training works for the entire team.

“I think it is fun. I like how he is not as hard on us like my other coach. He makes practice fun,” Whitman said.

Fisher enjoys swimming at the high school level.

“The competition is better. (Scott Morrison) lets me swim things that I want to swim,” she said. “Not as much sprinting, like always swimming really hard.”

“It is easier You just have more fun at meets. You get to see your friends,” Boucher added. “It is just different. It’s more laid back; you get to have fun. He is just a really nice coach. “

And that is what swimming is all about for Morrison.