Men’s swimming bringing in a dozen recruits to make push for first national team title
6/30/2023 8:48:00 PM | Men's Swimming
Liberty University's men's swimming team has made some major strides over the past four seasons under Head Coach Heath Grishaw, who led the Flames to a program-best second-place finish out of 120 teams at the College Club Swimming (CCS) National Championships in Columbus, Ohio, and was named Male Team Coach of the Year at the annual Club Sports Choice Awards.
Grishaw has enlisted a class of 12 incoming recruits, including one sophomore transfer, for the 2023-24 season, which will open with a Sept. 23 men's and women's dual meet against NCAA Division III University of Lynchburg at the Liberty Natatorium.
After graduating six swimmers from last year's 29-man roster, and losing two others who opted not to return, that will bring the roster up to 33 with potential for more additions during tryouts the second week of classes from Aug. 28-Sept. 2.
"It is an interesting group of guys," Grishaw said, noting that Drew Baxter, a backstroker who committed last fall, is this year's seventh-ranked recruit out of Tennessee. "We tried to bring in guys that are going to complement the team and build the culture. You are going to see some really fun races this year, a lot of new names rising from all over the place. We're not going to have a team that has one star pupil, (but) a bunch of guys really stepping up to the plate."
He said Baxter will have the opportunity to break 2022-23 Club Sports Male Athlete of the Year Matt Davidson's program records in the 200 and 100 backstroke, as his best time in the 200 (1:48.52) is already four seconds faster than Davidson's (1:52.55) and his 100 is only a second slower.
Davidson, who graduated in May, currently holds six team records out of 17 individual events and swam legs of the Flames' five record-setting relays, including two that won national titles this spring (800 free and 400 medley).
Besides Baxter, another blue-chip recruit in the class is Thomas Hill, a distance freestyle specialist and club teammate of rising sophomore Jonah Rhodenizer, also from Fort Wayne, Ind.
"He is very talented, and he is going to be great for us," Grishaw said. "We are excited about what he brings to the team. Freestyle is his specialty, from the 200 (yards) up to the 1000, but he swims quite a few other events as well, including the 400 and 200 IMs (individual medleys)."
He said Hill could break two of 2022 graduate Robert Boehme's four program marks, in the 500 and 1,000 free.
"We recruited guys that can fill in those spots that (Davidson and others) left open," Grishaw said. "We won't have to rely on one person, but have more people to be able to cover those. That shows you how talented this group of guys are, with the potential to be the best IM'er and distance freestyler we have ever had."
Josiah Carver, from Sarasota, Fla., is a sophomore transfer from NCAA Division II Carson Newman (Tenn.) who swims the 50 up through the 500 free and is solid in the breaststroke, back, and butterfly.
"He is a little more well-rounded than Thomas (Hill) is in the back and breast," Grishaw said.
Connor Woods, an NCAA Division III prospect from Salem, Va., is another strong freestyler who is also decent in the fly.
"We are excited about him coming in this year," Grishaw said.
Rounding out the recruiting class are Grant Shimer, a back stroker from Cumming, Ga.; Trevor Urbanic, a breaststroke specialist from Pittsburgh; Aiden Walter, from Liberty Township, Ohio, who has tremendous potential in the fly and IMs; Carter Rice (Forest, Va., distance free/breast); Luke Douglas (Raleigh, N.C., breast); Cole Dunne (Blackstone, Mass., breast); and twin brothers Timothy Grabinski (Walden, N.Y., distance free and fly) and Thomas Grabinski (back).
Grishaw will prepare his returning and incoming swimmers to peak for their fall regional meet, on a date and at a location to be determined, and again at the CCS National Championships in Indianapolis in early April.
"My goal is to not come down," he said of the Flames' second-place showing last spring. "Third isn't what I want to see happen. Winning the national championship is always going to be the big goal, though Purdue was lights out this year. They've got some stud swimmers and I am not sure we're going to be able to touch them. We're always going to give them a run for their money (but) we may have to wait for them to lose some people while we keep building. We're going to train and push ourselves as best as we can."
Coming in the wake of an extremely deep recruiting class last summer that had a major impact on the Flames' success at nationals, Grishaw expects to see leaders emerge from this year's incoming class.
"We graduated our three team captains and the only person returning from our leadership group is Carson Chestnut, who was a spiritual leader," Grishaw said. "I don't know where the leadership is going to come from, but I am excited to see the personalities and see who is going to step up and fill those leadership roles."
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
Players Mentioned
