At Northeastern, volleyball son picks swimming
Northeastern's Drew Wilson has two parents who played college volleyball, so it stands to reason Wilson would also be a good athlete.
He is. However, it’s not on the court. The water is where Wilson excels.
Wilson, the son of Bobcats boys’ volleyball coach Matt Wilson, took up swimming in sixth grade because a friend swam. He never imagined where the sport would take him, including going to this weekend’s District 3 Class AAA championship meet held Friday and Saturday at Cumberland Valley.
“At first I didn’t like it at all. I only kept doing it because I wanted to hang out with Drake (Myers) more,” he said. “The more I did it, the more I liked it.”
While that makes sense, why in the world would Drew take a liking to the distance events, the 200- and 500-yard freestyle?
“I liked doing the 500 more than the others because I like pacing myself, because I didn’t have to go all out the whole time. Now later, I have to go all out."
Wilson enters the AAA championship seeded 11th in the 200 and ninth in the 500, an incredible improvement from last year when he didn’t qualify for districts. The sophomore should have plenty of confidence after winning the 200 and earning silver in the 500 at the YAIAA championships.
“I was really nervous before the race but after was relieved,” he said. “I found myself getting faster throughout the year and felt amazing for that to finally pay off.”
The success is something that Northeastern coach Dan Schaeberle thought was possible when he watched Drew swim prior to entering high school. Still, even the coach is surprised, saying: “I never thought he was going to go this fast.”
Despite it being in a different sport, Schaeberle can see the benefit of Wilson having a father who played volleyball at Ohio State and a mother that played volleyball at IUP.
“Going into counties his turns weren’t that great, all of a sudden he had great turns and that’s where he was able to pull away from the other boys,” the coach said. “That’s where you see that athletic background come in. He can pick up stuff so quick.
“He gets all the credit because he worked hard.”
For his part, Drew hopes to reach the medal stand this weekend. While it won’t be easy in the ultra-competitive Class AAA, he will be ready.
Either way, the experience of being in the electrifying atmosphere will likely pay huge dividends, now and the next two years.
District 3 swimming championships
Schedule for the District 3 swimming championships at Cumberland Valley High School.
Follow live updates at GameTimePA.com. Click here to preview the York-Adams swimmers.
Friday
Boys' Class AA: noon to 1:30 p.m.
Girls' Class AA: 2:15 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.
Boys' Class AAA: 5 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.
Girls' Class AAA: 7:30 p.m. to 9:15 p.m.
Saturday
Boys' Class AA: 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Girls' Class AA: 12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.
Boys' Class AAA: 3 p.m. to 4:35 p.m.
Girls' Class AAA: 5:30 p.m. to 7:05 p.m.