The Joplin High School boys swim team returns a solid nucleus for the 2020 season.
Four members of the Eagles — seniors Ben Wardlow and Zane Reavley and sophomores Jacob Glenn and Zane Newman — earned all-state recognition at last year’s state swimming and diving championships.
With that, the Eagles will feature four accomplished swimmers this fall.
“They’re definitely going to be a big part of our team this year,” Joplin coach Ali Stauffer said of the foursome. “They’ve been working really hard, and I know they want to go back to state. That’s their goal. Those four will be part of our relays, and I know those guys would love to go to state as individuals, as well. They’ve already seen what state is like, they know what it takes to get there and they know what the competition is like. So getting back to state is what they’ll be working towards all season.”
Wardlow, Reavley and Newman swam legs on Joplin’s 200-yard freestyle relay team that earned all-state recognition by placing eighth at last year’s state swim meet in St. Peters.
Reavley, Wardlow and Glenn swam on Joplin’s 200 medley relay team that finished 16th at state, earning honorable mention all-state honors.
Newman, Reavley and Glenn were also part of the Eagles’ 400 free relay that took 25th in the prelims.
Individually, Wardlow advanced to state in both the 50 and 100 freestyle last year. He placed 16th in the 100 and 24th in the 50.
In addition to Wardlow and Reavley, Kohl Cooper, Jonah Hensley and Colin Vermillion are the team’s other seniors. All are expected to contribute nicely.
“Our other seniors have improved from last year and they’ve come into the season in better shape this year,” Stauffer said. “I think all of our seniors will play a part in our relays. There’s some competition right now. We have eight solid guys who are fighting for spots on the relays. We’ll see who earns those spots.”
Freshman Ian Vermillion is a newcomer to watch.
Stauffer said 14 athletes are out for the sport.
“It’s been going well,” Stauffer said of her team’s practices. “So far, so good. We practiced outdoors last week and now we’re practicing indoors at Southern. All of the boys have been working hard. We had a handful swim this summer, so they’ve come in already in pretty good shape. We’ve been working them hard, and hopefully that pays off. And hopefully we can have a full season.”
The team must overcome the loss of one of the program’s all-time greats, as the graduated Alex Crawford captured a state championship in the 100 freestyle and took second in the 100 breaststroke at last year’s state meet.
OUTDOOR INVITE
The Eagles will host the Joplin Outdoor Invitational on Sept. 3 at the Schifferdecker Family Aquatic Center.
Eight teams will be in attendance at the team’s lone home meet. The diving competition will start at 2, with swimming events scheduled to begin around 3.
“It’s going to be really nice to start the season with an outdoor meet,” Stauffer said. “It’s been a couple of years since we hosted an outdoor meet, so it should be fun. Hopefully the weather cooperates.”
JHS Swim Roster
Seniors—Kohl Cooper, Jonah Hensley, Zane Reavley, Colin Vermillion, Ben Wardlow.
Junior—Trevor Blanken.
Sophomores—Jacob Glenn, Devin Lawson, Zane Newman.
Freshmen—Ashton Crawford, Aidan Kester, Alex Kester, Jackson Mordica, Ian Vermillion.
