Swimming: Calumet won’t stop swimming

Updated: January 9, 2012 9:16PM

School board members at Calumet High School were poised to pull the plug on the school’s swim program, drain the pool and walk away from the sport in 2010 due to dwindling numbers.

But with the timely support of Calumet swimming alumni, a small group of eager, but mostly inexperienced swimmers, and the re-branded Calumet New Tech High School’s new athletic director, athletes continue to make waves in Gary.

“It was kind of disappointing when you hear they’re going to shut a program down that you knew at one point in time had a ton of enthusiasm,” said Rob Keene, Calumet assistant coach. “Ralph Mundt, our athletic director, used to be the head (swimming) coach at Portage for 20 years. When we talked about it to him it was great because he knew what it would take to get the program up to speed.”

Arriving for the 2010 program reboot, Keene, who swam at Calumet, and his wife, head coach AnnMarie Keene, said they’ve since experienced their share of lopsided losses at meets, but they see promise in the core group of Warriors.

“We lose, not because our swimmers don’t swim, but because of (the lack of) numbers,” AnnMarie said. “Our kids will come in first or second in almost every event. We just don’t have anybody else in the event to get the points.”

The 2011 school year marked the 30th anniversary of the founding of the swim program and construction of the pool. In October, a Calumet alumni meet netted $700 in donations, which were used to purchase new timing electronics for the venue.

Rob Keene believes Calumet lost its biggest advocate for swimming when longtime boys coach Doug Stearewicz retired in 2000. By 2010, the program dipped to three boys and four girls. Now with six boys and six girls on their respective teams, the Warriors are competitive at some tri meets because they have to fill only two lanes.

The Warriors haven’t won a team event this season, though the Keenes said that suspending two of their top swimmers for behavioral issues cost them a victory over North Newton in December.

A highlight of last season was junior Kayla Kronland’s 1:22.00 in the 100 breast stroke, a rare recent entry on the pool records board. Such individual performances are a key measure of the program’s direction.

“Kayla was a brand new swimmer who broke the record,” Rob said. “It was a great indication of her personal drive and athleticism and a pat on the back for the coaches.”

For junior Salvador Hernandez, who was voted a captain last year, attracting new members is about creating momentum in the water and then showing team pride in the classroom.

“I’ve (reached out to other students) throughout the year, but the some of the people who come quit because they can’t handle it,” Hernandez said. “But I’m proud of the few ones who stayed.”

Hernandez joined the team last season as a novice and has gained a reputation as a hard worker.

Rob Keene thinks the goal of growing the team by showing good examples is not a pie-in-the-sky idea. With the help of volunteer assistants such as Dan Arroyo, a 2010 Calumet graduate and three-year swimmer, and senior team member and manager Jarrett Orich, a winning philosophy is already in place.

Arroyo and Orich look to pursue Special Forces military careers. Arroyo said he will stick around the team until the Marines call for him because he believes success will come, albeit with some growing pains.

“I knew the moment (the Keenes) asked me, that I wanted to come in here and help,” Arroyo said. “This experience gave me a lot of important qualities. You want to be able to give that experience to another kid.”

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.