The Coho are running well this summer. But you don’t need a hook or a net to catch them.
of Deerfield has been teaching and coaching area swimmers since 1971. The club has over 300 members, making it one of the largest in Illinois.
“The club has grown over the years,” said. “We generally have about 200 swimmers at one time. With this being an Olympic year, our numbers generally go up.”
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The club is open to all swimmers from ages 5, where they are aptly called minnows; to over 19. The club focuses on correct swimming technique and strokes and makes sure all participants are having fun. They use the pools at , Highland Park Recreation Center and in the winter and Deer Spring and in the summer.
“Our coaches do make sure that all the kids are having fun,” said Reese, who has worked for the club since 1996 and became head coach in 2002.
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“That’s the most important part. We also want to develop their skills along the way.”
Fun Is On the Agenda as Well
The club also has competitive side, swimming in meets against clubs from Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana and Iowa. Many of those meets are divided by skill levels as well.
“We try to group the kids based on that,” Reese said. “We find that works best for all of them.”
This swim season has gone exceptionally well for the Coho’s. They set 16 new team records at the PX3 Sunshine Invitational on June 1st through June 3rd in Pleasant Prairie, WI.
Leading the way for the boys was 8-year old Jayson Fishman, who broke 6 new 8 & under boys’ team records. Fishman set new marks in the 200-meter freestyle, 50 backstroke, 100 backstroke, 50 breaststroke, 100 breastroke, and 200 individual medley.
David Basin also came up big, setting 5 new 9-10 boys team records in the 50 free, 100 free, 400 free, 800 free, and 400 individual medley. Brent Bouslog also set a team record in the 11-12 boys 800 free.
The 11-12 girls 200 free relay team of Lily Kurzydlo, Maggie Hansen, Margaret Guanci and Nicole Piatek broke a 10-year old team record. The 11-12 girls 200 medley relay team of Kurzydlo, Ana Klabjan, Guanci, and Piatek combined to break a record.
The 11-12 boys 200-medley relay team of Andrew Devedjian, Mason McCauley, Arthur Frankel and Brand Secrest also broke a record.
Piatek Sets Record
Piatek was the only girl to set an individual team record, accomplishing that in the 11-12 girls’ 100 freestyle, tying the mark in a time of 1:05.16.
The club will have eight more chances to continue its assault on the record books with meets scheduled through the beginning of August.
“I began researching the records a few years back,” Reese said, whose club keeps the four-pages of its team records on its website. “It is nice for the club members past and present to see how far we have come.”
Coho Becomes Part of Warrior Success
The club has also been responsible for the success of the swimming teams at Deerfield High School.
This past year the boys’ 200 medley relay team, along with Kevin Ewing (200 IM, 100 backstroke) and Chris Roberts (50 freestyle) qualified for the state finals in February. Ewing came away with a 10th-place finish in the state in the 200 individual medley.
On the girls side, the Warriors finished 12th in the state thanks to Barbra Brottman, who was 8th in the 200 freestyle, Ruby Powell, who was 11th in the 100 backstroke, the 200 medley relay team, which finished 10th and diver Erin Purdy, who was state champion.
Ewing, along with Haley Levin, Lex Scanlan, Danny Davis and Matt Davis all graduated from Deerfield High School this past year. They, along with Rebecca Barry who graduated 2011, all plan to swim in college.
“It is great to have them back in the pool this summer,” Reese said. “They show the younger kids what can be accomplished with hard work.”
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