In the Crafton Hills College (CHC) men's and women's swim programs, there is a place on the team for everyone. From those with high levels of swimming ability to those with no competition experience, all are welcome to try out.
Courtney Eads, in her fifth season as head coach, said there is always a place for prospective student athletes on the team. The goal is to have athletes of all levels come out and have fun competing, enjoying their teammates, and feeling comfortable with themselves.
"I was initially drawn to coaching at CHC because I saw a tremendous opportunity to start a program from scratch and really mold it into something special," said Eads, who previously coached at Claremont High School and Claremont McKenna-Harvey Mudd-Scripps Colleges. "My favorite part is definitely getting to know the athletes every season. The team has been very different each season thus far, and it's been a lot of fun watching the program grow and exciting to see the team continue to thrive."
Since adding swimming to its intercollegiate athletics program in spring 2017 and competing as part of the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference, CHC has consistently grown its roster and is currently recruiting men and women swimmers for the spring 2021 season.
"I would absolutely recommend incoming students to join the swim team, said Austin Sparks, a current CHC men's swim team member. "I've met some of the best people along the way, and made the best memories going to away meets and traveling with them. Being able to race relays at our fastest against other teams and come out on top gave us a feeling that was unmatched throughout the rest of the seasons."
The College pool, originally used for the 2004 swimming Olympic trials, is home to the CHC swim team. This space can accommodate swimming in short or long course and water polo. Additional amenities include a quality timing system and scoreboard, weight training facilities, locker rooms and multipurpose rooms for team meetings and group activities.
Students on the team receive priority registration to help schedule courses around swimming commitments. Team members are required to be full-time students at Crafton Hills College and/or San Bernardino Valley College and must register for a 3-unit Intercollegiate Swimming course offered in the early afternoon (12-2pm). They can expect to compete one or two times a week from mid-February to early-May.
Spring classes begin January 19, 2020. Interested swimmers should contact Coach Eads at ceads@craftonhills.edu or 909-389-3605.
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