New year. New coach. Same expectations for Evergreen swimming.
The four-time reigning Class 3A state champions, now led by Steve Schneiter, aren’t content by any means early this season.
“We’re going for number five for sure,” said junior Finley Anderson, who won individual titles in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke last February.
Taking over a program in the midst of a dynasty can be daunting in some regards, but Schneiter also views it as a chance to start his tenure off with some success.
“It’s a little intimidating, not going to lie,” Schneiter said. “But I’m really excited about it. I think it’s a really cool opportunity to be able to walk right into to have a chance to win state first year as a coach.”
Schneiter is indeed fortunate to have inherited a program with ready-made talent in just about every lane. Besides Anderson, the Cougars also return seniors Alyssa Cook and Lisca De Jager. Those three, Schneiter said, have helped ease plenty of stress both in and out of the pool.
“It’s been great getting to know the girls,” Schneiter said. “I’m really excited about the amount of depth that we have in the program. We have some really fast swimmers. It seems like in every event, we have two or three state qualifiers already who were close even during our internal time trials.”
Last year at state, Cook placed fourth in both the 500 freestyle and 100 backstroke and was a member of Evergreen’s winning 200 yard medley relay team, along with Anderson, junior Riley Rains and now-graduate Taylor Jacobson.
Other Cougars who’ve impressed early this season include senior Rianna Sjostrom and junior Hayden Hyslop. At the Big Cat Brawl on Dec. 3, which Evergreen finished second out of 10 schools, Sjostrom took sixth in the 100 breaststroke and Hyslop took second in the 200 IM.
“We’ve built up so much depth over the past four years, so we’re just really trying to keep that up,” Anderson said. “We have a ton of seniors that have been on the winning team for so long.”
Both Anderson and Schneiter were also quick to mention freshman Tally Riddle, too, as a newcomer who could qualify for state this year.
“She is an incredibly talented swimmer,” Schneiter said. “I was previously and will continue to be a coach at Mount Vernon Country Club, a summer club swim team, and Tally swam there once or twice for me this past summer and even the previous year. I don’t know if it’s the work she’s put in or if it’s the incredible natural talent, but she would have been a competitive high school swimmer when she was 11 or 12 years old.”
As Riddle’s high school career is just beginning, Anderson has already committed to continue her swimming career at the University of California Berkeley. The Cougars star junior began the college recruiting process in June and four months later, she announced her pledge to Cal. Anderson’s goals don’t stop there, however.
“Committing was a huge step in the process — it’s keeping me going,” Anderson said. “But also, my next goal is Olympic trials. Not only my club, but that’s what I’m focusing on right now. That’s keeping me going in training and it’s always a goal to look forward to. I think for high school overall, it’s just having that fun.”
Evergreen takes on Pomona and Conifer on Friday.