Nacogdoches High School sends 8 swimmers to state meet

NACOGDOCHES, Texas (KTRE) – Nacogdoches High School is sending eight swimmers to the state meet in Austin on Feb. 20-21.

Nacogdoches swim coach Carrie Scroggins and senior Grant Copen joined East Texas Now on Friday to speak in regards to the group going again to state. At the regional meet in New Caney, Copen set a faculty file within the 100 breaststroke with a time of 58.51 seconds. He stated he went into that race with the mindset that he wasn’t going to lose.

“I had a job to do, and I knew I was going to do it. I just, you know, honestly, I was hoping to be a little faster than what I was. But, you know, when I hit, you know, usually I can tell by like if my family and coaches and my friends are yelling, you know, if it was a good swim,” Copen stated. “As soon as I picked my head up, I heard them and I saw first place and I saw the time. I knew it was done.”

The state meet would be the remaining highschool meet for Copen earlier than he heads to Ouachita Baptist for faculty. He stated it’s somewhat unhappy.

“I swam with a lot of these guys my whole life. Most of these guys are the guys that I hang out with. These are my best friends, you know? I wouldn’t trade them for the world. So I’m definitely a little sad that it will be coming to an end here shortly,” stated Copen. “But also it’s kind of like, you know, this fire inside of you that’s just like, you know, this is your last shot. Like you got to give it everything you have.”

Scroggins stated it’s thrilling to have so many youngsters going to the state meet.

“Oh, it’s exciting. The more the better. Obviously, it’s fun to have relays, it seems like it makes the experience so much more fun,” Scroggins stated. “And then having both girls and boys represented, I think it says something about our total program and it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Of the eight swimmers going to Austin, one is the coach’s son, two of the women are sisters, and Scroggins stated she is going to keep in mind Owen Allen’s efficiency on the regional meet for a very long time.

“Our free leg is the youngest, Whitaker, Devyn Whitaker. So she’ll be entering the water off of her sister’s exchange. And it’s special for them to get to have that. And she’s talented as well,” Scroggins stated. “My son will take the fly leg. So that’s been extra special. And then the freestyle leg is going to be Owen Allen, who really had a big performance with the big finish. They all did. But, I’ll be thinking about Owen’s finish in that relay for a long time to get us to this place.”

AAt the regional meet, the girls 200 freestyle medley team also set a school record; however, they finished ninth and just missed qualifying for the state meet. Scroggins is bringing alternates with the team to Austin as a reminder.

“I’m so happy that those girls are going to be recognized on our record board and in the history books, because, again, talent and leadership. Pepper and Madeline have been key to our relays for years, honestly. And, I wanted them to have a taste of the state experience. But also, I’m proud they got on the record board and they’ll be traveling with us as alternates,” stated Scroggins. “They’re going to be with us. They’re training with us. They’re pushing us. And it’s a reminder that no one gets to the top alone. We need our teammates, and I want them to become hungry also, so that we can repeat this next year.”

Scroggins said the kids have had so much success in recent years that going to the state meet is now the expectation every year.

“This is the biggest dance in high school swimming, and I want them to have a blast, make memories and compete. And, fortunately, our school has continued to send kids to state for years and years and years. And success breeds success. They expect to go to state each year because that’s what we’ve done,” Scroggins said. “I’m just proud this group. Even with losing a lot of seniors last year, you know, there were some, you know, moments where we’re like, okay, this is going to be a challenge, especially on the boys side. But, these guys have been talking about what it’s going to take to get to this level since about August or September…and the depth of our girls team this year is unreal. It’s one of my best girls teams to ever coach.”

The state swim meet for Class 5A and 6A is Feb. 20-21 on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin.

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