Menu
Underclassmen comprise Tiger swim team
The 2017 Nevada Tigers swim team is made up of seven swimmers; five sophomores and a pair of freshman.
“With such a young group of kids we have a lot of room for growth but also a lot of potential,” said second-year head coach, Clayton
Wheeler. “Our main weakness is overall age, but most of our swimmers have been swimming for a number of years.
Wheeler’s 2016 squad finished third in the West Central Conference and ninth out of 18 teams at its district tournament. Key losses due to graduation, include Cody Hansen, Thomas Prewitt, and state-qualifier (in the 50 Free and the 100 Fly) Jake Asberry.
“I expect us to continue to improve as the season progresses,” said Wheeler. “The boys have been working hard and are getting faster everyday. We need to focus on doing the little things right and know when to push ourselves.”
Expected to have a mega impact this season for the Tigers, is freshman Ben Hines Hines, a multi-sport standout, has made waves on the national level. In 2015, Hines was nationally ranked in the 50-yard freestyle. At the national-level, Hines is a member of Berzerker Swimming out of Joplin. Berzerker is affiliated with USA Swimming.
Hines has competed in national events in Orlando, Fla., Indianapolis, Ind., and Lewisville, Texas where he swam in the Pro-AM. In Orlando, Hines was the only 13-year-old (last year) to make the “A” Finals, finishing in fifth-place.
Hines USA Swimming coach, Shawn Klosterman, also the Webb City High School swimming coach, said Hines is versatile and talented in the pool, succeeding in all events he competes in.
“Ben is a sprinter at heart,” Klosterman said in October 2016 interview with the Daily Mail, “because he likes it and his height helps him against other age-groups. But if I had enough access to pool time with him, I could make a distance swimmer out of him too.”
Klosterman continued, “Ben had no trouble transitioning from the small pond of local swimming into the big ocean of USA Swimming. He doesn’t care who you are or how old you are, if he gets a chance to race next to you he intends to win.”
Schedule
Aug. 24: Joplin Outdoor
Aug. 29: Carthage meet
Aug. 31: Nevada Invitational
Sept. 5: Monett
Sept. 14 Seymour
Sept. 16: Webb City
Sept. 21: Glendale HS
Sept. 29: Joplin Dual at MSSU
Oct. 5: Carthage Invitational
Oct. 12: Joplin meet at MSSU
Oct. 14: Springfield Invite
Oct. 17: Monett
Oct. 20: West Central Conference meet at Sedalia Middle School
Oct. 26: Southwest Missouri prelims, TBA
Oct. 27: SWMO championship finals, TBA
“Our entire area is very competitive,” said Wheeler. “I feel that our biggest competition is ourselves. We have a good group of motivated kids and, they can really push themselves.”
Roster
Sophomores: Tyler Armstrong, Grant Miller, Kalen Morris, Jack Niestrath and Braden Russell. Freshmen: Ben Hines and Pierse Dennison.
Coaches: Clay Wheeler, head coach; Ken Hines, assistant coach.