Forrest Frazier leads resurgent Iowa City High into MVC boys’ swimming championships

MARION - A successful backstroke swim always starts under water.

Once the swimmer surges from the wall, they are allowed to remain submerged for the first 15 yards. Kick too big, and the speed is hindered by excessive drag. Kick too small, and the power lacks.

Iowa City High freshman Forrest Frazier has found this often-elusive balance, and his superb underwater skill has propelled him to the top 100-yard backstroke time in the state this season (53.03 seconds).

'That (underwater swimming) would be my strength for all strokes,” said Frazier, who will compete for the Little Hawks at the Mississippi Valley Conference boys' swimming championships beginning at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Linn-Mar Aquatic Center. 'I've just been working really hard at it in practice. I've really been utilizing my under waters in that race ... to keep a fast tempo the whole time.”

The 6-foot Frazier ranks first on the City High team in five of eight individual events and also is fifth in the state in the 200 individual medley (1:58.74) and sixth in the 100 breaststroke (1:00.06).

'Forrest can really take whatever you give out at him,” third-year City High Coach Zane Hugo said. 'You give him a challenge and he really rises up. I'm really impressed with that.”

Freshmen like Frazier and Louis Stephan have been vital additions for Hugo, who has spent considerable effort constructing the Little Hawks' roster throughout his three seasons. With participants on campus and from surrounding schools without swim programs like Iowa City Regina and Solon, the City High roster has ballooned from less than a dozen participants in 2014 to nearly 30 this season.

'I'm always looking for the club swimmers that I can integrate into the program,” Hugo said. 'Otherwise, I just try to have a lot of fun with the guys. The team environment is going to spread and they're going to bring their friends out. ... I'm just always trying to get the swimming community involved. I think that is the best way to get our numbers up.”

Stephan is a strong breaststroke swimmer who continues to post season-best times in the freestyle events. Junior Eric Thomas - a 2016 breaststroke and two-time medley relay state qualifier - leads the Little Hawks in the 100, 200 and 500 freestyle events, and ranks second in four other events.

Frazier won five events (two backstroke, two breastroke, IM) for the Iowa Flyers Swim Club at the Iowa Swimming Long Course Championships in Iowa City last summer. As he approached the start of his freshman school year, Frazier readied himself for high school competition by competing in club events with a shorter cool-down period, which is more indicative of a high school dual meet. Having club teammates like Stephan and Thomas on the City High team made for a confident, seamless and fun-filled transition to varsity competition.

'It's a really great environment,” Frazier said. 'I just like it a lot because there is a really big team aspect of it that is a lot better than club swimming. It just feels like everybody is there to support each other. Everybody is up cheering for everyone, every single race of the dual meet.”

Cedar Rapids Washington is hosting the meet at the Linn-Mar pool. Dubuque Senior has won the team title in three of the past four years.

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