All-Area: Morris guides Coatesville to division title

In 2013 and 2014 coach Dave Morris saw his Coatesville’s boys swim team season end in the same fashion. Each time they had an undefeated season, and a Ches-Mont League National Division title on the line. But each time those accolades were denied at the hands of Perkiomen Valley.

In 2015 the stage was set again, a winner take all meet against the Vikings. This time the Red Raiders prevailed, winning the Ches-Mont National and completing a perfect 11-0 year and helping Morris to be named the Daily Local News All-Area Boys Swimming Coach of the Year.

“It was really nice to see everyone improve,’ Morris said. “You want to see every do well individually but you also want the team to succeed. We came up on the short end of a few meets with Perkiomen and I was so proud of the way our boys worked hard and competed and won the league.’

Even though the season ended perfectly, it didn’t exactly start that way. Early on, Morris saw a need for a team meeting. He was not happy with the production. He certainly pushed the right buttons and motivated his team to reach their potential.

“We have had some good seasons in the past so I just explained to them that didn’t guarantee they would be good this year. I was not satisfied with the preparation, and the commitment. We had that team meeting and I think they really responded after that.’

Morris also received assistance from his captains RJ Hammond, Caesar Asadi, Tyler Brown, and Tanner Stokes.

“The captains were great,’ Morris said. “They have been through some really high moments but hey have also been through some tough moments like losing to Perkiomen Valley those two times. They did a really good job of keeping the team focused.’

By the end of December, Morris started to see his team hit their stride.

“During Christmas break we had some really good training sessions. The boys really showed that commitment we were looking for. They put in really hard work and that’s when I started to see it all come together.’

There were two key reasons that propelled Coatesville over Perkiomen Valley, health and balance. Morris did a great job developing his swimmers this enabled the Red Raiders to have depth in each race.

“I thought that was one of our strengths. Every race we were able to get points and that was huge for us. There weren’t any events where we found ourselves getting blown out or giving up a ton of points,’ he said.

Morris sent seven swimmers to the District 1 Class AAA championships. Reflecting on the season, he was most proud of the consistency his team developed.

“They started to become consistent in everything they did. They worked hard every single game, and they created and established a motivational environment. That is probably the thing I admire the most about this group.’