Devon Prep’s Liam Sargent is Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week
The Devon Prep senior has been captain of the school’s swim team since his freshman year, and finished 12th in the boys 200 free at the PIAA Class A state championships last winter. He is also a strong swimmer in the 200 back and 200 IM, and will swim those events next winter for Case Western Reserve University, where he will be one of 25 Baker-Nord Scholars for study of the Humanities. Outside of the pool, he started the Chess Club at Devon Prep and plays the guitar.
Q: What aspect of your swimming did you work on most during the off-season?
A: Refining my technique, which is an always ongoing process, has been something that I’ve been focusing on for all my strokes. I’ve approached this task both in the pool, by being more present and aware of details in my form, and out of the pool by focusing on exercising smaller “connective” muscle groups, so that I’m able to better maintain the composure of my technique when I’m tired, and don’t have to fall back on trying to muscle my way through a race with poor form.
Q: How do you see your role as swimming team captain?
A: In general, I think my role as captain entails fostering an attitude among the team where we all want to push ourselves to be the best we can, out of respect for each other as friends and teammates, and out of respect for ourselves as athletes.
Q: What do you think was your best swim last winter, and what was the key to your performance that day?
A: Due to the ongoing pandemic, there weren’t as many opportunities in the winter of 2020-21 for large meets that I would normally attend, but at the end of the winter season (which technically ended just after spring began) for my club team, UMLY, I was able to get best times in several of my best events. The one that sticks out to me is the 400 IM, which is normally a grueling race, but when I swam it at the end of the season, I tried my best to let go of my anxieties and make myself smile before the race started, and approach it with an attitude that I deserved to be where I was, and that my training will show itself in how well I am able to execute my swim.
Q: Tell us a little about your start in competitive swimming. Who have been your most valuable swimming mentors, and what were the most important things you learned from each of them?
A: My Dad swam for Johns Hopkins in the early 1990s, and so I’ve been in the pool since before I took my first steps, and I’ve been on a swim team since I was four years old. My parents have always been along for the ride since I started swimming, and both have done so much to get me to where I am today. I’ve learned more from them than I have anybody else, and their commitment to me throughout the years as coaches, mentors, and supports can’t be put into words, and neither can the love and respect I have for them for doing all of this, and so much more.
Q: What is your favorite swimming venue, and why?
A: George Mason University is probably my favorite, both because the facilities are wonderful and conducive to fast swimming, and because I have gone to my winter mid-season meet there since I was 11 years old, which instills the pool with so many memories of races I swam (both failures and successes), teammates and coaches I’ve practiced with, and also memories of who I have been since I first went there. That helps me understand just how far I’ve come and to anticipate how far I can go.
Q: Tell us a little about your pre-meet preparation on the day of a meet.
A: For most meets, I find it helpful to not know what I’m swimming until I get there, which guarantees me either a pleasant surprise, or less time to worry about what’s to come. When I’m preparing for bigger meets however, I find it helpful to visualize my races in the days leading up to them, and when I’m at the meet, to remind myself of all the pain I have put myself through to become better, and that I am capable of so much more than I was when I last swam an event.
Q: What is your favorite academic course at Devon Prep? What do you think you’d like to major in at Case Western?
A: History and English courses have always been my favorites since I was little, and at Case I plan to focus on the Humanities, specifically fields such as Philosophy.
Fun facts – Liam Sargent
Favorite book: The Ethics.
Favorite author: Baruch Spinoza.
Favorite TV show: Jeopardy.
Favorite movie: Dune.
Favorite athlete: Chase Kalisz.
Favorite pre-meet pump-up song: Mr. Self Destruct by Nine Inch Nails.
Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles.
Favorite place to visit: Wawa.
Favorite pre-meet meal: Waffles and a protein shake.
(To be selected as Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week, a student-athlete must first be nominated by his coach.)
