Nicholas Rhodes working hard toward his goal of winning a state event

Nicholas Rhodes knew last season, for reasons beyond his control, his sophomore swim campaign would end at the county championships. He still wanted to have his best swims, but a part of him missed going against the best kids on Long Island and New York State at the end.

He won the 100-yard butterfly at the Nassau championships last season and finished third in the 100 backstroke. And if the start to this year is any indication, Rhodes could have more championships coming his way – maybe beyond the county level.

"That would be great and that’s the goal – to win a state event," Rhodes said. "And do to that as a junior would be incredible."

There were no state championships last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That won’t be the case this winter as the state championships are set for March 4-5 at Ithaca College.

"It gives me extra motivation to work harder to win," Rhodes said. "It gives me another chance to get top times and to be ranked higher in the nation and the state and just to have more fun this season with my friends."

Rhodes, a junior competing for the combined South Side/Lynbrook program, has some of the top times in the state in multiple events, according to results on swimdata.info through Feb. 2.

He has the fourth-best time in the 100 backstroke (51.64 seconds), sixth-best time in the 200 individual medley (1:56.09) and 19th-best time in the 100 butterfly (52.87). His 100 backstroke and 100 butterfly are tops in Nassau County, with his 200 IM time slightly behind Great Neck South’s Thomas Huh (1:54.27).

Rhodes can only swim in two individual races at the county and state championships, and he hasn’t decided which events he wants to focus on yet. It’s a good problem to have – too many strong options.

"It feels great to know I can do a bunch of events and put up top times in the state," he said. "I love to be able to put up points for my team."

Record-setting performance at Jericho

Eighth-grader Tristen Yang set a Jericho record with a score of 318.05 over six dives on the 1-meter event in a 96-88 victory over Port Washington/Roslyn Jan. 28. Coach Richard Stern also recorded his 100th victory at the meet.

Talent abounds

It’s impossible to even glance at the list of top times in the state without finding an influx of Long Island swimmers. Here’s a list of top 10 individual times and scores in the state in each event, according to swimdata.info.

200 freestyle: Stephen McDonald, Chaminade, 1:42.85 (2nd); Liam Preston, Miller Place, 1:43.94 (4th); Owen Glaser, St. Anthony’s, 1:44.15 (7th); Pierre Leroy, Huntington-Harborfields, 1:44.87 (10th).

200 individual medley: Noah Cakir, St. Anthony’s, 1:53.55 (3rd); Huh, Great Neck South, 1:54.27 (4th), Rhodes, South Side/Lynbrook, 1:56.09 (6th); John Holler, Smithtown, 1:56.52 (10th).

50 freestyle: Joseph Tonna, Huntington-Harborfields, 21.70 (8th); Jake Nielsen, Hauppauge, 21.74 (10th).

100 butterfly: Aaron Mendoza, St. Anthony’s, 51.65 (4th).

100 freestyle: Ryan Nunez, Kellenberg, 47.72 (5th).

500 freestyle: Leroy, 4:40.11 (3rd); Preston, 4:41.41 (4th); McDonald, 4:41.55 (5th); Allan Chu, Syosset, 4:41.68 (6th); Eduardo Santana, Herricks, 4:45.18 (9th), Glaser, 4:45.29 (10th).

100 backstroke: Rhodes, 51.64 (4th); Mendoza, 52.06 (7th).

100 breaststroke: Cakir, 58.81 (4th); Matthew Chang, Plainview, 59.30 (10th)

11-dive event: Greg Meder, Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, 566.60 (3rd); Alex Zhang, Huntington/Harborfields, 548.35 (4th); Yang, 540.40 (5th).

"The competition on Long Island is incredibly strong," Rhodes said. "We have some of the best swimmers in the state and the county here. Being able to compete with these kids means so much and it’s going to be a lot of fun."