Sports: Water Polo, Swimming, Softball
Favorite athlete: Shane Victorino
Favorite team: Phillies
Favorite memory competing in sports: Qualifying for Swimming Districts as a freshman
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: The most embarrassing moment was colliding with my teammate in the outfield during a travel softball game and breaking her nose, sending her off in the ambulance. But I ended up catching the ball for the third out.
Music on your iPod: A little bit of everything! But I love country music.
Future plans: Attend West Chester University for Nursing
Words to live by: “You and your opponent want the same thing. The only thing that matters is who works the hardest for it.”
One goal before turning 30: Have a secure job and hopefully work in a Children’s Hospital
One thing people don’t know about me: I’m super organized and a “neat freak”
Alexis Detweiler is in a class by herself … both literally and figuratively.
When the Pennridge boys and girls swimming teams celebrate Senior Night on Friday, Detweiler will be the lone swimmer recognized. The two-year captain is the only senior on either team.
It wasn’t supposed to be that way, but the last remaining member of the Class of 2012 is unwavering in her dedication to the team.
“The biggest drop was coming into this year,” said Detweiler, who believed there were about 10 swimmers in her freshman class four years ago. “I think there were supposed to be six seniors this year, and now there’s only one.
“My philosophy has always been, I’ve done it the last three years, why wouldn’t I swim again? I’ve been swimming since I was 7, why wouldn’t I want to stick it out another year? I like swimming and I like being part of the team and it helps me in school being on a schedule.”
It’s that attitude, as well as the way she handles herself as a leader, that also makes Detweiler one-of-a-kind.
“Alexis is able to combine excelling herself but also getting those around her to excel as well,” said Pennridge swim coach Ryan Giffiths. “One of the things I think she's learned as a two-year captain is that type of servant leadership where you're not always going to be the best in something, but you're going to have to lead by example, and there are going to be times where you have to hold your teammates accountable, you're going to have to get them motivated, you're going to have to get them on board, you're going to have to get them to think and act the way you do to excel.
“She's handled her position very well. Alexis has very good relationships with all our underclassmen in terms of leading by example and being the person they look to. I’m sure it can be lonely at times, but I think she looks at it in terms of, ‘I’ve done things the right way. I've done what I need to do to be successful, now it's my job to help the rest of the team,’ and show them you want to be a part of the group, and having them buy into doing the things the way she's done them.”
Clearly, she’s been doing things the right way. The four-year varsity swimmer – who also plays forward on the Pennridge water polo team and outfield on the softball team – has made three trips to the District Championship meet as a member of a relay team and has one final dual meet and then league championships to qualify for districts.
Detweiler, who also swims the 200 Individual Medley and 100 fly in addition to her relay duties, would love one more trip.
“Our 200 medley relay is about 0.4 off,” she said. “As for making it in an individual event, it’d be really nice, and my time for fly isn’t too far off. I guess it’s possible. It’d be really nice to because I never thought I could.
“I’ve never had the fastest times on the team, and this year, my times haven’t really dropped, but they haven’t gone up. They’ve basically stayed the same, so hopefully in these last couple of meets I can get them down a little more. It would be really nice to make it for an individual event because that would be a great accomplishment.”
It would also be a fitting reward for someone who has done so much to show the younger swimmers about commitment and work ethic. Especially on a team such as Pennridge’s, which is one of the smallest teams in the ultra-competitive Continental Conference.
“Alexis is a prototypical role model,” Griffiths said. “She does exactly what she's supposed to do when she's supposed to do it. She just knows this is how we do things. She knows how to be a leader, and that's something you can't really coach, you either have it or you don’t.
“She definitely is goal-oriented herself, she sets certain standards and expectations that she holds herself accountable to, but she also takes that mentality and expects it of people around her. She’s teaching a lot of our younger kids, if you want to excel, you have to set a goal, you have to come to practice, come in to work every day, and aim to achieve those objectives. That’s how she competes, how she is in life, and I think that's rubbing off on our younger players.”
Of course, Detweiler had that rub off on her as well. Her older sister Alicia was also a four-year varsity swimmer and was a three-year captain for the Lady Rams. Griffiths finds many similarities between the sisters.
“What Alexis has done – and what Alicia did before her – shows the family influence and what's being taught at home,” Griffiths said. “There’s no difference between the two sisters – you put a cap and goggles on them and they look exactly the same, they work exactly the same way, they have a lot of the same personality traits that make them effective leaders and effective athletes.”
And just as her older sister did, Alexis Detweiler takes those traits with her outside of the pool as well.
Detweiler is taking two AP classes and several Honors level classes this year (she is a multiple-time recipient of the swim team’s scholar-athlete award and has earned that honor on the water polo team as well). She is a member of the National Honor Society, a Student Ambassador and a four-year member of the Executive Council. She works part-time during the school year, and is involved with the Pennridge Aquatics Club in the summer.
She is also in charge of Deep Run Valley Sports’ Everybody Hits Program, which teaches children with special needs the fundamentals of softball and baseball. Her time-consuming duties with the volunteer-based program including setting schedules, making phone calls, getting the word out about the program, and setting up times and components of practices.
“My travel softball coach started the program a couple years back,” Detweiler said. “My sister had been in charge for a couple years and when she went to college I took over. I did it last year and I’ll be doing it this year.
“We work on teaching the basic skills of catching, throwing and hitting the ball, but it’s a lot of fun and it’s really rewarding. The kids always leave happy. I really enjoy working with the kids. When they’re happy and laughing, it’s nice to see.”
Detweiler will head off to West Chester University in the fall as she begins her pursuit of a nursing degree. Due to the time-consuming nature of her major, she will not be suiting up in sports for West Chester’s Golden Rams, so she’s looking to make her last seasons with Pennridge’s Lady Rams the best they can be.
“It really hasn’t hit me yet, but I’m sure I’ll miss it a lot next year because I’ve been involved with three sports every year and I’ve played sports since I was 5 years old,” Detweiler said. “I’m sure I’ll miss it.
“For right now, I want to make sure the team continues to get better and people learn from their experiences and want to get better as individuals as well as helping the team out.”
Griffiths believes that Detweiler has helped out the team more than she may ever know. Her ability to lead and to relate to the younger athletes have helped set a foundation of dedication that Griffiths truly hopes has reached the underclassmen.
Because leaders like Alexis Detweiler are in a class by themselves.
“I see Alexis in practice, talking with a teammate who needs positive encouragement and a pat on the back,” Griffiths said. “Or if she needs to, she can rip into a teammate. She knows how to handle people. The ability to match the needs of her personality to adapt to who that person is that she’s dealing with, is what makes her such a positive leader.
“Being able to do that has made her a wonderful captain and role model, and it’s going to help her out in everything she does. When she goes off to college she's going to be a very genuine and contributing individual. She’s going to make her mark.”
