Sports: Swimming
Favorite athlete: Misty Hyman, Olympic Swimmer
Favorite team: Forever, the Phillies
Favorite memory competing in sports: Upper Dublin Swim Season 2011-2012, both the boys and girls swim teams were the District 1 Champions. We all jumped in the pool in our warm-up suits
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Dove off the block then somehow ended up in the neighboring pool lane during the 50 fly, yet did not get disqualified
Music on your iPod: A wide variety ranging from Jason Mraz and Dry Reef, to my guilty pleasure, Taylor Swift
Future plans: Major in physical therapy at West Chester University, graduate and work with a sports rehabilitation related company
Words to live by: “It is not the length of life, but the depth of life” –Ralph Waldo Emerson
One goal before turning 30: Visit the West Coast
One thing people don’t know about me: Allergic to apples and carrots
Brian Schwabenland didn’t bring his swim trunks or goggles with him to the recent District One Swimming Championships.
The Upper Dublin senior did not qualify for the district meet. But that wasn’t going to stop him from being there to help cheer the Flying Cardinals' boys and girls squads on to district team titles.
“I went both days for the boys and girls meets,” Schwabenland said. “Over my high school career, the entire Upper Dublin boys and girls swim team is my family. I’m there to support them, I’m there to help them if they need it.
“I’m so happy for everyone and so proud of everyone who swam at districts, I wouldn’t want to miss it.”
And that, in a nutshell, is what makes Schwabenland such a unique person.
“Brian got to experience the win with the team,” said Upper Dublin boys’ swimming coach Lisa Fantini. “He rose above not qualifying and came to cheer on the team on deck and got to be a part of it.
“Brian is an all-around great kid. He’s super-respectful, he’s got great parents who are very supportive and have taught him well. He’s a genuinely nice kid, the kind you really root for to be successful.”
And while others may have balked at attending a district competition for which they did not qualify, Schwabenland – for the fourth year in a row – never thought twice about showing up to support his teammates. Schwabenland dealt with bad luck and bad timing for the last two years – he entered this season’s Suburban One Championships suffering from a sinus infection and a virus, and last season was dealing with arthritis that occurred as a result of an allergic reaction to antibiotics. But Schwabenland possesses a remarkable ability to accept and learn from both the positives and negatives. He has never shown any bitterness at goals unaccomplished … only the sincere desire to be there for his teammates.
“This year at Suburbans, I was battling my way through thinking, ‘Whatever happens, happens and I’m going to try my best,’” he said. “That’s what the season was about, working hard to try to reach my goals. Things didn’t happen the way I had wanted them to, but I did learn a lot about myself and my team. And I’m OK with that.
“Regardless of whether I qualified for districts or not, I was going. I’ve been blessed to be with such great people and had such great experiences over the last four years, I couldn’t miss it.”
His selfless attitude and desire to help others makes Schwabenland an ideal role model, particularly on a team where some of the younger members were among the top athletes on the team.
“This year, we had a really strong junior class, but we really tried to stress to the seniors, ‘You guys stick together, be a strong unit for the team.’ All the seniors did a great job with that,” Fantini said.
“Brian is always focused on his strokes and techniques. He always works really hard in practice. He’s a good role model for the young kids on the team. He wants to be a leader, he knows he needs to be a role model, a mentor, and he helps any way he can, whether it’s organizational or even just going to get equipment.”
For Schwabenland, it was a simple matter of doing whatever was asked or needed of him in order to help the team succeed. In the pool, that meant picking up points wherever he could. Schwabenland understood and embraced his role on the team. He may not have been the fastest swimmer, but he earned the team valuable depth points in his races.
“My philosophy is that every little bit counts, no matter if you’re the best swimmer on the team or not,” he said. “Every point, every second you drop counts toward the team improving.
“It’s definitely been a privilege to be on this team. It’s so competitive, you have to work to stay on this team. And it’s so amazing and thrilling to be up there (on the starting blocks) when your adrenaline’s rushing and you want to do the best you can.”
In the past, however, Schwabenland’s drive to do his best actually hindered his efforts. His mental approach to his races is something he’s worked hard to improve through his years on the team.
“Brian’s the kind of kid that wants to do so well, he puts a lot of pressure on himself,” Fantini said. “He wants to excel, and he used to get himself so worked up, so nervous, he wouldn’t do as well as he wanted.”
“I was always looking up at the faster swimmers and thinking that I need to be perfect and be on par with them,” Schwabenland said. “But I began to realize that I am my own individual person, I am just going to go for it and give what I have. That definitely helped me relax and focus better on my own races.”
One area in which he has always excelled has been in being a leader. Fantini credits Schwabenland for stepping to the forefront last season as a junior and assuming a leadership role when the team needed it, and he has continued to offer himself as a leader and role model in his senior season.
“Being a senior is bigger than being a captain,” said Schwabenland. “Just because I wasn’t a captain on the team, as a senior, you are the role model, you have the most experience, and demonstrating these good leadership skills will help maintain the well-being of the younger swimmers and the team.
“And for me, helping others is just something I love to do. Helping other people succeed and reach their goals is important to me.”
That desire to help others is something that Schwabenland takes with him when he leaves the pool. A Boy Scout since elementary school, Schwabenland achieved the honor of Eagle Scout (and designed and built a sandbox at Maple Manor Swim Club for his Eagle Project) before aging out of Scouts (“Once you turn 18, you just become an adult,” he joked).
And he’s been a very active member of the Environmental Education Club, one of the largest student clubs at Upper Dublin High School. He served as Activities Chairman last year and is the club secretary this year.
“We try to promote green awareness around us and how we can live in a green environment,” said Schwabenland, who added that a major function of the club is trying to promote recycling in the school and at home. “I find that, just like in swimming, every little bit helps, and if we make a difference in our school, it can benefit our future.”
Another part of the club – one in which Schwabenland excels – is teaching school district sixth-graders at Robbins Park.
“We have a two-day science camp that he is out teaching the younger kids,” said Fantini, who also serves as director of the Robbins Park Environmental Education Center. “Those kids always look up to the high school kids who are teaching them.”
“It’s amazing, it’s really a breath of fresh air,” Schwabenland said of working with the youngsters. “Sixth graders look up to you, and you can help to create a positive environment for them. They respond amazingly during these trips. They understand what we’re trying to teach and they follow through.”
In the fall, Schwabenland will head to West Chester University, where he will major in physical therapy with future plans to return to the community to apply what he will learn. He was inspired by his junior year anatomy teacher, Heather Boyer, as well as by the desire to help those who need it.
“Miss Boyer was always so animated and passionate about her job and the subject matter that it really got me interested in the sciences, especially physical therapy,” he said. “And to be able to help people in the community would be awesome.”
While he may look into swimming on a club or rec team at West Chester, Schwabenland will not be suiting up for the Golden Rams. And that means that his days as a school swimmer are officially behind him.
It can be difficult to accept (though he jokes that the first post-season visit to McDonald’s helped make it a little easier), but he’s also excited to move on to the next stage in his life and a new set of challenges to tackle.
And fittingly, Schwabenland said he doesn’t mind if the returning Cardinal swimmers remember his work ethic or efforts at leadership. He just wants them to remember what made them district champions, so that even when he’s gone, they can continue to be successful.
“I really don’t care if they think about what I specifically did,” he said. “I want them to keep thinking about what the team accomplished – District One Champions for the boys and girls teams … that’s just awesome. I want them to think about how hard they worked and how well we got along so that they can keep it up for the future.”
