By Ashley Pavlakis
The West Islip varsity boys swim team has hit the water for the 2024-25 season. The Lions are members of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) and compete in League II.
The Lions are led by head coach Thomas ‘Mac’ Loudon, who has been coaching at West Islip for a few years. Poolside, Loudon is joined by assistant coach Ed Jablonski. The staff helped the squad to League championships in 2022 and 2024.
The 2022 league title capped off an undefeated season for the varsity squad who earned it for the first time since 2007. Since the 2020-21 season, West Islip has been swimming with the current and not against it. In 2024, the Lions would go undefeated once again to reclaim the league championship.
The team got off to a slow start at the beginning of the season, having lost twice in a row to start. Since then, the Lions have won six straight by fairly decisive margins. It’s not about how you start, rather it’s about how you finish.
The roster, featuring thirty-three swimmers, is largely made up of underclassmen. The Lions have four seniors leading the pack this season: Aidan Stueber, Peter Stoursos, Brendan O’Regan, and Matthew Corbett. The Lions are leading League II with a 6-2 record so far.
The Lions are picking up wins where it matters, having beat six teams from League II, the conference in which they compete. Their only two losses this season came against League I members in Northport/Commack and Connetquot/East Islip. Not too shabby for the boys in blue and gold.
Sophomore Colin Stueber is leading the way this season with 590.35 points. Stueber is also a member of the Three Village Swim Club and has participated in various meets and invitationals this season, setting personal bests in a majority of his races. Stueber has been competitively swimming since he was eight years old.
Billy DeWitt, a junior, has been making a splash of his own in the pool this season. He was named to Newsday’s top twenty-five swimmers earlier this season.
Colin Stueber and Billy DeWitt both qualified for States this season. Steuber qualified in January in the 100m breast, 400m freestyle, and 200m freestyle races. Dewitt earned his spot in December, having qualified for the 100m backstroke, 100m fly, and 50m freestyle. On top of those qualifications, Braden Felix, Brendan Oregan, Colin Steuber, and Billy DeWitt broke the school records for the 200m free and the 200m medley relay races.
In January of 2024, West Islip Union Free School District had their pool expansion proposal project approved. The project will see quality renovations to the indoor pool facility. The pool will expand to six lanes instead of five, and it will undergo mechanical, electrical, and plumbing enhancements to ensure the pool meets the required guidelines.
Although lions aren’t known to be great swimmers, the West Islip Lions varsity boys swim team has proven themselves to be quite the opposite. In a matter of sink or swim, the boys chose to swim and it’s paying off.
