Lynbrook debuts new boys’ swim team

The newly formed South Side-Lynbrook Boys Varsity Swim Team won their first meet against Bethpage High School on Dec. 7.

The team, commonly referred to as the SouthBrook swim team, is made up of nine athletes from Lynbrook and 13 from Rockville Centre. The team was approved last May as part of Lynbrook’s 2015-16 school budget. Lynbrook athletes were added to South Side High School’s existing swim program, and the schools will split the costs.

“It’s been beneficial for both schools,” said Tom Graham, director of athletics for the Lynbrook School District. “It made perfect sense that we marry the two programs.”

Julie Bergin participated in discussions with other parents for a couple of years to lobby for a boys’ swim team, on behalf of her son Kyle.

Jim Hunter, a St. Raymond’s Church Youth Organization head coach and parent, led the meetings and helped organize a petition that was later presented to Graham and the Lynbrook board of education.

“The male swimmers can now have an opportunity to represent their school district in a sport that they love,” Bergin said.  “They can experience the camaraderie that comes with being a part of a team.” 

Jason Melecio, who coaches the Lynbrook portion of the team, hopes to qualify for the division championship toward the end of the season.

“The kids have come in with a lot of skills and a lot of raw talent and it’s been great to see them drop time already in the last two weeks,” he said.

The SouthBrook team currently practices at the Aquatic Center at Eisenhower Park.

Lynbrook has had a girls’ swim team for years, Graham said, since their swim season takes place in the fall and the team is able to use the outdoor heated pool at Greis Park. Because the boys’ swim season runs in the winter, it makes finding a place to practice and compete a lot more difficult. In fact, the brunt of the shared swim team’s $13,000 budget goes to renting pool space and providing transportation.

Competition for pools is not only between school districts, he explained, but also among many other swim clubs and organizations.

“There are not many facilities that have a pool,” Graham said.

All but one swimmer on the team had previously swam with Saint Raymond’s CYO, which until the SouthBrook swim team was approved, was one of very few local options for young male swimmers.

Kyle Bergin, a sophomore at LHS, has been swimming since he was five. In the past he’s swam with Lynbrook summer leagues, the Echo Park Pirates, St. Raymond’s, and currently swims with Long Beach Aquatics.

“When I first heard Lynbrook was getting a swim team I was excited because I know that our school has some good swimmers,” Kyle Bergin said. “Merging with South Side has been beneficial because we have an established team to work with — we hope to have a great season.”