Above is the Jamestown Community College swimming & diving team. In the first row, from the left, are Elliot Johnson, Maksat Mametjumayev, Jackson Vanstrom, Colby Pantall, Matthew Fenneli and Ethan Johnson. In the back row are Alyssa Hanesworth, Tia Mappert, Jade Vidas, Megan Stang, Karianne Yuchnitz, Anna Burt and Lillian Baer. Submitted photo

After a three-year hiatus, the Jamestown Community College swimming & diving team will be back in the pool, and head coach Todd Conklin could not be more thrilled to spearhead its return.

“We’re excited to get this program back up and running,” Conklin said. “It will be different this season as we will be competing in a virtual meets during the regular season. The main goal is to beat the clock every time and find ourselves in the national meet.”

In the first season back in the pool, the Jayhawks will have two virtual meets against Genesee CC and two against Erie CC.

In the NJCAA Region 3 Championship meet, teams will be all competing together for the first time. With having other swimmers there to compete against, Conklin is excited for that opportunity to showcase his team.

“It will be exciting not just for us, but for the other teams competing,” said Conklin. “Swimming is a sport where your competition is going to drive you even further than just swimming against your teammates. We have set goals for the regional meet and will get as many athletes involved to move them to the national swim meet.”

From the regional meet, the Jayhawks will travel to Fort Pierce, FL for the 2021 NJCAA Swimming & Diving Championships hosted by Indian River State College.

The Jayhawks have made their swimming & diving roster out of primarily local talent, but have also added some internationals to the squad who will bring in their own unique set of skills.

With Conklin formally the head coach at Panama Central, he has a good relationship with three swimmers on the men’s team in Elliot Johnson (Panama /Panama), Ethan Johnson (Panama/Panama) and Colby Pantall (Jamestown, /Maple Grove).

“I am fortunate to have brought on Elliot, Ethan, and Colby here at JCC,” Conklin said. “The transition has been nice as they know my program and they know what is expected from them. Those guys have been able to help their teammates that are new to the program.”

Freshman Jackson Vanstrom (Jamestown/Southwestern), who is also on the cross country team, will look to contribute right away and has high expectations.

“Jackson is coming from Southwestern/Frewsburg where Bruce Johnson does a fantastic job running his program so with that familiarity, it should help Jackson out this season,” added Conklin.

To round out the men’s roster, they have brought in Matthew Fennell (Fourways Garden, Johannesburg, South Africa/King Edwards VII School) and Maksat Mametjumayev (Sayat, Lebap, Turkmenistan/Ashgabat #19). Conklin says that the transition to coming over to the states has been challenging at first, but the two are starting to come into their own.

“The training styles that Matthew and Maksat came to JCC with are a different than what they are used to,” Conklin said. “They are starting to come into their own and I expect high things from all of them.”

On the women’s team, they are built of a majority of local talent as well, which will benefit the team the same way as it does the men’s squad. To highlight the team, Conklin has brought in Karianne Yuchnitz (Panama/Panama), a swimmer he knows from his time coaching the high school team at Panama Central.

“Karianne is from the Panama team where she led the way in the area with a sixth-place finish in New York in the 50 freestyle,” Conklin said. “She will excel and I expect big things from her.”

He added: “I’m excited for our other local swimmers on this team,” said Conklin. “Our programs in this area are second to none. We have a lot of good teams in the area, and if you look at the top times across the state, a lot of them are coming from schools in Chautauqua and Cattaraugus (counties).”

Lillian Baer (Jamestown/Maple Grove), Anna Burt (Jamestown/Jamestown), Alyssa Hanesworth (Randolph/Randolph), Tia Mappert (Gowanda/Gowanda) and Megan Stang (Perrysburg/Gowanda) round out the women’s swimming & diving team roster of local athletes who will contribute right away.

Much like the men’s team, the women’s squad has added a swimmer from South Africa in Jade Vidas (Johnanesburg, Gauteng, South Africa/Parktown HS for Girls) who Conklin has been impressed with in preseason training.

“Jade has made the transition better than most to the collegiate level,” said Conklin. “She has a real competitive edge which will take her far.”

Conklin added “Again, I’m excited and thankful for the opportunity to get the JCC program back up and going. I believe this season, even with all the challenges, will show that our athletes in the area can compete with anyone, and with the addition of the international students, we can become champions moving forward.”

The Jayhawks open their season today as they face Genesee CC in a virtual meet starting at 5 p.m.