Transferring to West Lafayette from what was going to be, Lafayette Central Catholic High School was probably one of the greatest things to happen to the West Lafayette Red Devils swim team. Charles Vaughan is one our list of top freshman to watch out for this season. Vaughan's dedication is one like no other at such a young age. He has a very rare drive that helps him be successful in the pool. “The driving force for me is that I love what I do as well as putting in the countless hours of work us swimmers are required to do. Its an adventure each season and I love striving for goals. Without a doubt though the reason I work so hard is because racing is amazing, especially with other outstanding athletes in Indiana. That's a tough question really, and I feel that certain people have that inner drive to be the best. When you are doing something you love you just do it, no real specific drive is needed." Along side senior standout, Brandon Colonis Charles Vaughan will help lead the Red Devils into Thursday evening's preliminaries, where they will go up against powerhouse Zionsville. Charles has a very clear idea of what exactly he needs to do to be ready to perform at the best to his abilities. "My preparation for sectionals is based on recovery for my mind and body. That is the most important thing for me. I am a swimmer who excels when rested so my goal is to get my sleep, eat good food, keep my body the least bit sore as possible (ice baths etc.), and most importantly keep racing in practice and have fun. I try not to stress over it either, and being with my amazing teammates helps me stay calm and keep working. "My goal for sectionals is pretty simple. Get my state cuts in the breast and IM as well as see what our relays can do at this point. I am looking forward to it." Brandon Colonis is one of the best in the state. But Brandon also has a very rare drive to be more successful. So successful it's got him to big meets like Junior Nationals. Practicing day in and day out with Colonis only motivates Vaughan even more. "Brandon Colonis is probably the greatest thing to happen to me this season. I need someone like him to push me in my weak areas and race hard in my strong areas. He has without a doubt in my mind helped me improve tremendously, and I would like to think I have helped him improve as well. It definitely isn't crazy to think that, on race days we push each other hard, sometimes I even get him." (ha sometimes, when I'm lucky) Vaughan added. It's clear that Colonis' and Vaughan's work ethic is one of the many reasons West Lafayette has become such a powerhouse team this season. "Its great to have Brandon, and to train with a guy that has a work ethic like himself is rare. I hope I absorbed some of it and keep it for future years." But things could have turned out completely different for the freshman if he had chosen a different path. "I transferred first off because of the great academics offered by the number 1 public school in the state (I am pretty sure of rank, if not very close). I also was lacking a pool at my old school, which as you can imagine for me was a big deal. I also had a very large group of friends at WL and most of my club teammates swam there as well. It was just the logical choice, and I don't feel I could have made a better one. Charles is ranked 10th in the state in the 100 breaststroke. He posted a blistering 59.31 mid season. He's the only freshman besides Chesterton's Gary Kostbade and to go under a minute this season. "I love the breast and I just went after it I guess. Then looked up and saw the time, I was pretty happy too. Decent mid season time for me." Decent mid-season time for me? Wow, is that all? Breaking a minute is usually the goal for most top level breaststrokers. What drives a freshman to come in and post such a time mid-season? "I wanted to see what I could do that day, and I was feeling pretty good so I put it all out there. I could not really give a specific reason, the race just came together I guess. 59.3 was decent for mid-season this year, but I expect to improve upon it soon and by a large margin." He has been a very successful breaststroker for years now, but the athlete is so well rounded, he has become one of the best IMers in the state in his age group. "The 200 IM is one that I have always loved as well as the 400 IM, they are pretty near and dear. They are both tons of fun and tons of pain. They are also, as Michael Phelps said, the true test of an all around athlete. I am a huge fan of the 100 breast SCY and just about anything long course (400m and under haha). Don't get me wrong though, I still love a few SCY events as well." Vaughan comes into tonight's sectional preliminaries with the second fastest times in two of his events behind senior teammate, Colonis. For someone so young, Charles has a clear understanding of this sport and everything it takes to be the best in it. Many people understand but unlike Vaughan, they aren't willing to put in the hard hours. "It takes dedication, a good set of priorities, support, a great coach, great training partners, love of the sport, and a love of just the purity of racing. It also takes the will to never give up and being able to handle failure. We have all had it, but the feeling of success far out weighs the stress and failure of it all ten fold." Vaughan has had lots of ups and down but never loses track of his goals. Many want greatness, but very few are willing to put the hard work in. He is one of those few you'll find putting in as many hours as needed to accomplish what needs to be accomplished. Makes you think, how does someone like Vaughan fall into this sport? "Actually that is kind of a funny story. My family and I were at Lake Freeman (25 min N of LAF). My parents were sleeping, and I being my curious self walked out of the cottage up by the water and almost fell in, but was saved by a neighbor. After that my parents got me started with swim lessons very soon, and I slowly moved up and up the ladder" | |
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February 2015
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