Little Tigers swimmer finds passion in pool
By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
Nicole Kratzer is something of a rarity in high school.
The Princeton High School junior has been a part of the girls swim team since she was a freshman. For her first two years, it was enough to only swim for the high school team, but this year she has joined a club team, Eastern Express.
”I really wanted to keep swimming and I enjoy swimming,” Kratzer said. “I thought about it for a while. In the spring, I had an injury to recover from so I couldn’t do it yet. I really like the team bonding and the team element that the high school team has. Club is more individual, but I knew it was a good option to swim all year-round.
”I joined Express in September. I really like it a lot. The team I’m on is a very good team. There’s a lot more of a team element than I thought there would be. And I’ve improved my swimming a lot.”
Kratzer has been a contributor since she was a freshman, and now she’s more prepared to contribute even more to the Little Tigers, who are 7-1 going into today’s meet against West Windsor-Plainsboro North.
”Nicole is going in an atypical direction,” said PHS head coach Greg Hand. “Not many kids join clubs as high school juniors. That’s what’s fun about it. If you start club swimming at that age, it’s because you love it.”
Kratzer didn’t start swimming competitively until she was 12, and even then it was in the summers only with the Community Park Bluefish. Her love of the sport grew when she joined the Little Tigers.
”The high school team helped me out a lot,” Kratzer said. “I was really hesitant when I started on the high school team. Everyone was really nice and it was like a family. That helped me realize how much I loved swimming. I made me want to swim more.”
The Little Tigers have benefited from Kratzer’s growth, as she’s become a dependable points winner. She has been an inspirational force for PHS while developing into a higher level performer. She won the 500 freestyle and shared in the winning 400 free relay in PHS’ 114-56 win over Steinert last Thursday.
”Now that she’s been training with Express, she’s got a real fitness base acquired through that outside-of-season training,” Hand said. “She’s a very hard worker and was always one of the solid workout swimmers, and always one of the more inspirational workout swimmers. She’s always positive on deck.
”We don’t have that piece from her on deck this year at practice, but we have someone who took another step to being a better swimmer and seems to be real happy about it and excited about it. She’s contributed in numerous meets for us getting points for us. She is now one of our go-to kids in the 500 and swimming relays for us and alternating between IM and fly.”
Kratzer has always been strong in the fly. Last year, she made the finals at the Mercer County Championships, and her individual medley has improved with more practice time with Express.
”I think I’ve worked on my technique a lot,” she said. “With the endurance I have now, I’ve improved a lot.”
Said Hand: “Her primary event has been butterfly. She made a lot of improvement in her first couple years and now she comes back fitter and with better technique. She’s stronger now in the other strokes than she used to be, so her IM is better. Just her basic training and level of fitness has made her a solid contributor in the 500 for us. She has more ways to contribute to us than before.”
That newfound endurance also has landed her in the 500 free, where she and Christie Samios go back and forth for top honors for the Little Tigers. PHS has returned from the winter break with a loss to unbeaten West Windsor-Plainsboro South and a win over Steinert.
”I think we’re actually doing really well,” Kratzer said. “It’s hard to have a break. I think a lot of our hard meets are now. We have to make sure we persevere through it and work hard and do our best. I think it’ll be a really exciting week for us.”
The Little Tigers have Notre Dame after WW-P North, then the following week complete the regular Colonial Valley Conference season. They will start to focus on building for the county and state meets.
”In the beginning, we had a lot of new swimmers,” Kratzer said. “People weren’t sure of themselves. They weren’t as confident. Since they warmed up and have been able to support each other more and give each other confidence, that’s helped a lot.
”I think we’re definitely going to be able to get into the state tournament. I think they changed the rules, but hopefully we get in. Hopefully we’ll be able to go far this year. If we stay positive and have a lot of confidence and team spirit, it’ll help in the close meets.”
The Little Tigers have plenty of solid pieces. Against Steinert, they had the winner in all but three events. Marisa Giglio won the 200 free and 100 breaststroke, Serena Deardorff won the 200 IM, Kratzer took the 500 and Samios captured the 100 back. Deardorff, Giglio, Belinda Liu and Meryl Stone won the 200 medley. Daniela Momo, Giglio. Abby Jones and Hannah Ash won the 200 free. Liu, Kratzer, Stone and Deardorff won the 400 free to close the meet.
”As the meets have been getting more competitive, we’ve been trying to swim faster to see where our power points will come from,” Hand said. We’ve had South and Robbinsville where we’re over 3,000. We’re optimistic about this coming week, perhaps doing even better.”
Hand has a team with plenty of mix. There is a good core of veterans like Kratzer along with several strong additions from younger swimmers. The swimmers have a multitude of backgrounds.
”It’s a great training environment and it’s produced some good results,” Hand said. “North will certainly be a challenge. They have a lot of depth and quality.”
The Little Tigers do as well, thanks in part to the rare swimmer like Nicole Kratzer, who has found a real passion for the sport after enjoying her experience in the PHS program.