Zimcosky preparing to defend WPIAL titles
Emily Zimcosky’s to-do list for last Tuesday’s East Allegheny-Connellsville non-section swimming meet at Connellsville was pretty simple: A, hit WPIAL qualifying time in 50 freestyle; B, hit WPIAL qualifying time in 100 freestyle.
Check. Check.
The Geibel Catholic junior needed just over 89 seconds in the pool to accomplish what she set out to do in what was her first competitive meet of the season.
“It’s my first meet of the season, but I look at the big picture,” explained Zimcosky. “At practice, I race like I’m at a meet.”
Zimcosky, along with freshman Lena Galilei, are Geibel’s lone swimmers this season. Zimcosky’s older brother John Paul graduated and is now a freshman swimming at Fairmont State in West Virginia.
Zimcosky seeks to successfully defend her WPIAL Class AA titles in the 50- and 100-yard freestyles.
Zimcosky not only won gold last year, but did so in record-breaking times. She finished the 50 freestyle in 23.13 seconds, just slipping under Jordan Wallace’s time of 23.56 seconds set in 2000 and won the 100 freestyle in 50.75 seconds, nearly a second faster than Kristen Olson’s time of 51.66 set way back in 1997.
Zimcosky finished second in both events in the PIAA Championships and both times to Mifflinburg senior Adrianna Grabski. Her times in the 100 freestyle (50.52) and 50 freestyle (23.21) landed her on the National Federation Honor Roll.
She also won the WPIAL Class AA 100 freestyle (51.85) as a freshman and finished second in the 200 freestyle (1.51.69). Zimcosky was fourth in the PIAA 100 freestyle (52.06) and ninth in the 200 freestyle (1:52.94).
Zimcosky understands she won’t be slipping under the radar as defending champion, but is not intimated by the position.
“The WPIAL (final) is my favorite meet to swim at. I feel so comfortable on the deck (at the University of Pittsburgh’s Trees Pool),” said Zimcosky. “There’s a lot of good competition. I walk around with confidence. I belong at this meet.”
Although she has already qualified, Zimcosky said she will return to the pool again sometime in the near future for more competitive swims.
“I will swim in another meet to get better qualifying times. I want faster qualifying times to get in the fast heat,” said Zimcosky.
The junior also has her sights set on a bigger meet in the future. The 2016 Olympic Trials are scheduled soon after her graduation from Geibel. Uniontown graduate Kaitlyn Johnson has already qualified for the 50-meter freestyle.
“I’m working to get my Olympic trials cut,” said Zimcosky.
The qualifying time for the 50-meter freestyle is 26.19 seconds, while the 100-meter freestyle is 56.49 seconds.
Zimcosky is used to swimming without teammates, but admitted she misses the experience.
“It has it’s ups and downs, flaws and perks,” said Zimcosky. “I’m very much an introvert, but it would definitely be really cool to have a team and share in others’ success. It’s a great thing.”
Zimcosky won’t be alone on the deck at Trees Pool because Galilei has already qualified in the 100 butterfly and is close in the 100 backstroke. Galilei hails from Monongahela and gets her qualifying swims at Serra Catholic and South Allegheny.
“I want to make it to states and go really far with swimming,” Galilei said of her goals. “It’s tough being a team of one because you can’t rely on anyone else.”
As for adding another event to her WPIAL final schedule, Galilei said, “I’m getting stressed. I don’t want to go to (the WPIAL finals) in just one thing. I’m one second off in the backstroke and two seconds in the 100 freestyle.”
All that swimming has begun to take a toll on the young swimmer, though.
“I have severe shoulder problems,” said Galilei, especially bothering her in her favored strokes, the freestyle and butterfly. “I try to swim through it.”