SL's Kieft carries on family legacy

Thu, Nov 19, 2009    to del.icio.us

SPRING LAKE — A wonderful story could play out in the pool at Eastern Michigan University on Friday and Saturday, one involving Spring Lake senior Maria Kieft.

The talented 6-foot-1 swimmer, arguably the Lakers' most accomplished performer in school history, could go out in style at her last state finals, much like her father accomplished back in 1981 for Spring Lake.

"My dad (David) won state his senior year in the 50 free," Kieft said after a practice at the Spring Lake Aquatic Center on Wednesday. "Not that I'm feeling any pressure to match that."

Kieft will compete individually in the 100-yard backstroke and 50 freestyle at her fourth-and-final state finals, while also swimming legs in the 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays. She said her best event is the backstroke, where she enters with the fifth-fastest time in Division 3 at 1:01.67 seconds.

"I have no expectations," she admitted. "I just want to go out there, have fun and do my best. Last year, I was bound and determined to do better than I did, but the new suits, the Lasers, they really affected the results. Now, I'm just going in with an open mind and competing."

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Kieft didn't wear the Speedo LZR swim suit last year and still managed two all-state perfromances at the state finals — seventh-place finishes in both the 100 backstroke and 200 freestyle.

With her father's guidance as a Lakers' assistant coach, plus the daily motivation she said she receives from head coach Penny Zacek, Kieft has shattered nearly every individual school record at Spring Lake.

"All but the breaststroke, 100 (butterfly) and 500 (freestyle)," she said.

Much like Michael Phelps' is blessed with a 6-5 frame, Kieft's height plays a role with her success, but admits it can be challenging as well.

"There's a lot more to move off the (starting) blocks," she said.

She can thank her 6-8 father for passing down the height and swimming genes. David Kieft still owns every freestyle record in the Spring Lake boys program, and passed his knowledge of the sport to his daughters, Aria — who currently swims at Hope College — and Maria.

"It's nice having him (in practice) because he knows more about me than anyone. He's probably seen me swim millions of yards," Kieft said.

"She's lucky, because she comes from a family that understands the sport," Zacek said. "People don't realize how grueling it is and all the work that goes into it. But (Maria) does this year-round and she loves it."

Kieft said she started swimming at the age of four at the Tri-Cities YMCA swim leagues. More recently, she's added her talents to the Grand Rapids Rays swim club, an elite team made up of some of the best talent from West Michigan.

Owning so many school records is amazing, but "I don't see myself as such a fabulous swimmer after I spend so much time with the Rays," she said. "There's a lot of times when I'm blown away because the competition is amazing."

Kieft said she's also qualified for about 10 YMCA national meets, ranging in the short-course nationals in the spring in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to the longer events in the summer in Maryland. She's also won the 100 backstroke at three consecutive Great Lakes YMCA Zone Meets across the Midwest.

Kieft has added team success to her personal accomplishments this season, as the Lakers won the program's first-ever conference championship, clinching the Coastal Conference crown on Nov. 7 at their home pool.

"We knew it was going to happen," Kieft said. "Ever since we won our first invitational, the relay meet (at Ludington). When we did that, we realized nothing was going to stand in our way.

"It was really exciting," she added. "And it wasn't just me or Meg (Bouman) who contributed. The whole team put in points."

It was never a question on if the Lakers would win their conference, but by how big of a margin. Spring Lake topped runner-up Ludington by nearly 200 points.

"We have a lot of younger swimmers, freshmen and sophomores, who are just amazing," Kieft said. "Girls like Lydia (Gleason), who set two school records in the 100 breast."

Other individual qualifiers this weekend include Riley Thyfault in the 100 butterfly; Bouman in the 100 freestyle; and Gleason in the 100 breaststoke.

The Lakers' relay teams that will compete include the 200 medley (Kieft, Gleason, Lukkari and Bouman); the 200 freestyle (Kuester, Lukkari, Chelsea Rick and Bouman); and the 400 freestyle (Kieft, Bouman, Kuester and Rick).

Zacek has been proud of Kieft's senior leadership, noticing she encourages every swimmer on the team, whether they're competing for first-place, or a first-year swimmer learning their way.

"She's not just a fast swimmer," Zacek said. "She's proven to be a great leader; a great team captain."

Next season, Kieft will follow in her sister Aria's foot steps and join the Hope women's swim team, where she will carry on her family's swimming legacy.

"It really is in my blood," she said.