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The Class of 2014: No. 16-20 Men's Recruiting Rankings

As July 1 has descended upon us, college coaches all across the nation are on their phones, communicating with the high school class of 2015 in hopes they can persuade them to be a part of their programs in the near future.

At collegeswimming.com, we have ranked the top 25 best recruiting classes from this past year by using the borda-count method. Who says you don't use math in everyday life? The way we did it is simple. We took the top 250 recruits on our database and matched them with their school. If you are in the top 50, you are considered a five star recruit. If you are ranked 51-100, you are a four star recruit, etc. We then determined who had the better class by taking the number of guys in each column and multiplying the sum by their star. (for example, if a school had two x five star recruits, then it would be simply two times five.) This was done in hopes of creating an accurate ranking system.

Now, these rankings really don't mean anything, because anything can happen to these athletes over the next four years. It doesn't matter how good you were in high school, you have to prove yourself in college. Athletes can get homesick, get injured, party too much, or may have already maxed out their potential in high school. Ultimately, these rankings don't mean anything. The athletes need to prove it themselves. But for now, enjoy this list, and look out for these guys and gals in the future.

 

16.    Wisconsin        14

*****Maxwell Dolan- Southbury, Connecticut

****Nathan Mueller- Highlands Ranch, Colorado

***Ryan Stack- Kailua, Hawaii

**Todd McCarthy- Bellevue, Washington

Ever since Whitney Hite got hired at Wisconsin, his team has been on the upswing. They will only be losing a single senior from their seventh place Big Ten team and will be looking to improve on that finish with this new class coming in. Maxwell Dolan is ranked in the top 50 and is a nationally-ranked IMer. (With a last name like Dolan, how can you not be a good IMer?) Nathan Mueller is a middle-distance freestyler from Colorado who will be training alongside Nicholas Caldwell in Madison. (Caldwell was one of the two non-Michigan swimmers in the 500 free top eight at Big Tens.) Ryan Stack is one of the best swimmers to come out of Hawaii. He holds the state records in the 50 and 100 free. Todd McCarthy is another mid-distance freestyler who also excels in backstroke. Hite is slowly bringing the Badgers to the top half of the Big Ten and into national prominence. With this class, he could continue to do so.

 

17.    North Carolina    13

****Michael McBryan- Doylestown, Pennsylvania

**Benjamin Creekmore- Wilmington, Delaware

**Henry Campbell- Manassas, Virginia

**Philip Perdue- Greenville, North Carolina

**Corey John- Pasadena, California

*Luke Lechner- Asheville, North Carolina

The Tar Heels are losing three scorers from their third place ACC team but are gaining a valuable class. Michael McBryan comes from the Central Bucks Swim Team in Pennsylvania and is an accomplished breaststroker. Benjamin Creekmore is a 100 and 200 freestyler who also swims the 200 butterfly. Rich DeSelm has been known for producing great 200 butterflyers in the past and Creekmore could be next in line for them. Henry Campbell swam for the QDD Swim Club. Campbell is a good distance freestyler and 400 IMer. Philip Perdue is the younger brother of former Virginia swimmer and U.S. Olympian Lauren Perdue. Like his sister, Perdue is a good sprint freestyler also capable of swimming the 200 free. Unlike his sister however, Perdue is also a pretty good breaststroker. Corey John comes from Rose Bowl Aquatics in Pasadena. He is another sprinter that will add relay depth for the Tar Heels. He also has a fast 200 free and 200 IM. Luke Lechner is an in-state product from Asheville. He swims a variety of events including the 400 IM, 500 free, and 200 fly. His versatility will only help the Tar Heels next season. With more speed in Louisville added to the ACC this coming season, the coaches are beginning to step up in recruiting, and the Heels are hoping that this class will help them win an ACC championship in the next few years. 

 

18.    Notre Dame        12

*****Justin Plaschka- Smithtown, New York

***Rob Whitacre- Oceanport, New Jersey

**Joseph Krause- Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

*Gabriel Ostler- Orinda, California

*Richard Mannix- Larchmont, New York

The Fighting Irish had a good first year in the ACC. They won three individual events on the back of Frank Dyer and Zach Stephens. Dyer is graduating along with two other scorers from their sixth place finish. Justin Plaschka is the top-ranked recruit out of the state of New York and is a sprinter who could score big points in the ACC. Robert Whitacre is a backstroker from New Jersey who has a decent 200 free as well. He will fill the whole as the Irish backstroker on the medley relays as the Irish have been lacking in that part of the relay. Joseph Krause is another sprinter capable of scoring in a number of other events. Gabriel Ostler is another sprinter from Orinda Aquatics in California. He also has a good 100 back and 200 free. Richard Mannix is a distance swimmer from Badger Swim Club in New York. He is capable of making some noise in the ACC as well as the Notre Dame record books. With Tim Welsh out the door, the Fighting Irish will start a new era in South Bend and this recruiting class has some potential for them in their new home in the ACC.

 

19.    Columbia        12

*****Jae Park- Wilmette, Illinois

**Joe Shepley- Southbury, Connecticut

**Michal Zyla- Walnut Creek, California

**Kevin Frifeldt- Mililani, Hawaii

*Joseph Lozano- Garden City, New York

The Lions recently had two swimmers qualify for NCAA's and both of them are returning. They will also be aided by Jae Park from NASA Swimming in northern Illinois. Park is an all-around swimmer capable of scoring in any event at the Ivy League Championships. Joe Shepley is a sprinter who is also capable of scoring in numerous events. Michael Zyla will come to New York from the Terrapins Swim Team in California. He is a butterfly and backstroke swimmer who also can swim the 200 free. Kevin Frifeldt hails all the way from the island of Oahu in Hawaii. He swam for the Kamehameha swim club and specialized in the sprint events. Joseph Lozano comes from Long Island where he was a breaststroker and IMer. The guys in this class are all well-rounded and will provide depth for relays at the Ivy League. With this class, the Lions will be looking to improve on their fifth place finish in the Ivy League.

 

20.    Virginia Tech        11

*****Harrison Pierce- Virginia Beach, Virginia

**Justin Edwards- Rockville, Virginia

**Eric Delmonte- Portland, Maine

**Grayson Smith- Vienna, Virginia

Ned Skinner and the Hokies celebrated their first-ever Atlantic Coast Conference Championship this past season. With only two scorers graduating from their ACC team (one diver and one swimmer), the Hokies' 20th ranked recruiting class will be looking to make it two straight in 2015. Harrison Pierce is a top 50 recruit from in-state. Pierce is a sprinter who also swims backstroke and butterfly. He will add relay depth for the Hokies to close in on the sprint dominance by NC State in the ACC. Justin Edwards is another in-state recruit from NOVA Swimming. Edwards is a breaststroker and IMer capable of scoring in the ACC. Although a better long course swimmer, he will be looking to turn some heads next season in short course. Eric Delmonte is the top-ranked swimmer out of the state of Maine. He is capable of scoring in the breaststroke events. Grayson Smith hails from Machine Aquatics in Virginia. He is a sprinter who also swims the 100 breast. The Hokies only won one event at this year's ACC's (500 free), but used their tremendous depth in the stroke events and diving to capture the ACC crown. With more breaststrokers added to the group as well as most of their team returning, the Hokies should be early favorites to win the 2015 ACC's.

 

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