Westmoreland County Senior Spotlight: Mt. Pleasant’s Maddie Barrick

By: Anthony DiFilippo
Monday, March 3, 2025 | 11:11 AM

The high school swimming season is coming to a close, and it has been another successful one for Mt. Pleasant.

On the girls side, Lily King and Kiersten O’Connor continue to lead the way alongside longtime coach Sandy Felice.

But they’re not alone. Maddie Barrick has been a key contributor, finishing 11th in the 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly at this year’s Westmoreland County Coaches Association meet.

“I was happy with how I swam,” Barrick said. “Obviously, I’m always looking to try and improve, but I’m really happy how I swam there and how I swam in the relays to and just overall how the team did.”

Barrick played an important role on last year’s 200 medley relay team that won WPIAL and PIAA championships.

“Honestly, it was so amazing to be able to swim with those girls and to win that relay,” Barrick said. “Just being able to be a part of that relay and be able to contribute to it was such an amazing feat, and I honestly loved it.”

In the midst of a championship season, Barrick has her sights set on more success.

“I’m just hoping that everyone’s able to perform their best, myself included,” Barrick said. “I’m hoping to drop the time, obviously, and to place well in the events that we’re swimming, especially the relays.”

The Vikings wrapped up the regular season with an impressive 11-1 record, finishing second in Section 2A-4.

“I am really proud of how our team did this season,” Barrick said. “Obviously, we wanted to try and be undefeated. I think it was a good season, and everyone did really well.”

Barrick is also a member of another successful program at Mt. Pleasant, the girls soccer team, which finished 15-2 overall before falling to Burrell in the WPIAL playoffs.

There are certain skills that she takes from the fall season to the pool in the winter.

“I would say discipline,” Barrick said. “Being able to go to your practices having a good mindset and just really giving your all in one sport really transfers to your other sport.”

Barrick plans to attend the Pitt-Johnstown to play soccer and to study engineering.

This week, Barrick took some time for a Senior Spotlight Q&A:

How did you get started with swimming?

I have been swimming my whole life. My parents, they put me in a swim program since I was, like, 3 years old so I could learn how, and then I remember going to swim meets to watch my older brother swim, and I just, I fell in love. That’s what I wanted to do.

What has it been like competing alongside such high-level athletes as Lily King and Kiersten O’Connor?

I would say that they are definitely very encouraging, and they’re always asking you to do your best. It’s a really good and positive environment at swim practice with them. They are always working hard and doing their best. That makes you want to work hard and do your best, but it’s pushing each other. You all have, like, the same goal in mind, and you’re just striving towards that.

What does coach Felice bring to the table?

I would say her knowledge. She’s been doing this for so long, she knows exactly what she’s doing. She creates all these workouts. She knows how many yards we need to swim and when we need to taper. She’s just picked up on a lot of things over her years of coaching that have helped us as a team. I put my complete faith in knowing that she knows what she’s doing and just follow her plan.

What’s it like being in a program where the boys and girls teams are both successful, and what makes Mt. Pleasant swimming so good?

I think just the consistency of being able to put out good swimmers over the years has been really good. Overall, the atmosphere of our team, I just feel like it’s a positive environment. It just makes everybody want to swim faster, and we just use that as our motivation.

What was your favorite high school soccer memory?

I’d probably say making it to states my sophomore year. That was just such an amazing time to be able to play at such a high level and do it with my best friends and teammates.

What is one thing that people may not know about you?

I guess one cool fact about me that a lot of people don’t know is that I was adopted. I was actually born in Russia, and my parents adopted me. I was a little over a year old.

Tags: Mt. Pleasant