With longtime coach out of retirement, North Allegheny swim teams out to achieve more excellence

By: Chris Harlan
Sunday, February 6, 2022 | 11:01 AM

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Longtime North Allegheny swimming coach Corky Semler didn’t hesitate when athletic director Bob Bozzuto asked if he was interested in coming out of retirement this winter.

“I told him absolutely not,” said Semler, with a laugh. “I’m retired.”

But the swim program Semler helped build into a WPIAL powerhouse needed him again, so the veteran coach is back poolside at North Allegheny this season, doing what he did for 35 years before retiring in 2013.

“There’s a part of coaching that just doesn’t change,” Semler said. “Your interaction with the kids, working on technique, motivating kids to do what they don’t believe they can do. … But stepping back on the pool deck with a group of kids I really don’t know very well … you ask, what does this kid do again? So there’s a lot of unfamiliarity.”

Here’s another similarity to his first stint as coach: North Allegheny keeps winning. The Tigers boys and girls are both undefeated after eight meets.

Semler already had some knowledge of NA’s swimmers as a private coach in the area, and stayed connected to high school swimming as a TV analyst for PCN state championship broadcasts, but this winter was a learning experience for him and his two rosters of athletes.

“The hardest thing to realize was the different coaching styles,” said junior Lexi Sundgren, a team captain. “He’s disciplined, very disciplined, but very enthusiastic, too. Everything is done with passion, and everything is methodically thought out.”

As a team, the goals stayed the same.

Semler’s teams won 26 WPIAL titles and nine state championships in his years as coach. Following his retirement, the program was passed to coach Patrick Wenzel, who resigned this fall after eight successful seasons.

The NA girls are 13-time defending WPIAL team champions, a streak started under Semler in 2009. The boys team finished third in the WPIAL last season, ending a streak of nine consecutive titles, but Semler isn’t talking about championships.

“I told them, wanting to win titles doesn’t win you titles,” he said. “Wanting to achieve excellence and doing the very best they can and swimming at their fastest potential is what wins titles. Forget thinking about title talk.”

Both teams experienced strong starts this winter by winning their first eight meets. Semler said he wondered how the transition would work, knowing some would miss Wenzel. But over the past two seasons, one skill the team certainly learned was how to adapt.

“With the pandemic, I think we’re so accustomed to change at this point, so it was just another thing that we kind of had to get used to,” Sundgren said. “It wasn’t that massive of a thing to overcome because we’ve definitely been able to move forward and get better as a team.”

Sundgren is one of the team’s top swimmers and entered February with the WPIAL’s fastest times in the girls 200- and 500-yard freestyle races. A year ago, Sundgren finished second at the WPIAL championship in the 100 and 200 free, but this year she’s also swimming some longer races.

She gave up cross country to focus solely on swimming, extra time that let her improve her technique.

“I definitely have worked a lot on counting my strokes and keeping my strokes longer,” Sundgren said. “No matter how fast you move your arms, if you’re not pulling water, you’re not going anywhere.”

The girls also have the luxury of having the reigning WPIAL diving champion in junior Christina Shi.

Among the others NA swimmers on the WPIAL leaders list, sophomore Natalie Sens entered February ranked first in the 100 breaststroke, second in the 200 IM, sixth in the 100 fly and eighth in the 100 free.

Junior sprinter and water polo player Rebecca Melanson was ranked fifth in the 50-yard freestyle and ninth in the 100. Senior Isabella Dietz was fifth in the 200 IM and ninth in the 50 free. Sophomore Greta Mott was sixth in the backstroke and eighth in the 200 free.

On the boys side, NA’s top all-around swimmer is sophomore William Gao, who ranked fifth in both the 100 back and 100 fly.

The team’s top sprinter is junior Ben Gavran, a water polo player who ranked 12th in the 50 free and 10th in the 100. Junior Zachary Jubeck was sixth in the 200 free and 10th in the 100 fly.

As an incoming coach, Semler said it took time to learn everyone’s strengths.

“We’re still trying to sort out a few events for WPIALs, but that’s not uncommon,” he said. “We have talented kids. You try to find events that not only fit their physical and emotional profile, but you’re also looking to accumulate the most number of points you possibly can.”

North Allegheny’s roster lists him as the team’s interim coach. At this point, he’s not thinking about whether this one-year commitment might last longer.

“I guarantee you one thing,” he said. “I’ll be at practice tomorrow morning.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: North Allegheny