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Canfield ready to bring the ‘thunder’
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Bogen
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Brady
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
It’s the day before the last swim meet of his high school career and, after delivering quotes about doing his best and making a lasting impression, Canfield senior Daniel Bogen was asked about his swimsuit.
“It’s a hot pink zebra drag suit,” he said, matter-of-factly. “It’s been with me since I was 14 years old.”
“Pink Thunder,” junior Connor Brady added.
“Yeah, Pink Thunder,” Bogen said. “That’s the suit’s nickname. When I was little, my coach for Penguin Swimming, our USA Swim team, used to tease me about all the funky suits I came in. Originally, it was going to be a leopard pink Speedo but I ended up with this one.”
Do you get teased?
“Nah,” he said. “Everyone likes it.”
“We all wear funny stuff,” Brady said.
Brady, incidentally, has a mohawk. And not a good one. It looks like it hasn’t been cut in weeks, a tell-tale sign that he doesn’t have a girlfriend to give him grief about it.
“He’s single,” Bogen said of Brady, “and ready to mingle.”
Today and (hopefully) Friday, those two will compete in the biggest meet of their season, the Division II state meet at Canton’s C.T. Branin Natatorium.
Bogen (seeded sixth in the 50-yard freestyle, seventh in the 100 free) and Brady (sixth in the 100 fly, seventh in the 100 back) are both in line to make the medal stand for the first time as individuals, provided they finish in the top eight at tonight’s preliminaries.
They’ll also join seniors Michael DiDomenico and Drew Bennett on the third-fastest 200 free relay in the state and the ninth-fastest 400 free relay.
But if they’re nervous, it’s clearly not showing.
“We put so much work in that at the end of the season, the hard work takes over,” Bogen said. “I don’t want to say it’s not on us because it is, but we’ve been doing all the right things during the season to be swimming fast, so it’s not really something that we should be worried about.
“I’m just excited to get out there and swim some fast times.”
Brady and Bogen both advanced to the state meet in two individual events in both 2012 and 2013 but neither swimmer has ever finished in the top eight in an individual event. Both were on last year’s state runner-up 200 free relay and the fourth-place 400 free relay, as well as the ninth-place 200 free relay and the seventh-place 400 free relay in 2012.
Last year’s relays lost seniors Nicholas Montalto and Mike Cardone, but that’s nothing new. The Cardinals have advanced at least one relay to the state meet every year since 2006, so they know how to reload.
“We’re always worried about next year, which freshmen are coming up and if they’re fast, but coach [Andrea Linnelli] always says, ‘Canfield has a way of feeding itself,’” Brady said. “I’m glad to be a part of that. The Canfield legacy, I guess is the best way to put it.”
Of the four, Brady is the only one who will carry on that legacy next year.
“It sucks for me,” he said. “I’ve been swimming with these guys forever. I’m definitely going to be sad.”
Bogen, who is headed to Westminster (along with “Pink Thunder”), wasn’t quite as bummed.
“This is my favorite part of the season,” he said. “I’m more excited than sad. I think the fact that it’s my last one makes it a lot more special.”