Can bitter crosstown rivals co-exist peacefully while competing in the same sport? Yes, if you’re talking about swimming. When most people think of the Lowndes-Valdosta High rivalry, the Winnersville Classic comes to mind. It’s a no-holds barred gridiron slugfest that divides the community for one gloriously competitive week each year. Most days, weeks, and months, the rivalry is kept in check, simmering beneath the surface. During Winnersville week, however, it explodes as such contests do in South Georgia.
You might think that the same type of rivalry exists in other sports between the two schools. And you would be wrong. While Valdosta and Lowndes will battle each other tougher than they will other schools, there is one sport where the rivalry is more genteel.
Both schools have swim teams. Both teams sent swimmers to the state meet this year. If you were at the state meet, you might have even mistaken these swimmers for teammates rather than competitors. And it can all be traced back to the local YMCA.
Nearly all swimmers in Lowndes County begin with the Piranhas, the club team that operates out of the YMCA. It doesn’t matter what school system the kids attend, they are all on the same team. They become good friends over the years. Then, when they get to high school, they migrate to their respective schools. Some go to Lowndes, others go to Valdosta. Yet they remain good friends.
“Our coaches stand side by side on the deck,” Matthew Grant, Lowndes swimming coach, said. “We coach together at the Y. During club season, I may work with a kid who goes to Valdosta. And Jeff may do the same with a kid who goes to Lowndes. We’re side by side, and our athletes are side by side.”
Jeff Corely, the head coach of the Piranhas who also helps with the Valdosta High team, agrees. “Our swimming community here is small,” Corely said. “Our kids know each other well. They started here at the Y together.”
The swimmers cheer for each other, even when they’re competing against each other, all year long. At the state meet in early February, though, it was even more apparent. Both schools qualified swimmers for state. Valdosta sent its girls’ 200-yard freestyle relay to state – Cecilia Carroll, Sammy Kielma, Kennedy Johnson, and Madeline Posse. Posse also went to state in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle events while Cecilia Carroll qualified in the 100-yard breaststroke. For Lowndes, the 200-yard freestyle relay team of Cannon George, Ethan Walden, Kale Leisey, and Walker Johnson qualified. George also qualified for the 100-yard breaststroke and 100-yard freestyle. “When Valdosta’s 200-yard freestyle relay made the cut earlier in the year, three of my girls were the first to congratulate them,” Grant said.
At state, none of the Wildcats or the Vikings competed against each other. All of Valdosta’s qualifiers were girls; all of Lowndes’s were boys. Both sets of swimmers cheered for each other throughout the meet. And when Posse made the finals in one of her events, everyone was there supporting her.
Yes, they are competitors throughout the high school season. But at that moment, in that arena, they were all teammates. And everyone wanted to see each other succeed. “We don’t have to talk to the kids about being friendly with each other,” Corely said. “It comes naturally to them. They are courteous, and they have respect for each other. It’s a lot different than football, baseball, or basketball.”
“In swimming, your biggest rival is often your best friend,” Grant said. “You don’t want to lose to each other, and you compete fiercely in the pool. But you’re great friends away from the pool. Swimming is unique in that way.”
Special Feature/South Georgia/May 2016
Valdosta High, Lowndes High Swimming
Valdosta, Georgia
Robert Preston Jr.
Rivals United: Valdosta High, Lowndes High fierce competitors and friends
