By Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

IOWA CITY – Mickale Sadecky picked up where he left off last season at the season-opening swim dual for City High last week.

Truthfully, Sadecky did more than just pick up from where he ended last season, the senior blew past his best times from a year ago in his first attempt in 2017.  

Sadecky posted the best times of his career in both the 50 and 100 freestyle in the 2017 season opener against Cedar Rapids Washington.

“Usually you are comparing times from this point a year ago but Mickale is actually ahead right now of where he ended last year,” City High coach Zane Hugo said. “He has put in a lot of work in the offseason and it’s been showing.”

Sadecky clocked a 23.7 in the 50 and a time of 54.62 in the 100 freestyle last year as a junior.

He needed just one time in the pool to better those career best times as a senior.

Sadecky won the 50 freestyle in 22.76 and claimed the 100 freestyle title in 51.04, impressive drops in time from his best performances of a season ago.

“I feel like I’m personally ahead of where I was last year and I think everyone on our team is,” Sadecky said. “I was really happy with those times and it was against great competition, Washington has always been a good team with strong swimmers.”

Sadecky edged Cedar Rapids Washington senior George Durin to win the title in the 50 freestyle in the opening dual.

Durin placed fifth in the 50 freestyle at the state meet last February in a time of 21.37.

“I was racing against him in the 50 and 100 and he is a really strong swimmer,” Sadecy said of Durin. “I’ve been racing against him for a long time now so it was nice to come out with a W.”

Sadecky credits his strong start to an offseason filled with training away from the swimming pool.

Th 6-foot-5 Sadecky spent his offseason working in the weight room trying to build strength and stamina and believes the added muscle is paying off already.

“I put in a lot of work in the offseason, a lot of weight lifting,” Sadecky said. “I wasn’t in the pool a lot in the offseason but I think I got stronger.”

Hugo says the offseason work has led to not only a faster swimming in the pool but a more confident Sadecky out of the water.

That combination has played a big role in the strong start for the senior.

“He’s been in the gym a lot, that is definitely a benefit for him,” Hugo said. “He’s a lot stronger and more athletic but he is a lot more mentally confident in himself and that has been important.”

Sadecky’s strong start was not a surprise to Hugo.

It wasn’t until late into his junior season that Sadecky found his niche as a sprinter.

Since he turned his attention to those short events at the end of last season the progress for Sadecky has come and times have dropped. “

Last year he didn’t quite have an event until the end of the season and then he just discovered it was the 50 free and this year he has a lot more focus out of the start and that been instrumental on him improving because he knows what he needs to do to get faster,” Hugo said. “Last year we just threw him in something to see what he’s good at and this year we already know that.”

Sadecky knows its early and strong times in November don’t translate into success at the state meet in February.

Still, the senior has high hopes for himself and his teammates.  

“We want to get as many guys to state as possible,” Sadecky said. “We have a whole lot of new fast guys, we have a lot of potential to get some relays and more individual events qualified for state.”

Hugo said he isn’t sure what the ceiling is for Sadecky this season but has been impressed with how he has approached his senior season.

“He’s been doing a really good job out of the pool, he’s been getting his recovery, his nutrition, showing up to weights every morning,” Hugo said. “He’s taking care of the stuff he can and I hope he is shooting for the podium at state.”