From his role as one of the two drum majors for the Trojan Guard to freestyle swimmer, Andrew Kazmierczak performing well for Chesterton

Tom Keegan
Onwardtrojans.com

It will take a strong show of depth for the Chesterton boys swim and dive team to win its dual meet at Lake Central tonight.
“This will give us a good idea of how they swim and what we’re up against at the DAC,” junior Andrew Kazmierczak said.
The Trojans already have faced the other two top-tier DAC teams, losing to Crown Point and defeating Valparaiso.
“I’m feeling prepared for it,” Kazmierczak said of tonight’s challenge. “There are nerves there obviously, but I feel prepared for it.”
Butterflies come with the territory in racing and Kazmierczak thinks he channels them in a way that helps him to perform better. And he knows nerves.
After what he called a “nerve-racking” tryout, Kazmierczak was selected to join Madelyn Street as drum majors for the Trojan Guard, the high school’s marching band.
“It was a process. We had to do four different videos of us conducting in different time signatures and then we had to do a live performance and answer some questions in front of everybody and then we had to fill out an application and answer questions and circle things,” Kazmierczak said. “It was a process. It was definitely nerve-racking. Being in front of everyone, my hands were shaking. I conducted, but they were shaking as I was going.”
Shaky hands and all he was selected for the honor and was able to apply the conducting lessons learned at a summer camp.
With the honor of being the student leaders of the band comes the responsibility.
“The drum majors are there to set the example and to make sure that we’re there to help if someone needs help,” he said. “If someone doesn’t know something or doesn’t know where they’re at, we have to help them and that’s where preparation goes into it. There is a lot of organization that goes into it in a sense because next to the directors you’re in charge of the whole band. Obviously, they are in charge of everything.”
The discipline, work ethic and leadership traits that led to him being selected for the drum major honor translate to a sport that requires steady, intense preparation. But the butterflies he encounters swimming are different from those he experienced during his drum major tryout, when his face wasn’t hidden by water.
“Comparing those two, my nerves with swimming, it’s more of an adrenaline rush, getting me going,” he said. “The nerves as the drum major were genuine nerves, getting in my head. What if I do this wrong? What if I do that wrong? What if they see me as this? What if I say that wrong? So the nerves as drum major were very don’t do anything wrong and the nerves with swimming are more of an adrenaline rush to get me going. Of course, I’m still nervous about how I perform in swimming, but it gets me going.”
It got him going quite well at last week’s dual meet vs. LaPorte, the final home meet of the season. Kazmierczak won the 200-yard freestyle, which he considers to be his best event, with close to a lifetime best time of 1:53.86. His best time came at the sectional last season when he placed sixth with a 1:53.44. Unlike then, Kazmierczak wasn’t wearing a tech suit vs. LaPorte.
Depending on how the coaches use their talent tonight, Kazmierczak could be competing in a tough field if he swims the 200. Teammate Greydon Pieroni and LC’s Jacob Miczek and Ben Billingsley all have sub-1:50 times.
The CHS boys return to the LC pool on Jan. 31 for the DAC meet.
Kazmierczak was 13th last season at the DAC meet and said he is aiming to “drop time and place in the top eight,” this year, which is his secondary goal for that meet.
“I think we have a chance to win it,” he said of the conference meet.