Junior Xavier Mattox makes every lap count, while his credits mount. Mattox is not just a swimmer, and he's not just a student. He’s a student athlete. Balancing school with any sport is difficult, but for Mattox, school and swimming come naturally. His secret to get good grades while being committed to swimming?
“Just get your work done in class,” Mattox said.
He has been swimming for 10 years. He started swimming as a hobby and later developed into swimming for Warren.
Being influenced by family and friends, Mattox has gotten better and more confident in the sport over the years, starting from when he was just learning to swim, to now being cheered on as he competitively swims.
Alongside being confident in the pool, Mattox has also gained confidence in the classroom. He is taking Dual Credit ACP U.S. History, Dual Credit Literature and Physics. These are among the more challenging classes offered at Warren.
Mattox occasionally also helps out at Warren’s middle school swimming practices, helping motivate and give advice to the younger swimmers.
“He encourages me and is funny,” middle school swimmer Colton Kerr said. “He mostly jokes around and tells us not to take as long of breaks between 50s.”
Mattox doesn't just motivate the middle school team. He also encourages his own teammates. Teammate Jeff Bray appreciates the motivation and believes it is great for the team.
“Xavier is a good guy and a good teammate,” Bray said. “He motivates the new swimmers to help them get through a meet.”
In the same way that he motivates his teammates, Mattox is cheered on by fellow teammates too. The team wants to see Mattox swim his best and show off his talent.
“I think personally the entire boy's team motivates him to keep pushing,” Landon Bryk said. “When we all play games with each other, and just have good talks, I think he gets motivated off of those things.”
With sectionals coming up, Mattox hopes to place well, and he also hopes that MIC rival North Central loses. Arguably more importantly, Mattox looks forward to the remainder of his senior swim season.
Mattox has a lot of goals for his senior season, including breaking 50 seconds in the freestyle and going to state.
“It means that I made it and it would give me a sense of accomplishment because not very many swimmers from our school can make it,” he said.
With all of these athletic goals, Mattox is still committed to getting good grades and pushing himself to be the best student athlete possible.
“It’s not that hard if you pay attention and get to the pool on time, [after practice] I can work on school work,” Mattox said.