Feb 2, 2024 By Eleanor Bailey 8 min read

Jeff Gavin

Bethel Park and Peters Township are making a comeback in swimming and first-year coaches Jeff Gavin and Alex Hardwick are the reasons why.

Gavin is the Bethel Park Aquatics Director. He is also head coach of the recreation as well as high school boys’ squads.

The Black Hawks were 6-2 overall heading into their showdown with Mt. Lebanon on Feb. 1. They have duals at Canon-McMillan on Feb. 8 and home with Trinity on Feb. 15 remaining on the section slate before the WPIAL Class AAA championship season commences with diving finals Feb. 23-24 and swim finals Feb. 29-March 1 at the University of Pittsburgh’s Trees Pool. The 2024 campaign concludes with the PIAA Championships set for March 13-16 at Bucknell University.

Hardwick is the Peters Township Aquatics Director. He is the full-time head coach of the recreation program as well as both the female and male varsity teams at the high school. Both squads sported 7-1 records heading into battle against Hardwick’s alma mater.

Peters Township hosted Upper St. Clair on Feb. 1. The Indians travel to Mt. Lebanon on Feb. 8 and wrap up section action at home on Feb. 15 against Canon-Mac.

“As a young athlete, swimming has provided me with many rich opportunities. It has been a blessing for me,” Hardwick said. “Coaching is my way of giving back now and still being part of a sport I love.”

As a competitive swimmer, Hardwick was successful at USC and Emory University.

At the scholastic level, Hardwick was a 13-time All-American, 12-time PIAA state medalist, 7-time WPIAL champion. He was a multiple pool, team and district record holder and competed on USC’s WPIAL team championship club in 2011. At the collegiate level, Hardwick was a five-time NCAA Division III champion and six-time NCAA All-American. Part of Emory’s first NCAA title team, he set several freestyle and relay records.

One of his first coaching positions was assisting Tom Donati when the current Mt. Lebanon High School skipper was coaching the Bower Hill Swim Club.

“We joke about it now,” Hardwick said, “but Tom said then that coaching is something you could do for the rest of your life. So far it has been awesome.”

Hardwick served as an assistant under David Schraven, who is the head coach at USC as well as the founding member of Pittsburgh Elite Aquatics (PEAQ). Started in 2015, PEAQ brought together the USA swim club teams from USC and Chartiers Valley. In addition to an indoor winter season, PEAQ trains outdoors during the summer at Scott Township Park.

After his stint at USC and with PEAQ, Harwick landed his full-time gig at Peters Township. During the summer months, he solidified his friendship with Gavin. Because neither the Indians nor Bethel Park have an outdoor facility, they trained together during the summer long-course season at the South Park Wave Pool.

Recently the two teams met in a dual meet. The BP boys beat PT, 98-85, and Hardwick watched as his pool record was taken down by the 15-year-old prodigy Jackson Edwards. Meanwhile, the Lady Indians topped the Hawks, 102-84.

“Two worlds colliding,” said Hardwick. “Gavin’s become a close friend of mine. Practicing together at the same place in the summer enabled us to become more familiar with each other. So, it was a really cool meet.”

At Bethel Park, Gavin expects to do exciting, yet extraordinary, things. He hopes to restore the Hawks to their historic perch where they had won a record 29 WPIAL titles, 20 of them consecutively, as well as eight state championships.

“I hope to continue to grow the program and move forward with positive progress each season,” Gavin said. “Bethel Park swimming has a very rich history and strong tradition of success. We continue to aspire to that standard of greatness and honor those that have made Bethel Park swimming their home for generations.”

Gavin was a generational swimmer. A “proud product” of Mars High School, he was a three-time state qualifier and a bronze medalist in the 500-yard freestyle. A four-year letter winner, he was elected team captain his senior season. At Indiana University of Pennsylvania, he earned all-conference laurels, set a school record and made an NCAA B-cut time in the 1,650 freestyle.

Gavin channeled his water skills into a coaching career that started at Seneca Valley. During his 12-year stint, he coached multiple record setters as well as numerous Junior National qualifiers. One of his Raiders qualified for the US Open.

Among his success stories are: Owen Blazer, who set a WPIAL meet record in the 100 backstroke, and Danny Simoes, who was a state champion in the 200 individual medley; and a PIAA winning boys 400 free relay.

Gavin’s girls’ teams finished in the top five during the last 10 WPIAL championships. The Seneca Valley boys were three-time district runners-up and WPIAL winners in 2021. Last year, the Raiders captured the PIAA team title.

While Edwards has been the record setter this season for the Hawks, Gavin is preparing several additional swimmers for a strong showing in the district and state championship meets.

Trent Powell has been dominating the freestyle races from the 50 through the 500. He also boasts versatility as he also excels in the 100 back as well as 200 IM.

Sam Hoppe is equally talented in a variety of events, including the 200 IM and 500 free.

Team captain Nathan Stutzman, Brady McKerinan and Luke Kallaur are also strong freestylers. Along with Edwards, Powell and Hoppe, they comprise the No. 2 ranked 200 and 400 relays in the WPIAL. To date, the medley ranks in the top five.

The BP girls, who are coached by Kathy Strock, are led by Cally Edner. She has met the qualifying standards in every event for the WPIAL championships. Last year, she finished in the top six and qualified for states in the 500 free.

Morgan McKernian also excels in the 500 free while Julia Ratti favors the 200 free. River Hendrych has qualified for the WPIAL diving championships.

“The girls are in a bit of a rebuilding phase and continue to gain momentum and grow as a team,” Gavin said. “They are really focused on becoming a strong supportive team.

“I take pride in them driving a community focused group,” he continued of the Lady Hawks, who are 3-5 overall. “They have made sure to plant themselves in the community by doing various service projects and participating in local fundraising events.”

Meanwhile, Hardwick has the Indians poised to challenge USC and Mt. Lebanon for the section title as well as a strong showing at the WPIAL championships. The Panthers and Blue Devils were undefeated in the division heading into February.

While the Lady Indians boast a strong freshman class, Lauren Opitz and Ava Komoroski own some of the top times in the WPIAL. A junior, Opitz is ranked among the top three in the 100 back and butterfly while Komoroski is tied for third in the 100 free and sixth in the 50 free. “We’re hoping they get medals and get to states,” Harwick said. The PT girls free relays are seeded among the top six and look to earn awards as well.

Hardwick expects Isaac Lee and Aiden Filer to qualify for the PIAA championships. Lee is ranked among the top 10 in the WPIAL with a season-best time of 22.10 in the 50 free while Filer placed eighth in the district last year.

“Our boys are young. Only four seniors on a roster of 33,” Hardwick said.

Hardwick also noted that the future is bright because Peters Township competed well in the South Hills Middle School League and the Lady Indians had a top eight showing in the WPIAL in the past.

Hardwick is also excited and thrilled for his future on and away from the pool deck. The 28-year-old skipper is engaged to Lauren Fetkovich from North Hills and the two will marry in July of 2025.

“I’m blessed,” Harwick said. “So much is going right and I am so appreciative for the people who have been part of me doing all this. There have been so many memorable coaches and mentors in this area to teach me and from whom I could learn.

“It’s awesome all these new young coaches, especially the ones on my staff and club,” he continued. “They keep me going. It’s fun and I get to do it here at Peters.

“My goals are to put my swimmers in positions to swim faster than other teams and be as competitive as they can be. I want them to swim the best that they can. It’s going to be fun to watch them grow and develop.”