Westbrook High School’s two-time state champion swimmer Greg Violette worked hard to sharpen his backstroke, his butterfly, his freestyle, and he’s set to work still harder in the future. Violette is off to Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., in the fall, where he’ll hit the pool pretty hard, and the books, too – he’s eyeballing pre-med.

Like many outstanding athletes, Violette got his start relatively young, around 8. He took up swimming because his older brother Matthew, 26, and sister Kathryn, 22, were both swimmers growing up, which means he spent countless hours stuck in the stands beside his parents watching practices and meets.

“I got tired of sitting up there,” Violette says. “It was always so hot, humid and gross, so I decided to [get in the pool].”

Violette started swimming with the Westbrook Seals, a local club team. But his potential wasn’t glaringly apparent at first.

“I was a pretty chubby little kid. I was a rock when I started,” he says, chuckling. “I was not a fast swimmer.”

Not until his physique caught up with his determination did Violette start turning in impressive times.

“Right around freshman year is when I started growing into my body,” he says, “and started to be a little faster. Sophomore year was a little better, then junior year was great, and senior year was pretty awesome.”

During Violette’s junior year, his academic success, coupled with his time in the 100-meter Backstroke, earned him the title of Scholastic All-American – possibly his proudest moment.

“I set that as my goal,” he said. “It’s a 3.5 GPA or higher plus a Junior National bonus cut time.”

On the competitive swimming hierarchy, there are state meets, then, at the next level up, sectional meets, then Junior Nationals, then Senior Nationals (also known as Olympic Trials, every fourth year). A bonus cut time is a slightly slower pace than the one a swimmer needs to beat to qualify for an event, though it allows them to qualify for that event nonetheless – if they’ve also qualified for another event.

Violette’s senior swim season concluded in mid-February in highlight-reel fashion: He won state titles in both the 100 Butterfly (in 52.01 seconds, more than a second ahead of the second-place finisher) and the 100 Backstroke (in 52.10 – better than five seconds ahead of No. 2). The back is his favorite event, and his best.

“It’s bittersweet,” he says of ending his high school career with such success. “It’s great to know that I’m done with this chapter of my life; it’s good to finish it on a great note. But I’m moving on; I’m going to be competing at a Division I college. It’s exciting to see what the future will hold.”

On his journey from rock to rock-star, he’s received plenty of encouragement and instruction. With the Seals, his first coach was Lenora Felker; through middle school, his coaches were Felker’s brother, Jared, as well as John Smith. For the past four years, Violette’s also worked with Blazes head coach Dana Barrows.

“Lenora and Jared were major parts of me as a younger swimmer,” Violette says. “But throughout my whole swimming career, John has been my main coach. He and Coach Barrows have definitely had the two greatest impacts.”

“Greg has grown as a swimmer as well as a person over the four years he has represented Westbrook High School,” says Barrows. “When I first started coaching Greg, I recognized immediately his insatiable desire to compete. In all four years of swimming he has always wanted to match up with the best swimmers. This ‘won’t back down’ mentality has really fueled him as an athlete.

“You would never be able to tell that Greg now holds four records in the pool. Greg is extremely down to earth and has taken his success in stride. The greatest quality that Greg possesses is his character.

“He has shown a maturity beyond his years on many occasions. Last year at Class A States in Orono, Greg came up short in the 100 Backstroke. He was extremely gracious in defeat. He congratulated the other swimmer on his incredible swim.

“One of the officials at the meet sought me out at the time of the award ceremony and sang the praises of Greg and his sportsmanship. I have had many moments where I have been proud of the athletes I have coached and this one ranks near the top.”

So it’s a good thing Violette stuck with swimming, despite his early struggles. But perhaps there was never any chance he’d turn away. “I’ve always loved the sport,” he says simply.

And presumably his love for it has increased with time, since it’s a vent for him, and the number of cares in a person’s life tends to jump as they approach adulthood.

“It gives me an opportunity to release all that pent-up stress and anger, from everyday life,” he says.”

His brother and sister have both influenced him as well, in multiple ways. For one, “you never want to be slower than your siblings,” he says, laughing. But beyond that, Matthew and Kathryn have pushed their younger brother to excel.

“I never got to swim with [Matthew] as much,” Violette says, “since he’s eight years older. He was always an influence outside of the pool. But inside the pool, I’ve been able to train with my sister, and she’s always been a big part of my motivation.”

Marist, Violette’s next step, is home to roughly 6,000 undergrads. As mentioned, he’s considering a pre-med path there, with the intent of eventually becoming an internist.

And of course he’ll be competing in the pool.

“They’ll recruit any swimmer who has three (swimming event) times that would place top-16 at their conference meet. Their coach sent me a list; I qualified in exactly three events.

“They took me on a recruiting trip, and they offered me some money to go to the school. I ended up committing, as of late November. From there, I’ve gotten more [top times]. I think I would place top eight in two events, and top 16 in two or three other events. So I’m getting more money now. My dad’s happy,” he says, laughing still more.

“This year has been an incredible season for Greg,” says Barrows. “He toppled three additional records on Westbrook’s board (100 Fly, 100 Freestyle, 100 Back). He achieved this through his dedication, hard work, and perseverance. These characteristics and his great character will lead him to great things in and out of the pool.

“It has been my pleasure to coach an athlete and a person of his caliber.”

Westbrook’s Greg Violette swims the 100 Fly during a competition this season.From left, Colin Chamberlain, Greg Violette, Jake Perron and Timmer Sposato of the Westbrook Seals celebrate a narrow win over the Long Reach Swim Club in the 4×100 Relay at the Bowdoin Open in December. Violette and Perron (recently named Maine Swimmer of the Year) are particularly close: “Jake’s been one of my greatest motivators in the pool. We always push each other to work harder, and always have competitive races. He’s like a brother to me.”