Swimming program welcomes a familiar coach

The Columbia Falls varsity swim team welcomes a familiar coach to the helm of the squad. Kyle Babcock, an ‘01 Columbia Falls graduate and standout wrestler back in his day has been coaching the summer swim league for the past four years.

When the high school job opened up, his swimmers urged him to take the helm of the program.

It only made sense.

“A lot of my kids I coach in the summer are moving up in the high school,” he said. “It made sense to merge the two concepts. I kind of got dragged into it, in a good kind of dragging.”

Babcock wrestled when he was in high school. The school didn’t have a swim team back then. He still holds the school record for reversals in a season and he swam in the summer league for the Wildcats.

He comes from an athletic family, his cousin Jacob was a standout football player and is now an assistant coach with the Wildcats, while his cousin Colton was a Columbia Falls Hall of Fame swimmer for the Wildcats.

As an adult, Babcock did three half triathlons and one full triathlon, a grueling event if there ever was one. He said his coaching philosophy is to have well-rounded athletes and they use Google classroom.

“We do as much education as we do swimming,” he said.

For example, several businesses recently gave funds so the team could purchase new warmups. But Babcock directed his juniors and seniors to make the contacts and seal the proverbial deal.

The business support came from Stockman Bank, South Mountain Gutters, Ascent Mortgage Partners and Short’s Travel Management.

The team has a host of talent, with 15 swimmers and more coming up through the ranks next year, including Babcock’s son, Quinton, who is an excellent swimmer in the eighth grade.

From this team, look for good things from Cat Opalka, Kensley Cheff, Jackson Schubert and Teagan Bates to name a few.

Opalka won the 100 breaststroke and was second in the 100 butterfly at state last season. Schubert was Babcock’s assistant coach this season in the summer league.