SHORELINE — Grant Heisey is close to a 4.0 student with enough leadership and character qualities that he hopes to gain admittance to the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. He also enjoys mountain biking and skiing in his spare time, he has taken classes in the Japanese language, and he recently received his Eagle Scout award, the highest rank in Boy Scouting.
Impressive as all that is, there is more. During the school week Heisey rises at 4:15 a.m., and by 4:45 he is at the swimming pool for a 90-minute workout with his club team. After school he is back in the water for practice with the rest of the Shorecrest High School team.
In all, he usually spends between 15 and 20 hours a week in training.
Such is the price of excellence, but it is paying off for Heisey, who is one of the elite high school swimmers in the state. As the end of the season approaches, the Shorecrest senior is hoping to cap his high school career with a pair of Class 2A state titles, most likely in the 200- and 500-yard freestyles. He placed second in both events a year ago.
Shorecrest coach Scott Kelley said the decision about Heisey’s individual events at state is still undetermined. “As a team, we’re looking to place as high as possible, so we’ll look at what’s best for our team as far as points and relays,” he explained. “But I definitely try to respect an individual’s goals and wishes that we set at the first of the year, and the 500 was a goal of his.
Added Kelley: “I’d be surprised if he had anything less than first in the 500, if we go that route. … In my opinion, he might be the most elite swimmer coming into the (Class 2A state) meet. I’ve coached some pretty fast swimmers (over the years), including some kids who’ve gone on to swim in college, and he’s definitely in that category.
“Probably what stands out is his amazing ability in practice to push himself farther than most kids can. … He’s definitely an elite swimmer.”
Heisey took up swimming when he was 5, and his love for the sport led him eventually to give up basketball and tee-ball. His best events are the mid-distance freestyles and the butterfly, and he is also good in the backstroke and individual medley. The breaststroke, he admitted with a smile, “is definitely my worst.”
At state he likely would be the favorite in both the 200 and 500 freestyles, but he is also aiming for All-American consideration times, particularly in the latter where he is about two seconds shy of the goal. The good news, his times should improve as he tapers his training in the season’s final weeks.
Given the many hours he spends at the pool and the exertion of his training, Heisey admits there is sometimes a mental and physical toll.
“I know people that stopped club swimming their sophomore or junior years of high school and they are absolutely glad they did,” he said. “And there are also times when I’ll have a couple of bad practices in a row or maybe there’s a week when I just don’t feel good, and then I’ll wonder if it’s really worth it. But overall I’m glad that I’m doing it.”
Heisey is being sponsored in his bid for acceptance to West Point by U.S. Representative Jim McDermott of Seattle. The decision to apply came after Heisey received a recruiting pamphlet from the academy in his sophomore year, “which kind of got that idea in my mind,” he said. “I’ve always been patriotic and I’ve thought about serving my country, but I’ve also wanted to go to college. So the more I’ve learned about West Point, the more I’ve gotten intrigued about it and I thought it’d be a real good college to attend.
“It’s definitely an honor that I’m even being considered,” he added.
Heisey, who wants to study engineering in college while also continuing to swim, has already written three essays and undergone medical and fitness examinations as part of the application process, and he is waiting for final word sometime in the coming weeks. He took an official recruiting visit to the campus last spring and had the chance to tour different facilities. “I actually got to tour their engineering building and it was real impressive,” he said.
If he is not admitted to West Point, Heisey expects to attend Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., where he has already been accepted. Either way, he said, “I’m going to miss (being at home), but I’m also excited to go somewhere (outside of Washington) and experience life there.”
Wherever he ends up, Heisey’s future seems truly promising.
“He a very highly motivated individual,” Kelley said. “He has goals and he knows what he has to do to get them.”
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