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FRANK PASTORCentral senior Mark Warren begins his quest to reach the state meet Saturday.
BROOKSVILLE - Maybe it was a sign.
Mark Warren was ticketed for driving 54 mph in a 30-mph zone during the summer. After breaking the one-minute mark in the 100-yard backstroke, the Central senior joked the ticket meant he soon would lower his time to 54 seconds.
To do so, Warren must slice almost six seconds from his best time of 59.90 in the Class 2A, District 4 meet Saturday at the National Training Center in Clermont.
"It's kind of a goal," Warren said. "If I hit 54, hopefully, I can win state doing that. Not too many guys are doing that."
Fewer, still, after a one-year absence.
Warren qualified for state as a sophomore but did not advance beyond the district meet last season as he sacrificed individual goals to help instruct less experienced teammates.
After winning Gulf Coast Athletic Conference titles in the 100 back and 50 free earlier this month, he has one chance left to reach state.
"I work better under pressure," Warren said. I told myself I better get out and get it done, or I won't be able to do it at all."
Warren was clear about his goals, securing a copy of Central's records before the season and plotting his strategy.
He broke the backstroke record of 1:02.54 Sept. 15 at Wesley Chapel. At the district meet, he hopes to improve his time of 59.90 and lower Justin Nolan's 50 free record of 22.41.
"I think going into districts, it's going to be a lot tighter pack," said Warren, whose fastest 50 free time is 23.73. "If you have people right next to you and have to beat them to get to state, you swim so much faster."
Warren has considerably less company at school because he has been homeschooled since kindergarten. He has earned enough money through preaching competitions to pay for college.
Warren began preaching as a freshman and competes on weekends. Entrants write sermons then deliver them in front of judges in the hopes of winning scholarships. After placing third in his first competition, Warren has won the past three. He hopes to attend Johnson Bible College, near Knoxville, Tenn., and study youth ministry.
Central coach Julie Withington said she sees a correlation between Warren's faith and his performance in the pool.
"I think it really did have a large effect on him being a Christian and being positive with everyone," Withington said. "I think that's a big part of it and having a lot of family support."
Warren plans to look into swimming for the University of Tennessee, either by taking classes there or joining its practice squad. His ultimate goal is the Olympics.
He has dreamed of little else since seeing the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta.
"I watched every swim event there was," he said. "That's how I got started swimming. I really pushed myself to reach my goals."
- Frank Pastor can be reached at 800 333-7505, ext. 1430. Send e-mail to pastor@sptimes.com