Massapequa High School senior Cara Treble went into the state swimming finals at Ithaca College focused on victory. After placing second last year, she knew this was her time to shine. And she shined brightly — not only did she clinch the New York State Championship in the 200 freestyle, she broke the state r
ecord of 1:48:06 with her time of 1:48:01.
“After last year, I returned with a vengeance,” said Treble. “I knew what I had to do.” The All-American swimmer has trained hard for this moment. In addition to competing on the varsity swim team since ninth grade, she’s been waking up at 5:25 a.m. four days a week to swim for an hour before school, 2 1/2 hours every day after school and 3 1/2 hours on Saturdays with the Long Island Aquatic Club at Eisenhower Park’s Aquatic Center.
“Cara’s dedication to swimming was unmatched by anyone on the varsity swim team,” said Coach Brian Rossi. “When it came to meets, she would swim any event I asked her to without hesitation.”
Treble, who earned the Joe Farrell Award for Stand Out Senior Athletic Performance this year, comes from a family of swimmers and has been competing since she was eight years old. Her mother was a lifeguard and her father an avid swimmer when they first met at a pool, Treble said. Her sister Molly, a 2014 Massapequa High School graduate, was a two-time state champion who competes for Notre Dame University. Her younger brother, Erik, a sophomore, plays baseball.
Treble and her sister share the goal of making it to the Olympic Trials in July and having the opportunity to compete alongside the greatest swimmers in the country. Next year, she’ll be on the roster of Penn State University’s Division I team while pursuing a degree in bio-behavioral health. Strong academically as well as athletically, the USA Scholar-Athlete is a member of National Honor Society, takes advanced placement classes in biology and calculus, and was placed on the high honor roll throughout high school.
“I think swimming helped me with time management and with getting my work done efficiently,” she said.
Of her varsity swimming career, Treble said she enjoyed being able to act as a role model for younger swimmers on the team and liked how the common interest of swimming brought together students that may not have been friends otherwise. “We all worked hard on our team goals,” said Treble. “And Coach Rossi helped us reach those goals.”
“Cara has encouraged and mentored the younger swimmers at meets and sets a great example of what it means to be a scholar athlete,” Rossi added. “I will miss having such a dominating force on the team and wish her the best as she transitions to the next level of her swimming and academic career.”
As she looks to the future, Treble said she is thankful to those who supported her—her family, friends, teachers and administrators, and says she “looks forward to competing at the college level and improving as a person and a student.”
