WPIAL boys swimmer of the week: North Allegheny’s Rick Mihm

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, December 20, 2018 | 6:54 PM

Rick Mihm was a part of high school swimming history last March.

The North Allegheny junior standout helped the Tigers’ 200-yard freestyle relay team set a National Federation of High Schools record with a time of 2 minutes, 53.81 seconds at the PIAA championships at Bucknell University.

“When we first broke it, my reaction was like any another swim with a good finish,” Mihm said. “I was super pumped and excited. But it didn’t set in fully until we saw how people around the swim world were reacting to it and how big it was. I will always cherish it in my swim career. It was a goal we had set years before. For it to become a reality was amazing.”

Mihm added that record-setting moment to several other top accomplishments, including WPIAL and PIAA individual championships in the 200 individual medley and 500 free.

He fueled momentum for this high school season with a fourth-place finish out of 125 competitors in the 400 IM at the USA Swimming East Winter Junior Nationals on Dec. 7 in Greensboro, N.C.

“That always is a good gauge to see where you are before the high school season starts,” he said. “It was great to be able to show my strength in that event.”

Mihm finished with a time of 3:50.59, two seconds faster than his preliminary swim.

“He made a lot of progress with the (club) 400 IM in the fall, and that was pretty exciting to see,” North Allegheny coach Patrick Wenzel said.

“His times dropped so much and he made it pay off at junior nationals.”

Mihm’s success, Wenzel said, carried over to the first dual meets against Mt. Lebanon and Upper St. Clair.

“I am very pleased with where he’s at so far,” Wenzel said. “He’s such a hard worker and a positive example for a lot of the other swimmers on the team. He certainly has high expectations again.”

Mihm is expected to return to the 200 IM and the 500 free for WPIALs in early March.

“I’m ready to defend my titles,” he said.

Michael Love is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Michael at 412-388-5825, mlove@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MLove_Trib.

Tags: North Allegheny