Gateway senior won 4 conference titles

By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor

Alex Martinez will leave Gateway High as one of the school’s all-time best swimmers, but the Panther senior by no means is done with competitive swimming.

“No, I just couldn’t see myself saying, ‘I’m done,’” she said. “I enjoy it too much to even think of quitting.”

After a banner senior year that saw Martinez win four OBC championships, help the medley relay team break the school record, and qualify in three events for the regional meet, it’s no wonder that she wants to keep her feet wet.

Martinez, the Osceola News-Gazette Female Swimmer of the Year, plans to continue her competitive career at Division II Millersville University of Pennsylvania, next year.

“I’ve talked to the coaches, and even if the scholarship doesn’t materialize, I’m going to walk on the team,” she said.

Martinez won the 200 IM (2:24.58) and 100 butterfly (1:05.87) individual championships at the OBC meet in October, and joined Suanny Zamora, Jodi Hennen and Melissa Morgan on the champion medley (2:03.65) and 200 free (1:50.99) relays.

Martinez’s older brother, Edwin, was a member of Gateway’s record-setting 400 meters boys relay, she said.

“He was joking with me and said, ‘Now you can be up there on the (record) board with me,’” she said.

It was Gateway’s best effort (third place) at the conference meet since winning back-to-back titles in 2003-04. The Lady Panthers won more swimming events than any team, but since they didn’t have divers they lost the championship to Osceola.

“OBCs had to be the highlight of the year,” she said. “We really did not see this coming. Early in the season, we always have a lot of girls on the team, but usually when they see what it takes as far as the practice time and the commitment, we lose a lot of them. Most of the time, we’ll have, like, 10 left. But, this year we had 14.”

Perhaps more impressive was how Martinez qualified in two individual events, as well as the medley relay, at the 3A-1 regional meet, one of the most competitive regional meets in the state.

“That literally  made me do a happy dance,” Martinez said. “It is one of the hardest regions to compete in. Our team swam really well.”

Martinez said her favorite stroke is the butterfly, which also is considered the most difficult.

“Most people say their favorite is the freestyle, but the way I see it, everyone can swim the freestyle and get better times, but with the fly either you are good at it or you are going to drown,” she said.

Martinez swims with the Kissimmee Swimming Association and has qualified in the butterfly for the Junior Olympics Seniors at the Orlando YMCA Aquatic Center, where Gateway competed in the district and regional meets.

“We’re constantly swimming there, so we’re really familiar with it,” Martinez, a native of Ohio, said.

On the other hand, she still has some map reading to do before she heads to Millersville University, she said.

“I’m not exactly sure where it is,” she said. “I’m sure I’ll find out before long.”