Devon Nowicki, a 2016 Olympic Trials qualifier from Orion, Michigan, has signed a National Letter of Intent with the Oakland University Grizzlies for 2015-16.
Nowicki is a senior at Lake Orion High School, where he is a four-time Michigan state finalist (200 free, 500 free, 200 IM, and 100 breast) at MHSAA Boys D1 Swim & Dive Championships. He trains with AquaSwimClub out of Oxford, Michigan.
Nowicki competed at the Speedo Junior Nationals in Irvine last summer. Seeded 74th in the 100m breast with a 1:06.15, he dropped 2.5 seconds in prelims, made the “B” final, and achieved his Olympic Trials cut. Nowicki’s top times are:
| 100y breast: 56.44 | 100m breast: 1:03.65 |
| 200y breast: 2:06.63 | 200m breast: 2:21.88 |
| 50y free: 20.92 | 50m free: 24.88 |
| 100y free: 47.82 | 100m free: 55.51 |
| 200y free: 1:41.61 | 200m free: 2:01.26 |
| 200y IM: 1:57.01 | 200m IM: 2:16.06 |
| 100y fly: 51.71 | 100m fly: 57.93 |
Nowicki should have an immediate impact on the Grizzlies in breast. His 100 time would have made the A-final at the 2014 Horizon League championships and his 200 would have made the B-final. He is part of a very strong recruiting class that also includes:
- Ben VanderWeide
- Patrik Lofgren
- Paul Huch
- Tony Eriksson
Nowicki’s family told SwimSwam: “In the classroom, he will continue his pursuit of Computer Science Engineering. His focus will be centered toward game development but plans to keep his options open. Always looking for a competitive edge Devon believes Oakland University was a solid choice to gain the competitive foothold in the market place upon his graduation a few years from now. The strength of the engineering program combined with the strength of the swim team, the facilities and the coaching staff this decision was a confident one.”
Shoulda went to zona