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Peter Wendol, a graduating senior from Palm Harbor University High School, has announced his commitment to swim and study at Missouri State University beginning this fall. He trains year-round with the Palm Harbor YMCA Piranhas.
At the time of his commitment, the future Bear posted the following on social media:
I am very excited to announce my verbal commitment to swim D1 at Missouri State. I want to thank all of my family, coaches, scout leaders, and friends for helping me to reach this goal. Thank you to Coach Dave and Coach Chelsea for this amazing opportunity. I can’t wait to begin this journey. GO BEARS!
Wendol wrapped up his short course season this past March at the Florida Senior Championships, where his highest finish came in the 200 breaststroke. He hit the wall with a season-best time of 2:01.73 for 14th. He nearly matched that placement in both the 100 breast and 200 IM, touching 15th in both events.
In the 200 IM, he set a best time of 1:51.82 in prelims before clocking 1:52.21 in the final. In the 100 breast, he posted a pair of 57.3 swims on the day. He also broke new ground in the 400 IM, finishing 17th and demolishing his previous best of 4:02.55 with a time of 3:59.44, breaking the elusive four-minute barrier for the first time in his career.
While he did not hit any personal bests in breaststroke, his specialty stroke, he came extremely close in both distances, just a tenth off his bests of 57.20 from November 2024 and 2:01.66 from March 2024.
Beyond breaststroke and IM, Wendol has strong ability across all strokes. His versatility is evident in his times, including 51.98 and 1:54.53 in backstroke, 53.35 and 1:58.80 in butterfly, and 48.31 and 1:42.99 in freestyle.
Top SCY Times:
- 100 Breaststroke: 57.20
- 200 Breaststroke: 2:01.66
- 200 IM: 1:51.82
- 400 IM: 3:59.44
Missouri State is a Division I Mid-Major program competing in the Missouri Valley Conference. The men’s team finished third at the conference championships this past season.
Based on results from the 2025 MVC Championships, Wendol’s best time in the 400 IM would have placed him 9th in prelims, leading the charge into the ‘B’ final, with a time of 3:58.22 required to qualify for the championship final. Additionally, his 200 breast career best would have earned him a second swim, ranking 13th after prelims and placing him solidly in the middle of the ‘B’ final pack.
His lifetime bests in the 100 breast and 200 IM would have just missed qualifying for second swims, as it took 56.76 and 1:51.13, respectively, to make the cut in those events.
Looking at the team’s depth chart, Wendol’s best time in the 400 IM would have situated him 2nd on the team last season, while his 200 breast PB would have ranked 4th, 200 IM 5th, and 100 breast 6th.
Graduating senior Brunno Suzuki led the team in the 400 IM with a 3:54.70, but Missouri State is reloading with IM talent. Incoming freshmen Zach Mendez (3:53.64) and Kayden Hedrick (3:58.38) will join Wendol to help fill the gap. Junior Jack Grandys, who posted a 1:46.90 in the 200 IM, topped the team’s rankings in that event, while junior Luigi Da Silva wore the crown for the breaststroke events with marks of 53.39 and 1:56.77, finishing as runner-up in both events at MVC.
Joining Wendol in the pool this fall, along with Mendez and Hedrick, is Kiefer Roemar, making for a small but tight-knit group of strong training partners over the next four years in Springfield.
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Does he have a good GPA? I remember when MSU was a perineal top 25 team in the country for team GPA. Hope they can get back on that track