Fitter and Faster Swim Camps is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.
Wayzata High School senior Nick Kale has verbally committed to the Purdue Boilermakers. Kale, who swims for the Minnetonka Swim Club in Minnesota, joins a very midwestern-heavy recruiting class of 2021 for Purdue.
Kale is a breaststroker who finished 4th in the 100 breaststroke (55.31) in February at the Minnesota High School AA State Championship meet and 7th in the 200 breaststroke (2:06.32) at the Minnesota LSC Senior State Championships.
His breaststroke specialty fits in with the group where Purdue has made its name nationally. That group was a little thinner than normal at last year’s Big Ten Championships, scoring just 38 points across the two breaststroke events, but that still made the stroke its second-most successful group behind only the sprint freestylers (84 points).
At the most recent NCAA Championships in 2019, then-sophomore Trent Pellini earned All-America honors via a 15th-place finish in the 100 breaststroke.
Kale’s Best Times in Yards:
- 50 free – 21.59
- 50 breast (relay split) – 24.77
- 100 breast – 55.31
- 200 breast – 2:06.32
Kale is a Winter Juniors qualifier in long course with a 1:06.85 in the 100 breaststroke and a Summer Juniors qualifier with his best of 55.31 in the 100 yard breaststroke.
The Boilermakers’ 2020-2021 roster has 38 male swimmers & divers on it. Of those, 15 come from Purdue’s home state of Indiana.
The rest of the midwest has not been a rich recruiting ground for the Purdue men, though. Outside of Indiana, the Boilermakers have 2 from Michigan and 1 from Ohio as their only other team members from the area traditionally known as the Midwest.
In the class of 2021, however, they are beginning to shift that ratio. Of 6 announced men’s commits in the class of 2021, 2 are from Indiana (Chandler Lipp and Brady Samuels), 1 is from Illinois (Connor McCarthy), and 1, Kale, is from Minnesota. The other swimmers are Luke Fortner from North Carolina and Idris Muhammad from Georgia.
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to [email protected].
About the Fitter and Faster Swim Tour
Fitter & Faster Swim Camps feature the most innovative teaching platforms for competitive swimmers of all levels. Camps are produced year-round throughout the USA and Canada. All camps are led by elite swimmers and coaches. Visit fitterandfaster.com to find or request a swim camp near you.
FFT SOCIAL
Instagram – @fitterandfasterswimtour
Facebook – @fitterandfastertour
Twitter – @fitterandfaster
FFT is a SwimSwam partner.
Congrats Kale! Purdue and you win here. Great school and league. Best in your swim and after grad career.
I believe they also have a commitment from a GA Boy, Idris Muhammad.
Purdue is known for (and would be nothing without) diving…..not breastroke.
Shortsighted comment, they had a great breast stroking group (male and female top 3 finishes at big10) while I swam and was around the Big10… and that’s within the last decade. Does Purdue need a shift at at top (coaching and admin)! Maybe, but no, and I mean NO top 25, domestic, recruit goes to Purdue. The last one was close to a decade ago, as far as I remember.
Great is relative. Relative to their diving, their breastroke group isn’t special. It’s like saying a 30 handicap golfer is a great putter. Sure, their breastroke has been better than other areas. Are you saying they’re limited because they aren’t able to recruit top swimming talent? Diving recruits plenty of top talent, so what’s holding swimming back?
I’m sure being in the same state as IU and Notre Dame probably has something to do with that.
Why do we need to make excuses for them? Academically, IU and Notre Dame are dramatically different schools. Perhaps IU’s success in breastroke is even a reason for a better relative performance in breastroke at Purdue due to likely higher recruiting standards (kids not getting a chance at IU and ending up at Purdue instead).
What’s your point? That this recruit will be able to step in and help them right away? Otherwise, your comment is pretty dumb and irrelevant to what is surely a big moment in this kid’s life.
You have missed the point of this article. It’s a college commit from an excited teen who decided on a top tier education and a Big10 swimming program. Kale will be a great addition to the breastrokers at Purdue. The article does not mention that Purdue is only known for breastroke, only that it has had some success in that area. Judging by the success of Pellini and Sherman over the past few years, the article is correct. You are putting down the swimmers to call attention to the diving. Nobody wins when that is done. Congratulations Kale! Looking forward to cheering you on at Purdue. BOILER UP!