Student Athlete of the Week -- Matt Lockman, Albemarle

By: Lindsay Joy - Email

Updated: Fri 3:33 PM, Feb 08, 2013

Matt Lockman knows all too well that in swimming, the smallest
margin can be the difference between victory and defeat. At states a
year ago, he fell just short of a championship twice, placing second
in the 50 and 100 free.

"I lost in the 50 by like 3 hundredths of a second, which always is just horrible, so I'm hoping that this year I'll be able to win," says Lockman. "The 50 is anybody's race so I'm just going to try to do everything perfectly and just go for it and try to win."

Before states, Lockman will look to defend his regional titles, in the 50 and 100 free this weekend, and he has his sights set on a team title, too.

"The Albemarle guys team is in it to win regionals, so that's definitely a big goal," he says.

Lockman's coach Jake Shrum says he can count on his senior swimmer to put the team first. "He really cares about doing well for Albemarle, he cares about the guys on the team. When he's able to do that, that makes everyone else care about the team a little more."

Shrum says Lockman has been a leader for the Patriots since his
sophomore year.

"At that point he was just a lot better than a lot of other people were in this area, so that automatically gains other teammates respect, they automatically look up to you, and when you're, when you back it up being as smart and as nice a person as Matt is it goes a long way."

Lockman is two-time USA Swimming Scholastic All-American, an
honor given to swimmers who excel in the pool and the classroom. He
has a 4.55 GPA, and is looking into engineering for college.

"I just kind of liked the hands on kind of thing with engineering," he says. "I built a lot with legos when I was a kid. I know a lot of kids did that but I'm just interested in that type of thing."

When he isn't in the pool or hitting the books, Lockman makes time for his other passion, which is music. He plays five instruments, including the trombone, which he plays in the AHS Wind Ensemble.

"My parents are really big musicians. They've played guitar their whole life basically, so I just kind of followed that path and I just like it. It's a way I can express myself without academics or swimming."

Student Athlete of the Week -- Alex Montes de Oca

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