By Bob Franko, Post-Tribune correspondent
11/20/2008
Chesterton¹s Brittany Fozkos gets up long before dawn to go on a search.
While the day¹s first eggs are hitting the frying pan at the local greasy spoon and newspapers are flying onto dark driveways, Fozkos is skimming across the surface of a chilly pool looking for fractions of a second.
Maybe she'll find it in a more compact arm stroke, or with a stronger kick or a more streamlined dive. Wherever she finds those fractions, she knows others are out searching too.
"If I know that other people are waking up at 5 a.m. to practice, it makes me want to wake up even earlier so I can get that slight edge," the Chesterton junior said.
Those hundredths of a second she finds make a huge difference.
Last year in the state meet, Fozkos tied for third in the 50 free (23.64), just a half second behind winner Kelsi Hall of Yorktown (23.13). The 50 free is Fozkos' favorite event, and the one she would most like to win in Indianapolis.
Hall has since graduated, but the rest of the field was dominated with sophomores and juniors including teammate Mallory Przybylinski and Portage's Christina Gonzalez, both now a year older and stronger just like Fozkos.
"With the 50 free, every stroke you take has to be perfect, your whole race has to be perfect," she said. "It's all about getting your technique down, and then you can add speed."
Fozkos also placed eighth in the 100 free and was a spark on the third place 200 relay team.
"Brittany rose to the occasion at the state meet," Chesterton coach Kevin Kinel said. "She just really came into her own."
Kinel said Fozkos is the 'backbone of the team' and hopes her terrific showing at the end of last season springboards the team's season this year.
Fozkos hopes so as well, pointing to the 200 relay team as an example.
"You feed off of everyone else's energy on the relays," she said. "If I can just get one other person to believe that we can win the championship, we'll walk away with it."
Fozkos has dedicated a major portion of her high school days to swimming; sacrificing Friday night pizzas and frequent trips to the mall.
"Outside of school and swimming, I usually come home, do my homework and go straight to bed," she said. "I don't mind it because I just love to swim fast."
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