PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Fans of high school swimming may notice a new team in the results this winter.
Carlisle is not a new school, but a first-year, three-school cooperative swim team comprised of student-athletes from Caribou, Presque Isle and the Maine School of Science and Mathematics in Limestone.
“It evolved out of just a sure need for numbers,” said Presque Isle athletic administrator Mark White, who teamed with fellow athletic administrators Dave Wakana of Caribou and Sarah Stackhouse of MSSM to create the new team.
“We were in the single digits last year, which meant we couldn’t field relay teams, and even though our numbers are still quite small, less than 20, we’re now able to put teams in relays, and we’ve actually had success in our first two meets,” he said.
Presque Isle and Caribou fielded separate varsity teams last year, each with a small roster. Swimmers from MSSM competed as individuals while training with Caribou.
Until this year, athletes participating in a sport that awarded individual state championships — such as for each event at a swim meet — could not compete for a team championship as part of a cooperative entry with another school or schools.
But a rule change approved by the Maine Principals’ Association last spring relaxed that rule, and cooperative teams are now allowed in all its activities in an effort to maintain opportunities for schools without a sufficient number of students in a given sport to form a team with another school or schools facing a similar situation.
“It saved two schools’ swim programs up here in Caribou and Presque Isle, at least for now,” said Wakana of the rule change. “I don’t know what the numbers will dictate in the future, but it’s saved them for now, and it might help save some other programs, too.”
The Carlisle boys and girls swimming team numbers about 15 student-athletes split fairly evenly among the three schools. The combined enrollment of the three schools, 1,137 as of April 1, 2014, makes it a Class A program in the sport.
“Speaking only for myself, swimming is in crisis in Aroostook County, and if we didn’t do this, I think you’d see programs going away,” said White. “But again speaking for myself, 15 kids on a swim team still is not outstanding.”
Two other swimmers from Fort Fairfield also train with the team but compete as individuals because there is no formal cooperative team agreement between that school and the Carlisle triumvirate.
Caribou, Presque Isle and MSSM also are pooling resources to fund such expenses as transportation — Carlisle’s nearest home meet is in Orono — along with payment of meet officials and stipends for coaches Erica Hemphill and Erin Tateishi.
“We’re sharing those costs, so it helps with the finances, too,” said Wakana. “We have to travel so far all the time so it helps to have three schools splitting those costs. “We’re also splitting the cost of the coaches’ wages and the cost of officials, and we’re putting out a more competitive team than we’ve had in the past.
“It’s good for the kids. It’s good for everybody,” he said.
The team has four home meets this season, two at the University of Maine at Presque Isle and two at Limestone Community School. The squad practices on Monday and Wednesday in Presque Isle and Tuesday and Thursday in Limestone, with Friday practices “as needed,” White said.
Carlisle has had two meets already this season, sweeping Washington Academy of East Machias and then winning the girls competition and dropping a close meet on the boys side against Orono.
Team members already have qualified for the Class A state meet in several individual events and are closing in on qualifying times in the relays.
“It just gives those kids more opportunities to qualify,” said White. “One of the main reasons for bringing these three schools together was to give more kids opportunities to compete in team relays than they had last year.”
