Nansemond-Suffolk Academy’s Nic Psimas was voted Duke Automotive player of the week after qualifying for each of his individual events in the Tidewater Conference of Independent Schools swim meet.

Psimas is a sophomore at NSA and has enjoyed an excellent swim season for the Saints. He qualified for states in every individual event in which he competed during the season. He also was a part of a relay team that qualified for states.

The state-qualification achievement is especially unusual, and it’s a very hard thing to accomplish. The sophomore shocked when he learned that he’d achieved such a feat. The last event he as able to qualify for was the breast stroke, and Psimas admits that’s not his strong suit.

“Honestly I was surprised,” Psimas said about qualifying in the breaststroke. “I’ve never been that great in the breaststroke. When I hit the wall and saw my time, I was shocked that I actually got it. The time that I finished with was the exact time I needed to qualify.”

His individual events included the 50 freestyle, 100 free, 200 free, 500 free, 200IM, 100 butterfly, 100 backstroke and breast stroke.

It is his versatility that makes him special.

First-year NSA swim coach Lauren Keating recognized Psimas’ athletic ability, and she said she wasn’t surprised he was able to qualify in all events.

“Nic has had an incredible season.” Keating said. “He is an incredible athlete, but I was still very impressed by his performances. It is rare to have a seasonal swimmer qualify in every event. The only kids I know of that have made the cut for each event are year-round swimmers training at the club level.”

Psimas has been able to achieve what he has because of his work ethic, his coach said.

“This accomplishment speaks of not only his athleticism, but also his diligence and hard work,” she added. “He is a self-motivator, which is a great mental strength to have in swimming, since you are racing the clock. I am excited to see what the future holds for him.”

Psimas also credits Keating for helping him work on different strokes, which aided his progress as a swimmer. His favorite race to swim is the freestyle. It’s also his best.

The last three meets of the season, which included the state meet and TCIS conference meet, were some of Psimas’ favorite moments from the season because of how competitive they were.

Even though Psimas qualified for every event, the rules allow swimmers to choose only two events for states. He decided to swim in the 100 and 200 free and came close to the finals in each event.

In the future, he wants to focus on one or two events and become better at each of those.

Being a student-athlete to Psimas is very important. He knows it is essential to him being successful not only in high school but throughout his life.

“If I don’t maintain good grades, I can’t get into a good college, which is needed for a great career in life,” Psimas said. “Being a student-athlete is important on all levels.”

Whenever Psimas has a bit of free time, he likes to spend it with his friends. The sophomore is currently gearing up for baseball season with NSA.