Photography by Steve Buchanan
Gunston School has produced its share of great athletes over the past two decades, and then there’s Andrew Rich.
Rich, a recent graduate of the school, has regularly competed in national swimming events up and down the East Coast, including the International Swim Coaches Association Nationals as recently as March. Rich developed his skills competing for the Naval Academy Aquatic Club, and he holds a bunch of records there.
“He will definitely be an Olympic Trial qualifier,” Naval Academy Aquatic Club Head Coach Hilary Yager says. “He will be in that category, which is pretty unique and elite.”
All of that success landed him a spot on the Florida State University Swim team. Rich signed a National Letter of Intent in January.
“He is probably one of the most talented and decorated athletes to ever come through Gunston,” Athletic Director Josh Breto says. “We have maybe one or two Division I athletes a year. It’s one of the more high-caliber colleges we have ever sent an athlete to.”
Two things greatly appealed to Rich about Florida State long-time Head Swimming Coach Neal Studd and the attention and respect the Seminoles’ program receives. Studd was named his conference’s Coach of the Year six times and he also coached the 2012 Olympic team.
Studd’s men’s team finished ranked 22nd in the country in the 2023 College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America final poll.
“They have a much better coach,” Rich says, comparing him to other college coaches. “The swimming team shares all the training faculties and the nutritionists with the football team. They have really great training equipment, which benefits the swimmers there.”
To prepare for the upcoming season that starts in mid-September, the 6-foot, 172-pound Rich went down to Tallahassee, Florida, in mid-June for grueling weight-training workouts and swimming practices. That means eight or nine sessions across seven days.
Rich, who specializes in the freestyle, feels the practices will be very beneficial for him and help him get his swimming times down.
“I want to grow as a swimmer and see if I can get closer to making The Olympic trials,” Rich says. “I want to do it to get the feel of the atmosphere and my teammates. I want to work out with the other athletes lifting weights, too.”
It was inevitable that Rich would swim in college. The website Swimcloud.com ranked him 2023’s No. 4 recruit in Maryland and No. 109 nationally.
The 19-year-old Rich, who was named a USA Swimming Scholastic All-American last year, just didn’t expect it to be at such a big-name school.
“I wasn’t sure I could go there,” Rich says. “When I started looking at colleges, I was considering Division I mid-major and smaller schools. When I started dropping my swimming times, I looked at bigger schools. When I visited, I loved the school and asked coach Studd, ‘What do I have to do to go here?’”
Rich has been swimming for 13 years, starting at the Naval Academy Aquatic Club at age six. He cherishes what he accomplished with the program. Rich broke seven club records. They came in the 100- and 200-meter backstroke, the 100 butterfly, and the 50, 100, and 200 freestyle. Rich also swam a leg on nine different relay teams that broke records.
“For years, I tried to lead the guys to a championship,” Rich says. “We were close and took second this year (among 35 teams). I wanted to make the biggest impact I could. Breaking all the records gives younger swimmers goals. Anytime I was swimming, I wanted to go as fast as I could so I could get those records.”
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