It’s not often that dreams of young people, and especially in athletics, can not only come true but also exceed any of the highest expectations.
Garden City High School senior swimmer Connor Cupp is one of those who believes in dreams.
“My expectations when I decided to come to Garden City to swim (his sophomore year of 2019) were to help our team win the WAC (Western Athletic Conference), qualify for state and continue to improve times,” Cupp said in the days after helping his team, and fulfilling his personal goals, do just that.
As a result, he was voted the 2021 WAC Boys Swimmer of the Year following the league championship back in mid-February in Great Bend.
He was part of a 3-time WAC Championship team, as the Buffs dominated the WAC meet, winning in his senior year by nearly 100 points over Great Bend.
Cupp, who resides in Scott City, but drives daily to Garden City to attend the larger school where there is a swim team for high school students, and an expanded educational opportunity, has said he couldn’t have asked for any more.
“Winning the WAC was never our primary goal, although it fit in with what we knew we could accomplish,” Cupp said. “It was just a by-product of our goals to qualify for state and keep cutting our times.”
When the WAC championship this year concluded, and Cupp had won two individual events – 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard breaststroke – along with swimming legs of two winning relay teams – the 200-yard medley and the 200-yard freestyle relay, he knew the Buffs were in good shape.
“As soon as the meet was over, I tried to run out of the meet,” Cupp said of not knowing about the voting for Swimmer of the Year. “But my mom insisted I go back in so we could take pictures. That’s when I learned about being named Swimmer of the Year.”
“Certainly I was happy to win the award, but I would have been just as happy had Kobe (sophomore Otero, the 2020 Swimmer of the Year) or Devin (sophomore Chappel) won the award,” Cupp said. “It was always about the team. Individual things kind of take care of themselves when you’re focused on team goals.”
Cupp’s life-changing decision to leave the friendly confines of Scott City High School wasn’t exactly the easiest. But now able to look in the rear-view mirror, he has no regrets.
“Honestly, this all feels like a fairytale,” he said. “This whole season has felt amazing. It’s so beyond being excited.”
The WAC competition wasn’t the toughest competition this year for Cupp in his individual events, or even in the team relays as they won by impressive margins. He won his 100-yard butterfly by 5.52 seconds, the 100-yard breaststroke by 4.84 seconds, and his relay teams won the 200-yard medley by 15.6 seconds and the 200-yard free relay by 1.1 seconds. The better swimmers came from Wichita and then at the state meet, which was concluded on Feb. 19 in Shawnee Mission.
It was there at the 6A state, that Cupp and his teammates fulfilled their biggest and final dream – bringing home medals and they did so in both the 200-yard medley (8th) and the 400-yard freestyle (6th) relays.
“It was as exciting a moment as I could ever have thought about,” Cupp said of that career-concluding race. “Nobody expected us to do what we did.”
What the Buffs 400 free relay did was to cut 8 seconds off their season best mark, win the second heat barely by a finger touch and then watched the fastest and final heat implode with two disqualifications for violating the takeoffs.
The memory of his earlier days in Scott City where he was playing football and doing club swimming (with Garden City coach Brian Watkins) are now somewhat distant. The decision to attend Garden City has paid off in big dividends.
He will spend the final spring semester serving as manager of the GCHS girls swimming team and then graduate from GCHS in May. His future is full of high aspirations as well, planning to major in biochemistry and then go into pre-med with the ultimate goal of becoming a doctor.
“It’s been an amazing experience,” Cupp said. “I wouldn’t trade it for anything. “When I think about how this could have turned out, it turned out way better and has been the most fun atmosphere.”
Brett Marshall is the retired Sports Editor of The Garden City Telegram (2008 to 2018) and was formerly the sports editor at The Dodge City Daily Globe (1975-1977). He also worked on newspapers in Fort Scott, Hutchinson and Salina.
WAC Boys Swimming
Final Season Results
Team Standings
| Points | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garden City | 430.5 |
| 2 | Great Bend | 341.0 |
| 3 | Liberal | 165.0 |
| 4 | Hays | 160.5 |
| 5 | Dodge City | 156.0 |
Coach of the Year: Kari Carper, Great Bend
Individual Results
| Event | First | Second | Third |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 medley relay | Garden City, 1:46.52 | Liberal | Garden City |
| 200 freestyle | D. Chappel, GC, 1:52.53 | M. Huslig, GB | T. Stein, GB |
| 200 IM | B. Feist, GB, 2:23.48 | K. Kennedy, GB | A. Erskin, GC |
| 50 freestyle | M. Huslig, GB, 23.29 | J. Sautter, LIB | E. Morales, GC |
| 100 butterfly | C. Cupp, GC, 56.39 | J. Mendoza, DC | K. Kennedy, GB |
| 100 freestyle | Ko. Otero, GC, 51.39 | J. Sautter, LIB | E. Morales, GC |
| 500 freestyle | D. Chappel, GC, 5:22.94 | B. Feist, GB | W. Linenberger, GB |
| 200 freestyle relay | Garden City, 1:34.95 | Great Bend | Great Bend |
| 100 backstroke | Ko. Otero, GC, 57.37 | T. Stein, GB | A. Erskin, GC |
| 100 breaststroke | Cupp, GC, 1:05.45 | E. Long, GB | J. Mendoza, DC |
| 400 freestyle relay | Garden City, 3:38.12 | Great Bend | Liberal |
All-WAC First Team
| Event | Winner | |
|---|---|---|
| 200 Med Relay | Garden City: Esai Morales, Kobe Otero, Connor Cupp, Jeremiah Bunce | |
| 200 free | Devin Chappel, Garden City | |
| 200 IM | Brody Feist, Great Bend | |
| 50 free | Matt Huslig, Great Bend | |
| 100 fly | Connor Cupp, Garden City | |
| 100 free | Kobe Otero, Garden City | |
| 500 frees | Devin Chappel, Garden City | |
| 200 free relay | Garden City: Jeremiah Bunce, Devin Chappel, Connor Cupp, Esai Morales | |
| 100 back | Kobe Otero, Garden City | |
| 100 breast | Connor Cupp, Garden City | |
| 400 free relay | Garden City (Devin Chappel, Alec Erskin, Jeremiah Bunce, Kobe Otero) |
