Justin Ress Still Keeping Swimming Fresh in Final Year at NC State

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

The NC State men’s swimming and diving program has been one of the top teams in the country since the 2015-16 season. They have finished in the top ten at NCAAs for four straight seasons and in the top four for the last three.

Current NC State senior Justin Ress has been a part of three straight top four national finishes for NC State in his career. The Wolfpack have also won the ACC men’s team title four straight seasons, beginning in 2015 when Ress was a senior in high school. Before 2015, NC State had not won the team title since 1992.

Since finishing second at ACCs in 2014 in head coach Braden Holloway’s third year, the Wolfpack have rolled off four straight team titles and no longer is NC State considered the underdog. Now they are among the nation’s elite in relays, coaching and in recruiting.

But even though they are so accustomed to winning now, Ress said that preparation for ACCs is the same as it has always been for the team.

“Winning ACCs for the tenth time is going to feel the same, if not better, than the first time,” Ress told Swimming World.

“For that sense, we don’t change it at all. From a physical standpoint, we are shifting the focus on NCAAs more and more every year. The second taper is never as good as the first, especially in events like the 50 and the 100. It’s really hard to go faster on a second taper.”

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

ACC Psych Sheet

Ress is leading an NC State team into ACCs tonight in Greensboro that won 14 events at ACCs a year ago, including four of the five relays. Ress himself won the 200 free individually in 2018. But as for events he will be doing this year, he is still unsure.

He is entered in the 50, 100 and 200 free, the 100 fly and 100 back. He is certain he will do the 50 and 100 free, but unsure what his third event would be, or if he might just do five relays instead.

Things keep changing up for Ress, which is what he likes and is getting accustomed to in college. Since coming into NC State in the fall of 2015, he has changed his event focus from distance to sprint, and has put on about 50 (good) pounds.

In his freshmen and sophomore seasons, he swam the 200 IM, 200 free and the 200 back at ACCs. In 2018, he did the 50, 100 and 200 free.

But Ress’s dramatic change in event specialty did not happen out of nowhere. It was something the coaches foresaw in him when they were recruiting him.

Obviously any distance swimmer would love to become a sprinter over time, but why did Ress think the change was necessary?

“Swimming is an emotionally fatiguing sport. When you do as much swimming as I did in club with the distance training and when you see the potential in sprint, you want to make that transition,” Ress said.

“I like changing stuff a lot. It helps keep a sport, that is otherwise very repetitive, a little bit more fresh and it makes it easier to enjoy it, just changing up stuff. We do a lot of stuff like that at sprint practice, Bobby (Guntoro) will change up stuff a lot.”

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

His transition to sprint training has helped him become one of the more reliable guys on NC State’s relays. The Wolfpack won two relays at NCAAs a year ago, the 800 and 400 free, and set all-time records in both. Ress had the fastest split on both relays.

Swimming a lot of relays has been something that Ress has been training for all season. But as for one specific event he is looking forward to this week in Greensboro, Ress is particularly looking forward to the 50 free.

“I have focused a lot more on the technical parts of the swim. I never trained for it so something I didn’t know last year was exactly how many dolphin kicks I needed to take, exactly how many strokes I need to take, and if I’m short or long into a turn.

“I learned how to prepare for that because that happens sometimes. You’re not going to be exactly the same every swim. I think this year I am excited for that because I am a whole lot more prepared to do a 50 free.”

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

And as for other guys on the team, Ress pointed out Dutch freshman Nyls Korstanje as one to watch.

“He had some really fast dual meets earlier this year. I think he will do well with some more rest. His 50 free is going to be really good.”

But Ress did not limit his excitement to just Korstanje.

“I am really excited to see some of the distance swimmers step up this year. We have a really young distance crew.

“I know Eric Knowles has already stepped up a little bit but I’m excited to see people like Jack (McIntyre), Curtis (Wiltsey), all those underclassmen guys.”

The ACC meet will be in Greensboro starting tonight, which Ress sees as an advantage for two reasons. The first is that it is a familiar pool for Ress because he has been swimming in it since it opened in 2011 as he is a local kid from Cary, North Carolina. The second reason is because of all the NC State parents and alums that make the short drive for the meet.

“I know people come to NC State from all over the country for swimming but I think our parents have an easier time going there than anywhere else. Alumni are huge for that meet. It’s just an easy drive for them if they stay in Raleigh.”

The Greensboro crowd already helped the NC State women win their second ACC team title in three seasons last week, which obviously bodes well for the NC State men, winners of four straight.

And winning seems to be one thing that Justin Ress has kept constant in his college career.

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