Madison Memorial's Michael Drives is one of the most unassuming top swimmers in the state. Away from the pool, there is little to distinguish Drives from hundreds of others participating in high school swimming. He's not tall and lanky or muscular -- just fast.
He currently owns the three fastest times swum this year in the 200 free, 200 IM, and 500 free. His 500 free time of 4:37.55 is particularly noteworthy, as he set a new Memorial team and pool record (which, given the legacy of swimming at Memorial, are awfully good records to top) at last week's dual meet against Janesville Parker. He's the defending state champ in the 200 IM, and notably his 200 free time of 1:41.29 is nearly a second faster than the winning time last year at the D1 state meet in that event. Last weekend at the West Bend Invitational (25-meter pool), Drives faced off against Hartland-Arrowhead's Ryan Hansen, the defending D1 state champ in the 500 free, and came away with an easy win in the 400-meter free (Drives swam a 4:07.74 to Hansen's 4:13.12).
Drives will likely face a tough choice in deciding between the 200 free and the 200 IM for sectional qualifying. But either way, he'll be leading a Memorial team that appears set for a drive for a 10th state championship. The Spartans have held the state's top ranking in the state coaches poll for most of the season, and has won several big invites over chief competitors like Hartland-Arrowhead, Milwaukee Marquette, and Big Eight rivals Middleton and Madison West.
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