Greater New Haven Warriors star swimmer Brendan Conners has committed to swim with Alabama. Conners is a senior at Sound School and he just signed with the University of Alabama to swim on scholarship. A lifetime East Haven resident, Conners grew up on the water and enjoys surfing, sailing, fishing, and cliff jumping with his friends.

Conners learned to swim when he was 3 years old. He started taking lessons at the Old East Haven High School pool, being taught by Jose Bedoya.

“My mom put me in water safety lessons as a kid so I wouldn’t drown, haha, but I excelled and all of my friends were older than me and better swimmers, and when they were around 8 or 9 they would move on to local swim teams,” Conners said. “I wanted to stay with my friends and didn’t want them to be better so I trained really hard, even as a kid.”

After working with Bedoya, Conners moved to the local YMCA team in Branford, the Stingrays. Conners had a myriad of coaches, including Linda Lepeak, Dale Izzo, Cliff Johnson, Sue Lecza, Jeff O’Connor, and Jenn Amasino.

“But their sacrifices and seemingly endless patience has made me who I am today and I am extremely grateful,” said Conners.

At the age of 12, Conners moved teams to the newly formed Bulldog Swim Team out of Yale. Coached by Adriana Marmolejo-Shack, Conners had a record-breaking season, setting a new state and resident record in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 55.87. Conners continued to see success with the Bulldogs, breaking state records in the 100-yard freestyle and the 100-yard backstroke as a 14-year-old. He soon started to compete at national level meets, gaining the attention of schools like Michigan and Alabama. He ended up choosing Alabama.

“It was one of the easiest decisions of my life. When I had taken my official visit, I knew almost immediately that I belonged there,” Conners said. “The coaches were so welcoming, as well as the team. The swimming faculties are second to none, and the athletic and academic support system was absolutely amazing. After meeting more commits in my class, it was over. My decision had made itself.”

Conners is set to compete for Alabama next year.

“I would like to thank my friends, parents, and all my coaches, Jose, Linda, Dale, Cliff, Sue, Jeff, Jen, Adriana, Kyle, and Jim,” said Conners. “They have given me the opportunity of a lifetime.”