SAN BERNARDINO — In nature, the butterfly is a symbol of change.
In the pool, the butterfly stroke was what helped Pacific High School’s Connor McAleer transform his high school career.
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Portrait of Pacific’s Connor McAleer, who has been chosen the IE Varsity Boys Swimmer of the Year, on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Photo by Milka Soko, Contributing Photographer)
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Portrait of Pacific’s Connor McAleer, who has been chosen the IE Varsity Boys Swimmer of the Year, on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Photo by Milka Soko, Contributing Photographer)
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McAleer primarily was a distance freestyler when he started swimming competitively four years ago. He took up the butterfly his sophomore year and won a pair of CIF Southern Section Division 4 titles that season. McAleer continued his mastery of the stroke over the next two seasons and became one of the top butterfly swimmers in the state. He posted the sixth-fastest 100-yard butterfly time at this year’s section finals and finished 10th at the CIF State meet.
For those reasons, McAleer has been chosen the IE Varsity Boys Swimmer of the Year for the 2025 season.
McAleer was more of a water polo player when he reached high school, and it took him a little time to find his comfort zone as a swimmer.
“My freshman year, I was still trying to figure things out as a swimmer because I hadn’t really competed very much,” McAleer said. “The summer between my freshman and sophomore years, I started swimming the butterfly during the long-course (club) season and realized this was the stroke I was fastest in.
“I just locked into it after that. It kind of suits my personality. You have to be a little crazy even to try that event and even crazier to really enjoy it like I do.”
When McAleer won the Division 4 butterfly title as a sophomore, his winning time was 51.61 seconds, which was the 35th-fastest time across all divisions that season. McAleer dropped his time to 49.44 at the 2024 finals (11th across the divisions) and got that time down to 49.05 at this year’s section finals.
And then, in the final swim of this high school career, McAleer went 49.01 at the CIF State Championships to win the 100-yard butterfly consolation race. McAleer will find out in the coming days if that time was fast enough to earn him All-American status.
“Butterfly is one of the tougher strokes physically to swim,” Pacific swim coach Christian Espinoza said. “I think Connor has the right body for it, and he’s just fallen in love with that stroke. He continues to put in the work to go faster each year. … And he has that mental strength to be the best that he can be.”
McAleer was unable to add another CIF Southern Section individual championship to his collection over the final two years, but he found a silver lining in his second-place finishes. In each of those swims, McAleer swam faster than the existing Division 4 section record only to have one swimmer touch first.
“The primary goal is to get better and go faster, and I was able to do that,” McAleer said. “I can look back at those races and know I put in my best effort.”
Many of Pacific High School’s athletics teams have struggled in recent years, but the aquatics programs have had success thanks to leaders like McAleer.
“I think the thing that stands out most about Connor is his loyalty,” Espinoza said. “He takes pride in being a Pirate and representing Pacific High School.
“I knew I could rely on him. He brought a winning mentality and it spread to everyone else. We won three straight league titles because of his leadership. He swims at a high level than our other swimmers, but he never forgets about his teammates. He wants to bring them as close to that level as possible.”
McAleer will be attending California Baptist University in the fall, but his swimming career remains up in the air. McAleer has posted times fast enough to earn a spot on the team, but a recent court settlement approved NCAA roster limits. Rosters for the upcoming collegiate swim and dive season will be 30.
“I’m waiting right now to see if redshirting is available for me,” McAleer said. “I’m hoping to get an opportunity to keep swimming and trying to get better.”
IE VARSITY COACH OF THE YEAR
Paul Marceau, Ayala
Marceau has been the Ayala swimming coach for a decade. And after a handful of runner-up finishes, Marceau finally got to make the celebratory leap into the pool after the Bulldogs captured the CIF Southern Section’s Division 2 team championship. Daniel Benson, last year’s IE Varsity Boys Swimmer of the Year, missed much of the season with a knee injury but returned in time for the Palomares League finals and the CIF Southern Section Championships. Benson won an individual title and also anchored a winning relay team. Marceau made the right adjustments, as Ayala finished the Division 2 finals with 201 points, with 118 coming in the relay events. Marceau previously was chosen the IE Varsity Girls Swimming Coach of the Year for the 2022 season.
IE VARSITY FIRST TEAM
Daniel Benson, Ayala, Sr.
Ryder Davis, Damien, Jr.
Dashiell DeAnda, Riverside Poly, Jr.
Jerry Fan, Diamond Bar, So.
Alexander Hernandez, Great Oak, So.
Marc Huang, Diamond Bar, Fr. (diving)
Maksim Kutsner, Redlands, Jr.
Arthur Lin, Ayala, Sr.
Eli Martinez-Spencer, Redlands, Jr.
Connor McAleer, Pacific, Sr.
Noah Quintero Marmol Morefield, Alta Loma, Jr.
Kaleb Richmond, Murrieta Valley, Jr.
Hunter Tamura, Yucaipa, So.
Emory Vorndam, St. Jeanne de Lestonnac, So.
Kevin Zheng, Ayala, Jr.
IE VARSITY SECOND TEAM
Jacob Bradbury, Beaumont, Sr.
Ethan Chen, Chaparral, Jr.
William Dahnke, Redlands East Valley, So.
Ethan Decker, Upland, Sr.
Alan Di Bello, Roosevelt, So.
Tyler Huey, Diamond Bar, Sr.
Jonathan Lee, Webb, So.
Yide Li, Diamond Bar, Fr.
Sebastian Maccalla, Damien, Sr.
Troy Newlin, King, Jr.
Brody Porter, Los Osos, So.
Ryder Upshaw, Claremont, Sr.
Anthony Wang, Diamond Bar, Fr. (diving)
Nathen Yoo, Diamond Bar, Sr.
Timothy Zhang, Diamond Bar, Fr.
