PACKAGE DEAL: Colorado swim and dive program adds a pair of Colony High region champs

PALMER — Jake Simmons and Tanner Belliston have known each other for more than half their lives. They grew up on the same street and spent the last four years as members of the Colony High School swimming and diving program.

Now Simmons and Belliston have the opportunity to make the transition to the college level together.

The Colony High seniors have committed to Colorado Mesa University and will compete for the Mavericks Division II swimming and diving team.

“It’s really exciting,” Belliston said recently. “It will be cool knowing someone else there, somebody I’ve been in sports with for such a long time.”

The pair will also be roommates at the Grand Junction, Colorado, school.

Belliston and Simmons both said the opportunity to take the next step together came later in the recruiting process. As Belliston initially looked into Mesa, Simmons was still considering a number of Division I programs. Belliston said he had an opportunity to visit the Mesa campus, and liked everything about the school.

Simmons’ visit to the campus was more of a spur-of-the-moment decision. During a trip to Colorado in February to attend a USA Swimming conference in Denver, Simmons, a student-athlete representative for Alaska, made a quick trip west to Grand Junction.

“It was spontaneous,” Simmons said of the trip.

Like Belliston, Simmons liked what he saw.

Simmons said Division I schools University of Hawaii, University of Minnesota and University of Wyoming were among the programs he looked into initially. But as he chose Mesa, Simmons said he had no reservations about opting for the Division II level. Simmons said that’s still a very high level of collegiate swimming, and it will give him a chance to battle for a spot in the national championships earlier in his career.

Simmons left the Colony swimming program with at least a piece of eight school records. Both Simmons and Belliston earned an individual title during the 2017 Region III Championships, and helped the Knights post a runner-up finish in the team standings as seniors. Simmons was first in the 100 backstroke. Belliston won the 1-meter dive.

Simmons said he’s not sure which events he’ll focus on as a freshman in college, but they will be among eight different events. He said the 100 butterfly is among his favorite events.

Belliston will continue his diving career with the Mavericks. After starting in gymnastics, Belliston said he began diving about five years ago. After his freshman year of high school, Belliston said he started to really think about the potential to compete in college.

“Since I started doing it, I thought, why stop after high school? There’s always a chance at a scholarship,” Belliston said.

Belliston said he enjoys the evolving challenge of the sport.

“I like that it’s not the same thing every single time,” Belliston said.

Simmons, who competed in the junior national championships in December of 2017, said he’s wanted this opportunity since middle school.

“I couldn’t see myself ever stopping,” Simmons said.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.