Thursday, April 30, 1998 | 6:37 a.m.
When Green Valley coach Joe Sill heard his school was getting a foreign exchange student with a background in swimming, he had no idea what to expect.
After all, just last season Sill had received the same news, only to find out later that the newcomer barely knew how to make his way from one end of a pool to the other.
The first time Sill saw Vinicius Barros in the water last fall, though, the Gators coach knew someone special had dropped into his lap.
Barros, a 17-year-old senior from Vitoria, Brazil, is an experienced, serious backstroker. Better still, he's one of the top eight swimmers in his age group in his native country.
Add him to a talented, deep Gator squad that already featured the likes of state medalists Bill Handsfield and Tate Ecklund, and Green Valley should have little trouble capturing its sixth consecutive southern zone title.
"He was an added bonus," Gators co-captain Joe Todd said. "We're very glad to have him. He's a strong swimmer, and we're expecting a lot from him."
So far, Barros -- known to his new teammates as "Vinny" -- has lived up to everyone's expectations. Undefeated this spring, the Brazilian has posted the area's best time in the 100-yard butterfly (54.2 seconds) and is within striking distance of the Gator school record of 53.18, set by Jason Reed last year.
"It's kind of funny that we lost Jason, but we've been able to replace him with Vinny," said Sill, whose boys and girls squads are undefeated against Nevada competition. "With him, I've got the strongest boys team by far in the zone."
While his coach and teammates are counting the days until the zone meet on June 16, Barros is content enjoying every moment of his Las Vegas experience.
"I came here to study, but I wanted to swim, too," said Barros, who stayed with Green Valley diving coach Susy Roles last semester and is living with fellow senior Mike Javier this spring. "I just didn't know how fast I would swim here."
To prepare for the high school season, Barros started working with the Boulder City Swim Club last fall, training hard and getting to know his American teammates.
"I love this team," he said. "Everybody's my friend; everybody helps me."
But just because he's having fun in his new surroundings doesn't mean Barros isn't setting his sights on a successful postseason.
After seeing his older brother, Cristiano, return to Brazil two years ago after winning a pair of state titles in Iowa, Vinny would love to became the second Barros to pull off such a feat during his year abroad.
"I want to do the same thing," Barros said. "But if I'm first or if I'm second, I'm happy with what I'm doing here."
And the way things have turned out so far, so are his Green Valley teammates.
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