UNLV Swimming: Scalise’s work has payed off

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, March 12, 1998 | 12:02 p.m.

UNLV swim coach Jim Reitz didn't have very high hopes for Erik Scalise when he showed up on campus in 1995.

"He was kind of like the clown of the team," Reitz recalled. "He was a really skinny guy. He didn't have a lot of muscle bulk and he didn't have a great stroke. He wasn't thought of as a star swimmer. But the one thing he did have was a great work ethic."

That work ethic has helped transform the 6-4, 175-pound junior from Sparks into one of the top swimmers in recent school history.

Scalise, who has gained about 25 pounds since that first day at UNLV, set a WAC record in the 400 individual medley last week at the WAC Swimming and Diving Championships in San Antonio and captured the 200 individual medley as well.

He will swim both events at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships next week in Auburn, Ala.

"We've had some world ranked swimmers here in the past," said Reitz, now in his 18th season as UNLV's head swimming coach. "Erik's right there with the best of them."

There's no secret for Scalise's surprising success.

"At this level you encounter a lot of talented athletes," Reitz said. "But there are a lot of different levels of success for those athletes because of their work ethics."

A typical Scalise day of training?

"He's usually here from 6 to 7:30 in the morning and swims 6,000 yards," Reitz said. "Then he comes back in the afternoon and lifts weights for about an hour. Then he finishes by swimming another 8,000 to 10,000 yards."

Scalise performs that regimen six days a week, 12 months a year.

"I love it," the blond-haired finance major says. "It's so much hard work. You train four hours a day, six days a week all year long. You're so tired you can't even move. But then you go to a meet and take a few hundreths (of a second) off of your time and it's all worth it."

Scalise did just that last week in San Antonio in winning the 400 individual medley. His time of 3:49.21 broke the WAC championship time of 3:49.67 set by former New Mexico standout Nolan Wood last season and the all-time WAC mark of 3:49.58 set by Wood in 1995.

Ironically, Scalise felt he wasn't swimming very well during his record-setting race.

"(Reitz) said to take them out fast, but I was nervous and tense and I was behnd at 300 meters," said Scalise. "I thought I was doing bad because I was behind a couple of guys instead of leading like I had hoped."

But Scalise finished with a blistering 51.5 freestyle leg, one second better than his previous best, to win easily over SMU's Casey Barrett (3:51.51), a member of Canada's Olympic team, and Barrett's Mustang teammate Bart Wickard (3:51.67).

"I looked up and saw the guys going crazy," Scalise said of his UNLV teammates. "I was more proud of that than (the record). That was the best. It was the last meet for a lot of guys I've swam with for three years. It was a great atmosphere that I'll always remember."

Now Scalise and freshman butterfly specialist Andrew Livingston move on to the NCAA Championships next week at Auburn.

"Prelims are what make you or break you at the NCAA," said Scalise. "That morning swim is the key. If I can do well there and advance to the finals that night, I'm confident I'll do well."