Swimming hasn’t always been a strong program in Washington, despite being a town right on the water. What started in the 1960s as the Greenville Swim Club has since grown into a group of dominant teams in East Carolina Aquatics and the Washington swim team.

The area got its first year-round swim team in 2001. Scott Pake is currently an associate coach and the general manager of ECA. Prior to that, he took a job at the Hildred T. Moore Aquatic and Fitness Center as a lifeguard. Pake, a record setter himself during his high school career with the Pam Pack, spearheaded the effort to start the year-round team.

The team started with just four swimmers, but quickly exploded to over 40. Originally operating as an independent group, it merged with ECA as a satellite team after just a year.

“It was just something we were doing,” he said. “We had no direction in terms of being competitive, but we had these kids practicing and learning about swimming. … I met with the coaches from the Greenville Swim Club. I didn’t know much about how to get into competing year round. They kind of came up with this idea that we would merge and become part of their program.”

That group then merged with a struggling team in Carteret, which is when they changed the name to East Carolina Aquatics.

Throughout its history, the team has been not just an incredible feeder system for the high school team, but has also produced incredible collegiate and even Olympic athletes. Lauren Perdue, a J.H. Rose graduate, went on to compete for the USA national team and won gold in 2012.

The Washington team itself boasts a pair of college swimmers in Anna and Emily Pfeiffer. The former swam for the University of South Carolina and the latter currently swims for the University of North Carolina.

“It’s really been amazing to watch it grow and what we expect from the kids in terms of what we expect their performance level to be,” Pake said. “What we expected a long time ago, those times have been demolished. Our team’s records are being beaten every year. The amount of energy and time being put into this sport, it’s really taken off.”

The success is evident at the high school level as recently as a few months ago. The Pam Pack claimed its first regional and state championships in school history. Eric and Tony Lovenberg, Kevin Andrews, A.J. Howard and many others on the team got their beginnings in the ECA program.

“A lot of those state-champion boys, we’ve watched them grow from when they were five years old,” said Pam Pack coach Spencer Pake. “The hard work and dedication has paid off for them. It’s something their going to remember for the rest of their lives.

“They’ll be able to take it and grow from it. Swimming was a big part of their lives. I think with the dedication the have and what they’ve learned about setting goals is going to help them out in the future.”

Life in and on the water is a staple of Washington. A strong swimming program is important for the town’s culture, but there’s more that drives the Pake brothers. They’re passionate about swimming and that has carried over in a very tangible way.

“It means a big deal to me because I really truly love and care about this sport,” Pake said. “It’s not just a sport that kids can do when they’re young. It’s a lifelong sport. It teaches to set goals, dedication, to work hard. You see that hard work paying off. It’s a very rewarding sport in the long run.”