Senior J.B. Garfinkel has sort of been the second or third man on the Greyhound water sports totem pole the last couple years to previous Clayton standouts Paul Orland and Tom Maxim.
But this year is different.  Garfinkel will now be the go to player during water polo season and is the best swimmer on the swim team.

The changes were already noticeable in the first meet of the season.  Garfinkel, who swims the 100-meter butterfly and 200-meter individual medley races, won the individual medley with a time of 2 minutes, 14.39 seconds.  In the butterfly, Garfinkel took second, losing by .17 seconds.
“The funny part is, the butterfly is definitely my best stroke,” Garfinkel said.
For the first meet, the times were not bad.
“They were okay times, but I know I can do better, and I need to do better if I want to make it to state, which is my goal for both races,” Garfinkel said.
The qualifying time for the state meet in the butterfly is 57.89 seconds, and two minutes, 7.99 seconds in the individual medley.
“I can definitely make both of those times, I just have to do it in a meet,” Garfinkel said.
Through one meet, it is clear that Garfinkel is on his way to becoming a serious competitor to everyone else in the state.
While water polo is actually his better sport, Garfinkel still really enjoys swimming.
“I mainly swim to stay in shape for water polo, but it is a competitive sport which makes the meets a lot of fun,” Garfinkel said.
As for college, Garfinkel also plans to remain the water for that.
“I plan on playing water polo in college, but not so much swimming,” Garfinkel said.
Garfinkel has garnered some college interest to play water polo next year.
As for the offseason, Garfinkel really prepared for swimming season.
“Even though I use swimming to stay in shape for water polo, playing club water polo before swimming season helps me go into the fall in good shape to swim,” Garfinkel said.
A dedicated water athlete, Garfinkel is excited for the rest of the season and the chance to prove himself as a bonafide two sport star.
“I am really looking forward to the conference and state meets, they should be the biggest stage of the season for me to prove myself on,” Garfinkel said.
If Garfinkel has a strong showing at state, he just might put Clayton onto the water map for something other than girls’ diving, and, in turn, prove his status as Clayton swimming and water polo leader justified.