NEW COMMIT: Distance ace Blake Peeples of Madison, Miss. has handed his verbal pledge to the University of Alabama for the fall of 2020.
Peeples owns three Winter Juniors standards and competes for Performance Elite Aquatics. He most recently raced at NCSAs where he finished 10th in the 500 free, 18th in the 1000 free and 24th in the mile after recording two best times at Juniors East in December. This past summer, he notched 100% lifetime bests at Southern Zone Seniors where he was the runner-up in the 400m/800m/1500m freestyles.
Also competing for Madison Central High School, Peeples is a six-time Mississippi State Championship finalist. The USA Swimming Scholastic All-American won the 200/500 free combo as a junior after placing second and first, respectively, in those events during his sophomore season.
He told Swimming World:
“Extremely humbled to have verbally committed to continue my swimming and academic career at the University of Alabama! I felt at home the second I stepped on campus. I loved the team environment, campus, and have so much trust in the coaches. So excited to be a part of the crimson family! Roll tide!”
His best times include:
- 200 free – 1:41.12
- 500 free – 4:26.98
- 1000 free – 9:18.23
- 1650 free – 15:41.37
- 400 IM – 4:03.78
Peeples will add valuable distance depth to the Crimson Tide’s lineup and will have two years of overlap with top returning miler Nico Hernandez-Tome. Although he’s not in scoring range just yet at the SEC Championships, he has continuously made improvements each season with over a year to go before arriving in Tuscaloosa.
If you have a commitment to share, please send a photo and quote via email to hs@swimmingworld.com.
Roll Tide!
Roll Tide!
Congratulations on your decision.