Good Sports: Buchanan High School swimmer ready to dominate at collegiate level

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- You'd be hard-pressed to find Colby Hatton far from a pool.

"Mainly, I do stick to water," he said.

Day in and day out, he's ready to hit the water.

It's helped make the Buchanan senior not just one of the best swimmers in the Valley, but one of the top swimmers in the state.

"It's always great to get on out there and swim against teammates and opponents that are also club teammates," he said. "It's just a great feeling."

The senior is set to take his talents to Cal, a storied program coming fresh off its 7th NCAA championship -- a pedigree Hatton is excited to join.

"I'm stoked," he said. "Through Instagram and talking to the coaches, I'm so stoked they make everything so easy -- they always have. It's just a great feeling to stay a Bear and be part of their legacy."

But Hatton's rise in the swimming ranks is fairly new. His go-to sport was actually water polo.

It wasn't until this past Fall that he decided to focus all his energy on swim.

"Exceptional athlete, he's exceptionally talented," says coach Mark Bennett.

Coach Bennett says he, like many others, saw untapped potential.

"Everybody watched him, watched how talented he was and wondered to themselves, 'What if he committed to swimming as his number 1 sport?'"

A recent commitment that's paid off.

"What encourages me is the coaching staff at Cal," Hatton said. "They've talked to me, they've assured me that they like having athletes that come to them that are a little bit more raw, a little bit more unrefined."

Raw talent that Hatton will use to compete in the 50 and 100m free for the Bears.

Before chasing a national title at Berkeley, he's chasing as many records as he can at Buchanan.

"I mean, just more school records if I can," he said. "Live the senior year that I want to live, have fun with my friends, family and just make those memories that I've been making."