He's a special swimmer and will be successful at the college level because of his work ethic and determination to succeed.
Usually (swimmers) stick to their two specialties over the course of four years. Brendan swam something different at the state meet every year (over the past three seasons).
After his sophomore year he and his parents got together and decided that Berkley would be a better fit in terms of education and athletic programs offered and so he made the switch. Each year he has gotten progressively better in the pool and in the classroom.
As with everything else in life, sometimes things are inches from being completely and utterly different. But the best thing to do is deal with the reality and accept it as it is.