KU Scholar Athlete of the Month: Zach Hils

5-Time Champ Leads LexCath to State Title

School: Lexington Catholic High
GRADE: 11
Sport: Swimming

Academics: Zach carries a 3.57 GPA, and is a member of the honor roll and the National Spanish Honor Society. That’s despite missing 20 days of school to swimming.

Parents: Kim & Andy

The first time Zach Hils of Lexington Catholic High swam the grueling 400-yard individual medley event, he popped out of the pool and declared: “That was rough. I’m never doing that again.”

When he was informed that he had just completed a Sectional cut time, Zach changed his mind in a hurry. Five years later, the IM is one of his best events – but not his only one.

Zach, 17, is a 6-foot-4, 200-pound junior who won two more State high school titles in February. He claimed gold in the 100 butterfly and the 200 IM, in which he lowered his own State record to 1:46.38. He also helped the Knights to their first State swim championship in nearly 30 years.

The individual victories swelled his State title total to five. As a freshman, he won the 200 IM and the 100 freestyle and added another 200 IM title in 2017.

“The State meet was really exciting,” Zach said. “I really wanted the team to win. The school meets are the most fun.”

The high school season, when he is coached by Dave Little, is a small part of Zach’s calendar. Since he was young, he has been a top age-group swimmer in both long and short course seasons, when he is coached by Dave Doolin.

His 200 IM time ranks him sixth in the nation among all 17-year-olds. In 2016, he won the 200 IM in the National Futures event in Atlanta.

In October, USA Swimming invited him as one of only two swimmers in his event to work out for four days at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado.

It’s been easy for Zach to accomplish so much. All he has to do is wake up at 4:20 in the morning a couple days a week, swim up to 8,000 yards a day, practice both before and after school and take only one day off a week. Yeah, a real piece of cake.

Fortunately, Zach loves the water, has discipline flowing out of his ears, works like a madman and has an Olympic-sized competitive spirit.

“He’s tenacious, a fierce competitor and he’s humble until it’s game on,” said his mother Kim, a former volleyball player at UK. She also coached at Centre College. His dad, Andy, played rugby at UK.

Swimming takes up so much of Zach’s time – he misses up to 20 days of school a year – it’s a wonder he can make the honor roll. But he does. He carries a 3.57 GPA and is a member of Beta Club and the National Spanish Honor Society.

That’s while juggling homework between phone calls from college coaches. Zach is a top recruit and is awaiting results of his ACT score before choosing a school.

After one more year at Lexington Catholic, then comes college and then… maybe the Olympics.

At this rate, don’t bet against him.