By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- He began swimming competitively as a youngster after moving from Thailand to Massachusetts nearly a decade ago.

"My mom (Sirilak) kind of forced me to join the Boys and Girls Club team in Watertown," said Jirat Saengthong. "When I first came here, I didn't have a lot of friends or hang out after school. I'd play video games all day. She forced me into sports, like karate and swimming."

From there, Saengthong swam for the Crimson Aquatics team and then broke school records and qualified for the state championships while at Watertown High School.

The more that Saengthong kept improving, the more he wanted to continue his swimming career.

That led him to Bridgewater State University in order to major in aviation management and be part of the Bears' swimming & diving team.

Now a junior who swims the butterfly and freestyle events, Saengthong is in his third season of being a consistent points producer for BSU.

He has won a Little East Conference individual championship in the 100-yard freestyle, is part of two relay teams that own BSU records and has been on three relay teams that won Little East titles.

Saengthong finished first six times in individual races as a freshman in the 2023-24 season and seven times as a sophomore. Through five meets this season, Saengthong has already recorded seven individual first-place finishes.

Saengthong, whose top events are the 100 and 200-yard freestyle races, has come a long way from his first venture into competitive swimming with the Boys and Girls Club team.

"Back in Thailand, swimming wasn't my first sport at all," said Saengthong, who was a badminton player in his native country. "I didn't expect to come here and swim. Swimming at the college level is pretty big. I couldn't imagine myself being here swimming for Bridgewater.

"I joined a club team (Crimson Aquatics) and I saw a lot of improvement in myself, so I kept going. Sophomore year of high school, I saw that I could keep going with my swimming.

"In my senior year of high school, I dropped my times and was like, 'I can swim in college, for sure.' I wanted to have an extra four years to improve."

After graduating from Watertown High, Saengthong made his way to Bridgewater State, drawn in large part by its aviation program. The school is one of a few in the region to offer that as a major.

Saengthong is fascinated by airports and airplanes and is hoping to work perhaps as an air traffic controller after graduating in 2027.

"I looked around for aviation and that was my No. 1 priority,'' said Saengthong. "I was looking at other schools in other states but wanted to stay close.

"Going to the airport really excites me. It's really fun. Everyone is excited at the airport. I really like traveling and planes. I want to be an air traffic controller, work doing something related to airports. I'd be really happy with that."

Saengthong and his mother moved to Watertown from Bangkok in 2016, a couple decades after his grandfather had come to America.

The mother and son became citizens of the United States in the summer of 2024, and Saengthong's father, Chayawat, is a citizen as of this year.

"It's big," said Saengthong of being a citizen here. "It feels like I have more freedom now. It feels more comfortable being a citizen.

"I came here not knowing any English at all. I really had to change a lot of my routines. It was not the same here. I started making friends with my swimming."

Saengthong is now one of the leaders for the BSU squad, which is idle until Jan. 17 when it hosts Brandeis University and Keene State.

He won the 50 butterfly and 100 freestyle against Wheaton College on Nov. 1 to earn Little East Swimmer of the Week honors. Saengthong took first in the 100 freestyle and second in the 50 freestyle in a tri-meet with Saint Michael's and Maine Maritime Academy.

Last weekend at the BSU Invitational, Saengthong won the 50 and 100 butterfly and the 200 freestyle and was on a pair of winning relay teams.

"He's been a good swimmer for us the last two years, but really started to develop this year," said Bears coach Michael Caruso. "He's starting to explode, putting a lot of time in the weight room and working really hard.

"He's kind of like a lunch-pail kid in a lot of ways. He works on some extra stuff and is really in tune with his body. He does good work outside of the pool, doing the little things.

"The sky's the limit for him. He's just really starting to come into his own."

With a season and a half still to go in his BSU career, Saengthong wants to just keep getting better and add to his Little East championship collection along the way.

"I wanted to break my goal time in every event and I've done that," he said. "I see a lot of improvement in my butterfly.

"It means a lot (to be the conference Swimmer of the Week). It was my first time getting it, so it was pretty exciting to see my name up there.

"Our training has been a little bit different this year. I think that's really helped me with stamina when I swim 100 or more yards. We've been doing more yardage and pushing each other in the pool."

Saengthong returns to Thailand for visits to see family members and friends, and he is happy at BSU where he gets to study aviation and be a key part of the swimming & diving team.

"It's been a really good experience," said Saengthong. "I'm really glad I came here. I made a lot of friends.

"Time really flies. I can't believe I'm a junior."