Without the mountains that have served as guideposts through his life, Bryan Bonack may lose his sense of direction next year when he’s swimming for Boston University.

“It is going to be weird,” the Lewis-Palmer senior said. “I’m not sure I’m going to like (being away from the mountains) much. But I am gonna get water, so that’ll be nice.”

And while Bonack did lose his way in the water once, he found a compass in the Rangers’ program and has blossomed into an All-American swimmer.

“I just didn’t really have a lot of motivation my freshman year,” said Bonack, who started high school at Pine Creek before transferring. “Then I came to be here with a lot of my friends. There was a lot of energy and I started to explore my potential. Motivation was everything for me. Everything just kind of fell into place and I kind of took off.”

Rangers’ coach Alan Arata has served as an anchor in Bonack’s swimming career, tutoring him at age 9 and turning him into an all-around state champion a year later.

“He kind of fell of a bit,” Arata said. “… He wasn’t at the level he could have been. But he kind of gained a fire for swimming again.”

Now Bonack is one of the most versatile swimmers in the state.

“He could make the finals in the 5A state meet in every event,” Arata said. “And there’s maybe one other guy that can do that. … So Bryan has really become a top-level swimmer.”

And the Rangers will need that versatility as they move back up to 5A after winning the past two 4A state titles. Air Academy and Coronado also are on the move, dropping down to 4A.

Lewis-Palmer lost a lot of its depth from last year, so Arata believes a team title this season likely is out of the question.

“Our team is much smaller than it has been,” Arata said. “We’re kind of back to where we were a couple years ago as far as size. But we have much more strength, and (Bonack is) a big part of that.”

So is junior Ryan Arata, who won state titles last year in the 100-yard butterfly and 100 backstroke and helped the Rangers win the 200 medley and 400 free relays.

Bonack was on the winning medley relay and swam an All-American time while finishing second in the 200 individual medley. He is expecting more of the same from his teammate and himself to help his squad to a top-five finish.

“I’m so excited we’re 5A,” Bonack said. “Winning a title at 5A holds a lot more value. … If you win at 5A, you’re for sure the best in the state.”

And before he heads east — away from the mountains — to Boston, Bonack wants to reach the summit of high school swimming in Colorado.  

“I’m looking forward to going out with a bang,” he said.

Seniors Bryan Bonack, left, and Collin Babcock, top, and junior Ryan Arata will look to lead Lewis-Palmer to a top-5 finish at the 5A state meet. The Rangers won the past two 4A state team titles. Photo by THE GAZETTE FILE