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Steamboat Springs — Cole Worsley certainly looked around.

He checked out schools from coast to coast - big ones like Ohio State University and the University of Washington, and prestigious ones like the University of Michigan, alma mater of gold medal factory Michael Phelps.

In the end, however, nothing seemed better than sticking with what he already knew best.

Worsley, a state champion swimming senior at Steamboat Springs High School, will attend the University of Denver next season.

"I'm really excited. I can't wait," Worsley said, fresh out of the pool after training. "I felt like I saw myself at DU, and it seemed like the right choice. The school is beautiful, the campus is nice and I really like the people there."

Worsley will follow in the footsteps of his brother, Blake, who is swimming this season at DU as a senior.

Blake Worsley finished 10th last year at the NCAA Championships in the 500-meter freestyle event.

Patti Worsley, Cole and Blake's mother, said that success may have helped influence her younger son.

"Blake has done really well with the coaching there. I like the coaches, and I like that they're consistent with the coaching," she said. "It's nice to have a familiarity with the school."

She also, of course, didn't mind that Denver is a tad closer to Steamboat Springs than Ann Arbor, Mich.

"Oh yeah, I didn't want him to go far away," she said. "I like the fact he's just going to Denver. But he made the decision himself, and we (went) around and looked at all the different-sized schools. He had to weigh what was important to him and decide on his own."

Without a high school swimming team in Steamboat, Worsley opted to travel to Craig to swim for Moffat County High School's squad.

There he has enjoyed tremendous success, and his career reached an early peak last spring as he captured a title in the 100-meter butterfly at the state championships.

He hopes to add that to his resume this spring as he returns to the pool for Moffat County.

"I have to win this year in both of my events," he said, still unsure what two events he'll opt to compete in.

"I'm happy to have the college search over with. It takes a lot of stress out of my senior year. It's nice to have a firm grasp on what you're going to do in the future. I know what's going on, and I know where I'm going and how I feel about it."

- To reach Joel Reichenberger, call 871-4253 or e-mail jreichenberger@steamboatpilot.com