Crosland finished the week-long Otago and Canterbury championships in style by winning three feature senior men's events.
Crosland (28), a lifeguard at Moana Pool, won the 200m backstroke (2min 5.53sec), the 50m butterfly (26.13sec) and the 100m freestyle (53.37sec).
He returned to competitive swimming two years ago and his goal this season is to make the world championships in Barcelona in the 200m backstroke.
He won six titles and was the top senior male swimmer at the championships.
Crosland was 13 when Laing told him to ''go hard'' in the third lap of a 200m race.
''Duncan was the wise old man and was one of the biggest influences on my life,'' Crosland said.
He took Laing's advice when he blitzed the field in the 200m backstroke. Crosland had a half-body length lead after 50m, two lengths after 100m and then put his foot down and stretched it to five lengths at 150m, winning by a massive 6sec from Cameron James (Aquagym).
He employed the same tactics in the 100m freestyle when he pushed hard after the turn to beat Michael Finlay (Orca, Southland) by 0.5sec.
The favourite for the race was Matthew Hutchins (Wharenui), who had dominated the other open men's freestyle races at the championships.
His back foot slipped at the start, he fell into the water and never recovered. He was closing in at the turn but Crosland's burst in the third 25m kept him at bay and he finished third in 54.01sec.
Crosland is a member ofGennadiy Labara's Osca squad that finished the championships in style on Saturday.
Matthew Glassford (Neptune) dominated the senior men's 400m individual medley when he blitzed the field on the breaststroke leg to win in 4min 40.55sec and beat clubmate Robert Murray by 16sec.
It was level pegging after the butterfly and backstroke legs, before Glassford took off on the breaststroke lap.
''I put all my eggs in the breaststroke basket,'' Glassford said.
Kate Godfrey (Neptune) won the senior women's 400m individual medley in 4min 59.07sec from Osca team-mate Katie Kenneally (5min 1.77sec). Kenneally won the 200m backstroke in 2min 21.02sec.
Jeremy Hopkins (Neptune) continued his domination of the boys 13 and 14 events when he won the 400m individual medley in 4min 59.70sec and the 100m freestyle in 56.12sec.
Cecilia Crooks (Neptune) was a younger member of the Osca squad who dominated the girls 11 and 12 age group and won six gold medals - 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle, 100m and 200m backstroke and 200m individual medley.
Her best performance at the weekend was to win the 100m freestyle (1min 7.52sec) and the 200m backstroke (2min 48.11sec).
Isobel Ryan (Oamaru) won her fourth gold medal at the championships in the women's 15 and 16 100m freestyle when she started fast and edged out Aleisha Ruske (Neptune) in a time of 1min 0.59sec.
In the interprovincial contest, the Canterbury Shockwaves scored 6668.50 points to beat the Otago Stars (6400.5).
The best Canterbury performances at the weekend came from Natasha Lloyd (North Canterbury), who edged out Josie Kydd (Ashburton) with her senior women's 100m freestyle time of 59.81sec. Kydd swam 60.01sec.
Kydd was also in top form when she won the 50m butterfly in 29.15sec.
A feature of this race was her start when she made 11 strokes without taking a breath. Six strokes without a breath is considered the norm for top swimmers.
Coach Frank Wylie's Queenstown club won 28 medals, including eight golds.
Seven of the gold medals were won by Molly Law in the 10 and under grade. On Saturday night, she won the 100m freestyle (1min 16.52sec) and the 50m butterfly (39.51sec).
The other gold medal was won by Nikayla Bolch, in the women's 15 and 16 50m breaststroke. Hannah White (9) won the Terry Wall Memorial Breaststroke Cup.
Wanaka swimmers filled the first two spots in the boys 11 and 12 200m backstroke. Gregor Findlay was first (2min 11.89sec) and Wilfred Spearing second (2min 46.70sec).
