The swim season is well underway and the swim team has worked tirelessly to achieve the best results possible at their meets. They recently qualified for regionals for the first time in school history.

Freshman Evan Fang detailed how the swim team age group mostly varies and provided advice for students interested in participating on the swim team. 

“It varies a lot, but you should start when you’re a freshman so that you can get the experience,” Fang said. 

Fang explained how the swim season has been so far, and the relationships he has with his coach and fellow teammates. 

“Swim season’s been good,” Fang said. “The coach is really motivating. She does really hard practices. My teammates are very motivating also, they make me excited to swim.”

Swim team captain and junior Maya Smith talked about some struggles that the swim team has encountered and how they have supported each other. 

“A lot of the time, motivation is hard to muster, especially after a hard day of classes,” Smith said. “That’s when encouragement is important— it helps to motivate us [all] to do our very best, even when we’re not at 100%!”

Head swim coach Megan Graves described the swim team’s experience when they qualified for regionals, and how their latest swim meet had an unexpected change for the better. 

“The experience was amazing,” Graves said. “The swimmers have been working hard all season, and set a goal at the beginning of the season. The girls relay was really close, so that came as a surprise. The girls had tried their hardest and done their best, so for them to make it to region as a surprise felt like walking in the clouds.”

Smith recalled her emotions when they received the news that they qualified for regionals.

“Holy guacamole, once we got the times back we were ecstatic!,” Smith said. “All of us were hugging, near crying, and all of us had big bright smiles on our faces. I couldn’t be prouder of my team and their accomplishments!”

Smith explained what makes being the captain of the swim team so enjoyable and how the swim team has grown into another family for her. 

“I enjoy being able to create connections, and to be able to help Coach Graves and the other captains where I can,” Smith said. “I’m glad that as captain, I can bond with everyone on the team, and I’ve created friendships that I know will last a long time!”

Graves listed her goals for the swim team in the future and how she would like to expand and continue progressing in the years to come.

“​I’d like to see the swim team grow to have more athletes on the team,” Graves said. “We have grown a lot this year, and I want to keep that up and continue growing. I’d love to see the swim team make it to state this year and in the coming years on a regular basis.”