Jumping straight into the pool after break, JV Swim trained long and hard for our meet against NMH. Through challenging practices, we focused on technique and improvement, ultimately finishing just a few points behind NMH. With a few students out due to illness that day, we had to quickly rework the line up only 30 minutes before the meet. However, I’m incredibly proud of the team for quickly adapting to the new changes and for staying focused. I’m especially grateful for my teammates who stepped up and volunteered to swim additional events. For example, Jiwon Shin ’17 volunteered to swim (and won!) the 500 yard freestyle. We also could not have made it through the meet without the help of Ashley Stewart ’20, who diligently copied down changes and managed the meet.
From the very start, each swimmer on the team gave it their best in every event and supported each other on the sidelines. Cynthia Lugo ’20, when not swimming her own events, was always on the other side of the pool cheering on her teammates from beginning to end. Day in and day out, I love how this team is ultimately about working hard together to foster growth as swimmers and as teammates. Ian Gordan ’19 remarked, “[This meet], I could tell that many of us who were new to the team were a lot more confident and performed better in our events.” It was a tight meet that came down to the last relay, and it was great to see how the team persevered together to give NMH a challenge.
I’m excited to continue diving into the pool and working hard with this team, which is simply incredible. We had several PBs (personal bests) this meet, and I look forward to seeing how much more we can grow and improve as a group.
Written by Senior Captain/guest writer Karen Tai ’17