The 2023 - 2024 swim season is coming to a close. To the team, this can be kind of bitter-sweet. There have been a lot of interesting developments this year, including the addition of new teammates Mekenna Mcdonald, Bella Cornell, and Gracie Hudson who all saw improvement and made great strides. We also welcomed our two new wonderful coaches Oleh Olikhnovych and Yana Gekel
When talking to coach Yana she said, "I am proud of all of you ... and that it is impressive to wake up so early at this age and be determined to stay with it." The only real drawbacks noted were that it would have been beneficial to swim "before the season started," and the "access to the pool being limited" led to complications with practice times. Despite this, "the determination of the team led them to place high in most events, which is very impressive due to a smaller team size and circumstances."
I also had the chance to talk with team captain Bella Diehl, who said, "this season has been one of the most fun compared to other seasons since more people have joined since then" and that she has been able to swim with her "best friend since freshman year" referring to Mcdonald.
Finally, I interviewed team manager Robert Bagby, who stated that the team, "overcame many challenges and difficulties to become a very competitive team." He also mentioned that Jack Fraley has, "overcome many challenges like injuries and being the only guy on the team."