The swim and dive teams at Reedy are an exceptional representation of our school’s determination to succeed. Currently, the teams are striving to compete at each level of district, regional, and state. Students on the team have been working hard at every meet to give it their all.
Swimming and Diving Season is one of the longest seasons and they must work to maintain their stamina and growth.
“We have the longest high school sport season there is, right,” swimming coach Jenny Beagle said. “We start from the first day of school. We go through the third week in February. It’s really long, so obviously keeping them healthy is important. But as far as advancing them goes, it is getting as many from our district meet to the regional meet, and then advancing as many from the regional meet to the state meet.”
The swim and dive team begins with a tryout process that is filtered through by Coach Beagle.
“We think that by starting the second day of school, we just get right into normal practice,” junior Maxwell Rand said. “Then throughout the week, our coach is cutting people who didn’t make the cut, and if by the end of the week you’re still there at practice, you’re on the team.”
Many swimmers and divers have different and unique stories about beginning their time on the team.
“I used to be a swimmer, and at one point we had a chance to go jump off the diving boards. I thought, ‘Hey, this is fun,’ and wanted to try it out” sophomore Evan Beard said.
The swim and dive team’s hard work is paying off throughout the meets that they have every month.
“The swim meets are going really great. They’re really fun. Yeah, it’s very fun for team bonding,” sophomore Alison Li said. “And there’s a lot of relays, and you got to cheer for your teammates.”
Many students at Reedy are involved in several extracurriculars. Teachers and coaches help students find a balance between their activities.
“The only struggle was really at the beginning of the year, when I had marching season, so I worked with Coach Beagle and Mr. Hoyer, the band director, to find out a schedule for me,” freshman Huyquang Ngyuen said.
Even with the team sometimes being hard to balance, students truly treasure being apart of the organization.
“I love the people,” junior Lauren Garigiola said. “Everyone’s so nice so welcoming, and they’re just so fun to be around,”
The swim and diving circle is a special place where students feel a companionship through the sport.
“It’s the meets and the community” Ngyuen said. “It’s so inviting and welcoming. So it’s really easy to get into.”
Members of the team feel a strong sense of belonging when practicing and competing.
“The team environment, it’s not just like you go and practice every morning, it’s more like a family, people that I know I will always have,” senior Audrey Bramlett said.
Swim and dive has provided students with the ability to learn values that they can take beyond the sport.
“It’s made me a better person because my attitude has changed,” junior Aanya Sharma said. “I become more positive especially towards diving, it’s a real mental sport, so like being around people with the same passion and stuff it’s like it’s nice,”
Students on the team have found skills that will help them in the future as they move on out of high school.
“Swimming has definitely taught me leadership skills, I’m more open to being helpful now,” Bramlett said.
The teams have high hopes to achieve school records at every level and to reach state competitions again.
“I’m looking forward to the championship meets and seeing if the girls can repeat and if we can win state,” sophomore Riley Scherman said.
The boys team also shares similar goals to break records and shatter previous standings.
“I’ll be getting to swim a little bit more this year, so I’m excited to see how it is this year,” senior Connor Yoshida said. “I want to break our school record for the 200 freestyle relay with my teammates, I think we can definitely do it this year.”
The swimming and diving teams have a list of goals and aspirations. In the end, the team simply wants a good season of swimming and diving.
“It’s not necessarily a winning district or winning region or anything like that,” Beagle said. “It’s how many kids we can get another weekend where they are swimming and swimming fast. And that’s what the goal usually is.”
