Swimming Through Struggle

The girls swim and dive team prepares for their next meet through challenges of COVID-19

Maddy Mabray, Staff Reporter|January 7, 2021

Junior Sarah Percy races down her lane in the Panther Relays.

Despite efforts to maintain social distancing and facilitate proper mask wearing, the new procedures put in place have not limited the surge of quarantines, and the girls swim and dive team have found it hard to maintain good practices and team unity.

“Everyone is quarantined and everyone is just there at different times and you don’t get as much time together as a whole team.” Sophomore Xime Avila said.

Avila, along with many of her teammates, have faced this personally as they are quarantined from their evening practices and even their meets. Avila hopes to prevent this further in the season through her specific requests to her teachers to sit in socially distant areas for the weeks leading up to state, and was even willing to go online for the semester to protect her season.

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“As a team we all win together and we all lose together..everybody’s goal is to win.”

— Kyndall Steinmeyer

“[Swimming] was just always a lot of freedom…you can move every which way in the water.” Avila said.

The team faces other challenges to improve in the pools as well. Freshman Isabella Keene hopes to improve her strength and times as she also comes back from quarantine.

“[Swim is] actually pretty hard…you have to do a lot.” Kenne said.

Through the challenging and hectic times, still, the team pushes forward.

“As a team we all win together and we all lose together..everybody’s goal is to win.” Freshman Kyndall Steinmeyer said.

For Steinmeyer, she loves the people and atmosphere the team strives for.

“I love our team, everybody has that mindset where it’s like we all have energy, we’re all bright…so positive.” Steinmeyer said.

She notes her focus at meets as a place to go out and give her best, seeking to improve in each competition and keep the season going strong despite the setbacks.

The team’s next meet is tonight at 8:30 against Duchesne High School. They will compete at the St. Peters Rec-Plex as a home game, and go ready to support and cheer on each other’s accomplishments.

“I feel like we try to have focus on…having fun, and just trying your best and doing what you can do.” Avila said.