By Chris Moffitt,

This is the part of the season where TPA swimming truly begins to shine. Our swimmers have begun to perfect their techniques and really distinguish themselves.

Swim Co-Captain Bronson Stephens made a remarkable accomplishment when he swam a personal best time in the 50 Free at under 24 seconds. He recounts some of the steps he took in order to make this achievement: “I made sure I got enough rest the night before. If you don’t get enough sleep you can be fatigued for the entire meet. And before the race, I made sure that I got my heart rate up so I was ready to race, but I also tried to stay relaxed and focused. I try not to think too much before my race. It can make you nervous. During my race I just focused on getting back to the wall as fast as I could. I don’t think I even took a breath. Well, I might’ve taken one.” All of these intense and thoughtful measures certainly paid off for Bronson when he learned how well he did. He says, “I felt relieved and excited because I felt like all the late nights, the long training, and hard work paid off.”

Junior David Hudson has also greatly distinguished himself after placing second in the state last season for Division II in both the 100 Fly and the 200 Individual Medley. He says, “It feels great to be seated that high in state.” But David is not satisfied yet; his goal is “to win state in both of those events.”

The boys team as a whole is excited to be currently ranked 6th in the state for Division II in the 200 Medley Relay. The girls team is also working very hard and has high goals. Co-Captain Katherine Riffle says: “To make state, our girls medley relay needs to drop 10 seconds.” They certainly have their work cut out for them! As we follow this team through the rest of the season, we can certainly expect great things from both the boys and girls swim teams!