SWIMMING INTO STATES

This school year has been great for sports, but there is one sport at Suncoast that does not get as much recognition as football or soccer: swimming.

This year, the boys swim team made it to states once again. Junior Gavin Smith, a member of the boys swim team described how he “trained about two hours a day, six days a week.” Suncoast’s dedicated swimmers went to compete in Stuart on Saturday, Nov. 17 and did well. Smith made it to the finals in both of his races, the 100-meter butterfly and the 100-meter backstroke. He placed sixteenth in the butterfly and fifth in the backstroke. Smith, along with his teammates, made record times in their races, coming close to the gold, but falling just short.

It was not just the boys that performed well. The girls swim team did exceptionally well. They came in first in the 400-meter freestyle and second in the 200-meter freestyle relay. Juniors Dakota Brisco and Dani Salcedo did very well in their own individual races as well. Brisco made it to finals for the 100-meter and 200-meter freestyle, and Salcedo placed eleventh in the 200-meter freestyle and ninth in the 100-meter butterfly. The two of them, along with the rest of their incredible team, went home with victory in their hands and a celebration in the near future, setting high standards for future Suncoast swimmers.

All three juniors have been on the Suncoast swim team since their freshman year, and they made it to states all three years. Brisco and Salcedo hope that next year at states, the girls’ team will make it into the top four, with even higher hopes for success in their own individual races. Both the boys and girls swim teams have been extremely successful the past few years, and are making names for themselves in Suncoast swim team history. “I felt really good, and felt that overall, during this season, I did well,” Smith said, “and I feel that the team did really well overall.”

As winter rolls in and the waters cool, the swim season comes to an end, but swimming never dies. Most of our swimmers will be returning for yet another year of swimming, and will be ready to defend their title. “State champs,” Brisco said, “Reigning.”