On Friday, April 11, both the boys’ and girls’ swim teams comfortably defeated Aragon High School to continue their momentum towards the end of the season. The boys won 95-74, and similarly, the girls scored 93-75.
For senior Louann Bernaudin, part of the success for the girls’ side came from the increased level of commitment she has seen from her teammates at this point in the season.
“Everyone’s been trying their best. Also, you can see it after the events, when everyone’s breathless. And so I think it’s really great to see people giving their all, even though some people are a bit tired. They’re still showing up and then giving their all,” Bernaudin said.
Despite the team’s success, junior co-captain Marina Chan still wants to work to ensure there are no more missed events in the future and hopes the squad can improve their preparation before races.
“I think we could improve on, well, some people missed events today. I think we can improve on getting to our events on time and, making sure for relays, we get together beforehand,” Chan said.
However, Chan also highlighted the spirit of the team, even though the conditions were not ideal.
“I think the team did amazing. I love that everyone was cheering for each other. And even though it’s cold, we had high spirits,” Chan said.
On the boys’ side, sophomore Justin Chiang felt that the boys’ win in the relay helped contribute to their victory.
“I think we did good. Our relay beat their relay,” Chiang said. “I also think everyone supported each other.”
With the Peninsula Athletic League (PAL) Finals and Central Coast Section (CCS) Finals looming, the team is working on tapering mileage in preparation so all athletes are in the best shape, both physically and mentally, to compete when it really counts.
“We have two meets the week before [PAL Finals], so we’ll basically be doing a lot of tapering for PALs. Just get everyone as fast as they can be, so they’re ready to come out and swim,” coach Traci Kreppel said.
After a season of growth and hard work, Kreppel is hoping to see both girls’ varsity and boys’ varsity teams end in the top half of the league standings.
“We’d like to finish in the top three. We’re hoping the varsity girls might be able to pull out at number two, and then it just depends on if we can get everyone healthy and ready to swim on meet day. And then varsity boys, [I’m] hoping for third place,” Kreppel said.
