After a number of disappointing seasons, the swim team is now enjoying success and is emerging as one of the best teams in the district. The boys team is 3-3 with close losses to Madison, Woodson, and Langley. The girls team is 4-2 with a loss to Langley and a loss to Madison.

“It’s exciting [but] it’s hard to work hard and not be able to win, because other teams have faster swimmers [but] this year, the kid’s hard work is more obvious to them because they have had some wins,” coach Gretchen Schule said.

The team is coached by Schule and Emily Smith. This is Schule’s second year as head coach and Smith is in her first year as assistant coach. Melanie Stephens is the captain of the girls’ swim team, and Tom Kress, A.G. Winchester, and Pat McGee are the captains of the boys team.

“We have had a strong year so far; we are not on top of the division, but we have the ability and motivation to get there,” Smith said.

During practice the team not only practices in the water, but also trains on land to prepare for its meets. Dry land practices consist mostly of running and sprints.

In their latest meet on Friday, Jan.14 the swim team fell to Langley at the Spring Hill Recreation Center. The swimming area was covered with signs promoting the Highlanders with phrases such as “We must protect our house” and “SWIMSTRONG. The posters were created by Schule and sophomore Therese McMahon to encourage the team to “Beat Langley.” The bleachers were covered with red and silver balloons on one side and green and yellow on the other.

After the warm up the team gathered for a spirited speech from its captains, and then traded competitive remarks with the Langley team. McLean started the meet off with strong diving performances. It was very close until Langley pulled away during the second half of the meet. The boys lost 146-170 and the girls lost 114-201.

Langley has many strong swimmers, most of whom train year round. The swim team had a number of best times in various events, but Langley did as well. During the meet parent volunteers sold score sheets for one dollar. The money is used by the team to finance the team’s pizza parties, senior gifts, and other team related things.

At the break during the middle of the meet both Mclean and Langley honored their graduating seniors with balloons and gifts. Mclean graduates are Philip Lentz, Robinson Lee, Patrick McGee, Jon Spring, AG Winchester, Tom Kress, Alex Moisa, Jeff Goodsell, Melanie Stephens, and Max Harper

The team has an upcoming meet today against South Lakes at the Spring Hill Recreation Center.

“A lot of our kids are really tired by the time they get to the wall, and they need to be more aggressive to make sure they finish in the best place possible,” Schule said.

For this meet the team will focus on their finishes, which they had trouble with against the Langley meet. Schule said the swimmers seemed tired going into the wall for the change of direction.

“I am very excited, we have dedicated swimmers and divers; pair that with some great team spirit and you never know what you can achieve,” Smith said. 

The district tournament is the last week of January and the Highlanders have a good chance to do well. They feel confident that they can be place in at least the top three if they have a good meet according to Schule.