Though the year is coming to a close, the swim season is just beginning and La Salle’s swim team is getting ready for their first meet of the season this Thursday, December 8th at Sandy, weather permitting.

“I’m excited,” said Coach Mikel Rathmann. “We had a good, strong season last year, so I’m hoping we can build on that.” The 2015-16 swim season ended with 3 relays and 4 individual events going to the state championships and 3 school records being broken at districts. Coach Rathmann says that, although some good swimmers have graduated and moved on, there are also many returning swimmers that are showing much promise.

Some of the top swimmers this year include junior Sydney Nakagawa, senior Jason Waters, and senior Meredith Marcinko. All three went to state last year and the year before, and both Sydney Nakagawa and Jason Waters have broken school records.

“I’m really excited for this year,” said Sydney Nakagawa. “I think it’s going to be good! [I’m focusing on] doing better at state this year.”

The team has been preparing for their first meet with hour long practices on weekdays and two-hour practices on Saturdays. Though the practices can be exhausting, senior swimmer Jason Waters says that he is still looking forward to the long season.

“I think we have a really strong group of people this year… I think we’re going to do really well,” he said. That group of people is strong not only because of their swimming abilities, but also because of how close they are.

“We help each other out a lot and if one of us is struggling, we know that we can always go to a different team member for help,” said senior Lydia Pearce, when asked about the culture of the team.

Come out and support the team this Thursday at Sandy, and stay tuned to the Falconer for coverage of the rest of the season.