Swimming Through High School State

Last weekend, I had my very first high school state meet! Going into the competition, I really didn’t know what to expect. My coach had told me prior to the meet that it was different environment, especially since it was not prelims and finals. All high school state meets are held at Brigham Young University (BYU), and even after renovation, the pool is still hideous. But that is okay, because all you need is a lane, right? One thing is for sure, I had never felt more pressure during a race in my entire life. 

Early in the morning, we went to our pool to warmup before going down to BYU, where we would warmup yet again. Just, at BYU, it was a lot more crowded. On the first day, my only event was the 200 Freestyle. Even after I finished swimming, which wasn’t as fast as I would have liked, my hands were still trembling. I was disappointed with my results, but I realized that I needed to put that event in my past, and focus on my next three races. After two hours inside a sweaty natatorium, it was time for the most important meal, dinner. As y’all know from my previous posts, I am a food junkie, so I went to JCW’s and ordered a six (yes, you heard it right, six) piece chicken tender meal with fries and an Oreo shake. Later, I collapsed on my bed for a much needed good night sleep.

Warmup at BYU

Even earlier in the morning, we started warmup again for the second day. I felt less stressed, mainly because it gets easier after you have raced once. My events were the 500 Freestyle, 200 Freestyle Relay, and 400 Freestyle Relay. In the 500 Freestyle, I got a best time, and my team went one-two-three-four on the podium. In the 200 and 400 Freestyle Relays, everyone on my “squad” had amazing splits and we broke the 3A state records.

My Relay at Podium
Photo Courtesy of: The Salt Lake Tribune 

My 400 Freestyle Relay Squad

The girls team ended up scoring the most points in Utah high school swimming history, and both the PCHS girls and boys teams were state champions. A celebratory jump into the dive tank with all five of our coaches marked the end of this meet. On the bus ride back up to PC, we stopped at the Brick Oven for linner - a mix of both lunch and dinner - where I stuffed myself with any crumb that was within reach.

Now that high school swimming is over (yea!), I am ready to get back to club practice and those good old distance sets. For the next season, I hope to perform better by learning to keep calm before diving into the chlorine. If you would like to find out more information on this competition, the Salt Lake Tribune, Park Record, and Deseret News wrote articles, or results can be found here. 

I would like to give a shoutout to all 19 of my page-views from France and 15 page-views from India. If you guys want to be notified when I publish another post, be sure to become one of my loyal followers :). Later this week, I will be talking ‘bout senior state, so please stay tuned!

XOXO

Siena