The Hawks team swam the Counties competition for boys on February 4, and girls on February 5. This competition is called Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference (UCBACS). It is a competition against all the schools in Harford County, including Aberdeen, Bel Air, C. Milton Wright, Edgewood, Fallston, Harford Tech, Joppatoowne, Patterson Mill, and Havre De Grace. The meet is held at Magnolia Middle School in Joppatowne.
As a team, the Hawks finished sixth out of 14, resulting from combined boys’ and girls’ points. Separately, the girls finished third overall.
The boys’ teams had the 200 relay race place in the top 15 races of the night. The 200 freestyle relays consist of senior Michael DeJesus, freshman Shane Whaley, freshman Gavin Billings, and senior James Cassidy.
DeJesus mentions how he “always feels a bit nervous and passionate…Once I get into the water and start racing, [it] just turns into a competitive spirit [and] I just want to swim as fast as I can.”
DeJesus also swims the 50 free sprint, as well as other freestyle events such as the 100 or 200. One of the senior’s fastest times for a 50 free is 25 seconds; for comparison, the fastest 50 freestyle is 19.9 seconds set by Jordan Crooks of the Cayman Islands, according to the University of Tennessee.
DeJesus mentions that he views swimming as “a race against yourself, and as long as you try to or do better than last time, then that’s a win.”
For the girls, there were multiple high-place finishes in races, including the following: Junior Ava Sealy placed fifth in the 500 freestyle, sophomore Jade Andrews placed sixth in the 100 backstroke, and junior Logan Sealy placed sixth in the 100 breaststroke.
Jade Andrews says that the hardest part in the 100 backstroke is “the last 25” but she says that, “I still tell myself to push to the end.” Andrews says that she wishes to work on “my speed, form, power, and endurance. I still have so much to learn as a beginner swimmer.”
Andrews got into swimming due to her best friend, sophomore Autumn Tilman, who “encouraged me to join her summer swim team called Aqua Culture.” She continues, “I began to love swimming.”
Continuing with the women’s scores, the women’s 400 freestyle relay consisted of junior Emma Dorsey, freshman Sofia Roberston, junior Kendall Chandler. Sophomore Abi Hadding placed fifth and Chandler placed third in the 100 butterfly.
Chandler mentioned that for her, swimming is “such a fun environment; the people and the coaches create a super supportive atmosphere that makes being a part of the team such an amazing experience!” She also mentions that she was excited because she “saw so many familiar faces who I knew would be cheering me on and that gave me such confidence!” During the race, Chandler was in lane one with an empty lane beside her. “When I finished, I thought that I had done poorly, but I didn’t realize that I had set a new personal record until I talked to my coach.”
For regionals, Chandler is focusing on butterfly and breaststroke, as well as improving her butterfly kick, rhythm, and pull. She adds, “I am very excited to swim 100 fly again and hopefully go into regionals feeling strong and confident after more practice.”