sports Swim team faces challenge without pool to use Catherine Valencia staff writer Without a pool to practice in, the swim team remains on the land to condition and prepare for the upcoming season. With all of the restrictions due to COVID-19 this year, schools and other organizations have chosen not share their pool facilities. The pool the team practiced in at the Scott County YMCA until it permanently closed in July 2019 due to structural engineering concerns and the lack of funding for repairing the issues. The high school did not have its own pool and used the YMCA’s pool. “I hope we have a season this year, but right now, I’m not too confident that we will,” Deanna King (10) said. “It’s a little daunting not having a pool close by that we can use to practice. We all just want to dive into a pool, but COVID is making that very difficult,” Allie Schmidt (11) said. After the Scott County YMCA pool closed, the swim team practiced at New Washington High School, which is about 20 miles from SHS, to prepare for the 2019-2020 season. The team had a season of many personal
SWIM RECORDS Girls 200-yard freestyle relay: Megan Hardin, Abby Colson, Makayla Barger, and Allie Schmidt (2019-2020) 200-yard IM: Mollie Collins (2013-2014) Boys 200-yard freestyle: Kyle Harrison (2012-2013) 100-yard freestyle: Brandon Jerrell (2011-2012)
Photo by Sara Denhart
No water in sight: During their “land practices,” the swim team works on conditioning in the weight room to prepare for the upcoming season until they secure a pool. No public or school pool are available in Scott County.
records achieved and school records broken. The team had to ride a bus for at least 30 minutes each way to attend practices compared to the short bus ride to the Scott
County YMCA pool. “It was definitely different. The bus ride we enjoyed. We got to talk to everyone else,” Taylor Bottorff (12) said.
Since SHS does not have a pool lined up for its practices at the moment, the team has hit the weight room to condition for the season as they wait to find a place to practice. During “dry land” practices, the swimmers work on their swim performance by improving their speed and doing exercises for their core. “We are doing what we can right now. We are still putting our effort into it,” Bottorff said. “We’re hoping for the best.”
One last race: XC runners end season at regionals Hailee Bowen staff writer
Photo by: Rachael Mount
Making strides: Deegan Cornelius (10) continues to improve his time in hopes to improve next season. Cornelius and Clarah Fettig (12) moved forward to regional competition at Ceraland Park in Columbus.
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While the cross-country team as a whole did not make it to regionals, two members of the team did in individual races. Clarah Fettig (12) and Deegan Cornelius (10) learned from their experience at the regional race held Oct. 17 at Ceraland Park in Columbus. “I went into regionals like it was any other meet. After going last year I knew what to expect. It was a great time running there but I’m more focused on qualifying
Nov. 2020, Issue 2
for semi-state next year,” Cornelius said. He finished 60th out of 86 runners at regionals with a time of 18:58.5. Although Cornelius has another high school season after regionals, the race was Fettig’s last high school cross-country event, making it a bittersweet moment for her. Fettig finished 58th out of 81 runners at Ceraland with a time of 23:04.7. “It was definitely a strange transition going from practicing with 11 other
hard-working individuals to there only being two us,” Fettig said. “I felt a lot of pressure and stress leading up to regionals knowing it would most likely be my last cross-country race of my high school career. It was bittersweet competing in regionals. I was overjoyed and grateful to have the opportunity to run again, but it was hard knowing I would be running my last race without any of my teammates running with me.”
