Thomas Jefferson Boys’ Swim team before an exciting home meet. photo by Daniella Prime-Morales
The Swim Team wraps up an exciting season.
With the spring sports season coming to a close, Boys’ Swim and Dive is finishing up another great season. Boys’ swim has always been a small sport at Thomas Jefferson High School, but there was a good turnout this year of 15 athletes. With only five returning members from last season, six swimmers who aren’t students at Thomas Jefferson, and four new team members, this year was one focused on building community within the team and practicing the fundamentals. Although this year was mainly focused on rebuilding the team and its chemistry, it was still a very successful season, with several boys qualifying for state and the team winning their first meet in TJ Boy’s Swim history.
The season spans across three months, with fifteen total meets, excluding the state championship on May 9th. With one meet every week, the team faced a lot of pressure to drop time quickly, which can be immensely difficult. Nevertheless, this team has proved that hard work pays off, with more than half the team qualifying for state. Anyone who hadn’t qualified had the chance at the DPS League meet on May 2nd. There were two days of League: prelims and finals. If a swimmer is in the top 18 fastest of their event during prelims, they go back for finals. Those who qualify for State have prelims and finals as well, however they need to be in the top 18-26 (depending on the race) in their event to go to finals the next day. Though this is typically a very nerve wracking event, Ben Pupelis, a sophomore at Kent Denver who swims for TJ and has qualified for state, shared that his favorite memory on the team was actually on the first day of the state competition last year when they went to breakfast together and shaved each other’s heads, which helped improve the mood. Ben attended and swam for TJ during his freshman year and stayed with the team after transferring schools. He explained, “I stayed with the team this year because I absolutely love the constant support and cheering that creates an amazing team atmosphere.” Though many of the previous members from last year left, Pupelis said that hasn’t stopped the boys from fostering a positive environment and team chemistry. He said, “Our greatest challenge has been the change we have undergone since last year. We lost a lot of high-end swimmers, had a change in coaching, and had to make many adjustments for the new freshmen and juniors who needed a bit more support. I would say that our team bonding activities and generally small team size have helped us move through challenges as friends rather than as teammates, and we constantly throw out jokes to get through the harder times.”
Sydney Smith, a junior at TJ who has been on the team since his freshman year, shared that creating that positive environment as a team is very important and how it is easier and all the more fun to cheer on your teammates as friends rather than only teammates. He even described building community among the team as a key feature of improving your swimming. This year, the team tried to have a team dinner after every swim meet, which helped them bond and get to know each other outside the pool, especially for a team in which many kids go to different schools. Smith’s favorite memory of this year’s team was after they had won the first meet in TJ Boys’ history, a home meet against Fountain Valley High School on April 10th, and they went to get gyros and celebrate their win. This win was just another remarkable part of the season, and all the swimmers are excited to see what future seasons hold for them, whether it is a new personal record or the future possession of a league championship. TJ students and staff wish the eight state swimmers good luck, and they’re sure the athletes will make the school proud.
