Rebuilding Eisenhower Girls Swim Team

Rebuilding

     Last year the Ike Girls Swim Team were league champs for the first time in 22 years. They had a state relay, and two state swimmers. The teams numbers were hurting after covid, but the team is steadily being rebuilt. The team continued to grow this year, reaching 30 swimmers, compared to last year's 26. This year, they are looking stronger than ever, with 5 relays able to compete. But the swim team is still facing challenges as they do their best to have a successful season.

Practice Struggles

     The Ike girls swim team shares practice time with the Davis Girls swim team, splitting a 6 lane, 25 yard pool. Ike gets three lanes, ranging 8-10 girls in each lane. The pool is so full the swimmers struggle to swim longer distances, with anything over 100 yards they begin to lap each other. There are 5 teams from the valley that share Lions pool, so it isn’t possible to practice at a different time. The pool at the Aquatic Center at the YMCA would be a great place for some of the teams to practice but they have yet to allow any swim teams to train there.

Coaching

     Coaching has also created a challenge for the girls swim team, with 3 different coaches in the past 5 years. There has been a lot of time spent learning how to coach a team, and while the coaches have done a good job, the lack of consistency has been difficult for the athletes. Not only has the team gone through the obstacles of new coaching, they don’t have enough coaches for the amount of swimmers on the team. Coach Andrea Redman, the current coach, has no assistant. She has to manage working with athletes that have never swam competitively to those who are D1 prospects. It is difficult for her to split her time between the different ability levels, from writing workouts and sets to giving technique advice.

Start of the Season

     Despite the lack of space and working with new coaches the athletes are working hard to make the most of their season. At the Jamboree, the girls A  200 free relay placed 1st with a time of 1:49.86 out of all 7 teams in attendance. The girls also beat Eastmont at their first league meet by 30 points. Last year, Eastmont was the only team the girls team didn’t beat. They also won the 200 medley relay and 400 free relay, and placed second in the 200 free relay. The girls team is looking strong, and hoping for league  and district champs.