MSHS Swim Team Makes History at State Meet
February 27, 2019
As winter sports come to an end, teams all around the state are putting in hard work in order to get a spot at State competitions. Manitou Springs High School’s Girls’ Swim Team is no exception. Through hard work and lots of vigorous practice, nine members of the team got a chance to showcase their swimming skills at the state swim competition that was held in Denver, Colorado. Five sophomores earned the opportunity to compete with the team to represent Manitou Springs High School: Lindsey Dwinell, Avrie Tomsik, Audrey Spiecker, Bella Kuzbek and Sofija Cirko. Coco Stephens was the only junior out of the nine people that got to swim at the state meet and competed in the 200 medley relay, 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle and the 200 freestyle relay. As for freshmen, Aiden Coté earned the honor of being the only 9th grader to compete with her older teammates at the state meet. Coté swam in the 200 IM along with the 100 breaststroke.
Seniors Kaitlyn Cashdollar and Sydney Dolloff-Holt both worked hard during the regular season in order to be able to compete in the state meet. On top of the season being their final year on the high school swim team, it is especially bitter-sweet because they are both the Captains of the team. With a total of three seniors on the team, Téa Santos is another one of the members that will be graduating in the spring.
Cashdollar and Dolloff-Holt both competed in the 200 medley relay alongside Stephens and Speicker, contributing to the earning of a 5th place title in the relay. Dolloff-Holt received 3rd place in the 100 breaststroke, and 5th place in the 200 IM. “The 100 breaststroke is my favorite event to swim at State and any meet really because you feel like you’re floating on top of the water and you can feel the speed,” said Dolloff-Holt. In addition to the 200 medley relay, Cashdollar competed in 100 butterfly and the 200 IM, placing 13th and 33rd respectively.
Overall, the swim team had a great season in which nine girls were able to represent the high school at State. While many events at the meet were memorable, one impressive event that occurred was that the 400 free relay made it back to the second day of competition for the first time in 13 years. The 20 fastest competitors get to move on to the final race, and the Manitou girls pulled through and were able to earn a spot at 18th place.
As the season comes to end, the team members are acknowledging the fact that seniors will be leaving, and it is now time for underclassmen to take over as captains and spirit leaders. Next swim season, Stephens and Cirko will be taking the spot of the graduating captains. As for spirit leaders, Tomsik, Leo Wines (11), and Kuzbek will be taking the role.
