The swim team racked up yet another victory for our school at the District 6A swim meet on Jan. 23 at the University of Texas Swim Center.

Success was hard earned, with rigorous practices every day and the team strengthening, conditioning, and training to get to where they needed to be to prepare for the meet.

“We went out every morning to the pool, even when it was freezing outside and worked really hard to get ourselves where we needed to be,” Rory Gatson ‘18 said.

The team didn’t only prepare for the meet inside the pool. To get into the spirit, both genders participated in several traditions that have been around for many years – which were literally to dye for. Freshman boys were taken to Henry Lofton ’16’s house and had their hair bleached blonde, a certain rite of passage.

“It’s a tradition we participate in every year before district,” Jesse Gu ‘15 said. “It helps bring us all together and pushes us to be better so that we can go out and win.”

Freshman girls wore leggings made by their older sisters. Black leggings decorated in neon paint adorned the hallways the day before the meet. They were a symbol of family and the close knit relationship of the swim team.

“I was really happy when my older sister gave me my leggings because she put a lot of hard work into making it for me and it really made me excited for the meet,” Catherine Li ‘18 said.

The day of the meet was intense and exciting with much on the line. Swimmers buzzed with anticipation as they awaited their results. At the beginning of the meet, the team participated in a Warrior Run, a tradition where they ran around the stadium in hopes of getting spirits up.
Ashlyn Carroll ’18 broke a 20 year old record in 200 free. Matthew Mahoney ’15 won 100 back and Preston Varozza ’16 got second in 100 back. Westwood won 9 events and are now heading to regionals on Feb. 4.

“We were hanging around the pool when we got the results and getting to help our team win district made me feel like nothing could stop us,” Anne Feng ‘18 said.