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Jett Henson ’28 powers through his backstroke event, refusing to let a goggle malfunction slow him down. With one eye squinting against the water and sheer determination on his face, Henson pushes towards the finish line.
Ian Leong'
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Aubrey Teffer ’26 poised on the precipice, mind focused as he prepares to launch backward into his backstroke event. “My hardest event today was the 200 free,” Teffer said. “Overall, I’m feeling a little burnt out [from] the meet but it’s pretty fun to be here and swim.”
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Coach Matthew McBrearty intently observes Leah Zhang’s ’26 powerful breaststroke. In every stroke, Zhang embodies the team’s dedication, turning countless hours of practice into a demonstration of speed and precision. “We’ve been working hard so far this season,’ McBrearty said. “And I think the effort we’ve put [toward] improvement have been awesome.”
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Anika Sharma ’26 emerges for a breath during the challenging 100-meter freestyle race. Despite facing tough competition from the other teams, Sharma remained resilient and determined. “I think the hardest event I’ve done today is racing the 100 free because I was racing [against] one of my friends,” Sharma said. “She’s a little more speedy than I am and I think I took that to heart so I was a little discouraged but I [pushed] through and the rest of the meet went well.”
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The boys’ and girls’ Swim and Dive team both competed and took the podium in the MavWood Invitational at the Round Rock Natatorium on Thursday, Oct. 3. The meet, known for its diverse participation, was packed with competitive spirit and talent from high schools across the region.
The meet tested both individual and team efforts throughout the day. Starting the competition, the 200-medley relays set a strong tone as Westwood secured podium spots in both the girls’ and the boys’ categories. Despite the long day ahead of them, the Warriors were dedicated to performing their best at every turn.
“I’m honestly tired because we’ve been up since 5:30 a.m.,” Sophia He ‘25 said. “But it’s great because I feel like we’re in a good spot this season [and] everyone’s swimming fast despite being in the middle of hard training so that’s nice to see.”
Although the exhaustion had taken hold of the swimmers, the team’s spirit remained buoyant throughout the meet as each swimmer touched the wall and gasped for breath, their teammates’ encouragement echoed across the pool. This resilience in the face of physical demands spoke volumes about the Warrior’s spirit and determination to succeed.
“My hardest event [today] was the 100-meter fly and it was tiring,” Atharva Anand ‘27 said. “The meet is going just okay so far but I feel like we need to push for a little more effort if we’re going to win. I’m pretty confident in our team, though.”
Beyond the impressive times and podium finishes, there was an unbreakable team spirit in the pool’s atmosphere. This spirit and motivation, carefully cultivated by the captains, seemed just as vital to their success as all those hours of practice.
“Being captain of a team like this is definitely an honor,” He said. “I like leading this group of people and I think we have a lot of talent on [the] team this year, so I’m especially looking [forward] to our championship season.”
As the sounds of splashing water and cheering teammates continued, Coach McBrearty was intent on encouraging the swimmers to better their techniques in the water. Even more, he remained attentive by providing constant feedback and support to each swimmer after every race.
“[We’re] feeling good,” Coach McBrearty said. “It’s been a super long and exhausting day but I think we swam great. I told everyone a new rule on how far they had to go in their underwaters today and a lot of the swimmers are unhappy about it but they’ve been trying and they’ve been working hard so it’s been great.”
The energy at the meet was electric and with numerous schools present a palpable sense of friendly competition was felt among the team as swimmers from different schools cheered each other on. Soon the Warriors’ hard work and determination paid off as the girls’ team secured an impressive second place, and the boys claimed their admirable victory in first. Most notably, Westwood emerged victorious overall, clinching a combined first place in the swim meet, surpassing eight other schools in the competition.
The Warriors will compete next in the Round Rock Invitational Swim Meet on Saturday, Oct. 26, hoping to carry their winning streak throughout the season.
