The swimmers are on the last lap, and the crowd is going crazy. It looks as though they’re going the same exact speed, forming one straight line of swimmers racing toward the wall. Then, out of nowhere, the middlemost swimmer gains a burst of energy—reaching out and touching the wall a millisecond before the others. Wilsonville had won the race.

Districts was a bittersweet event in swim; on one hand, swimmers put in all of their effort to try to win a place at second day and state. On the other hand, districts marks the end of the swim season.

Junior swimmer Camryn Pettenger-Willey likes districts because it’s a team event where everyone can bond. “Districts is a chance for people to hang out with others that they might not have before,” Pettenger-Willey describes, “and even though it’s crazy because everyone is milling about, there are still fun moments with card games and music.” Pettenger-Willey jumps at every opportunity to meet new people in the team.

Similarly, the sophomore Abby Maoz is extremely happy to have competed at districts. “Districts was really fun and I loved being with my team,” Maoz reports excitedly, “and I loved being with my team and I’m so proud of all their hard work.” Maoz’s 200 IM relay is now going on to state, which is something she is looking forward to immensely.

Lastly, Riley Lawler—a freshman on the team and one of the members off Maoz’s IM relay—is hoping for the same results in districts next year. “I hope to get first in my relays next year too,” Lawler expresses. Both Lawler and Maoz got first in every race they participated in, winning them both the highest scorers of the meet.

Unfortunately, the season is coming to an end; all that is left is state this upcoming weekend. From all of the swimmers I’ve talked to this past week, all of them are happy to have swum this season but are sad that it has come to a close. See you (underwater) next season, Wildcats.