This year two girls, senior Cali Kissel and junior Riley Copper, made school history again by going to state for swim. These girls go above and beyond in their sport and it shows by the way they push themselves constantly, as this was not the only year this two girls went to state. Last year, they also went and did a phenomenal job!
Last Friday, Riley tied for 16th place in her 100 Yard Freestyle, and ultimately received 17th place out of 32 participants. She was able to beat her record yet again and get a time of 52.75! Cali placed 13 on Friday and was able to move forward on Saturday and placed 12th out of 32 participants in the 100 Yard Backstroke. She was able to achieve a time of 57.13!
Both have dealt with a lot of challenges in the pool but they have pushed themselves so hard to get to where they are at now. When Riley was a freshman she got a shoulder injury which forced her to get out of the pool however she never let that stop her, “I had to rebuild from the ground up through physical therapy and a lot of patience. Getting back to my old times wasn’t easy, but every small win reminded me why I loved the sport in the first place. By the time I officially got back in the pool, I was aiming not just to get back to my previous times but to surpass them.” This just shows how she never let the thought cross her mind that she wouldn’t make it far. Cali, similar to Riley, also had some challenges she faced during her school season, yet she never gave up and she would “overcome obstacles by staying true to my faith and leaning on my savior, Jesus Christ, to give me peace”.
They could not do this all by themselves and had people to help push them. Cali uses the support of her family, teammates, and coaches to help motivates her to do as best as she can, and Riley get hers motivation for her parents. “They’re the ones who show up to every meet, push me when I need it, and remind me what I can accomplish when things get hard. Seeing how hard they work for me to be able to be in the pool and how much they believe in me makes me want to match that effort in everything that I do”.
When asked what was a piece of advice you would give to someone regarding being a swimmer, Riley had this to say, “I’ve learned to always keep an open mind and to learn from as many different outlets as possible. Whether it’s advice from teammates, coaches, or clinic hosts, staying curious about the sport has pushed me to grow as a swimmer. Keeping that mindset can help anyone adapt and improve through new knowledge.” Cali had this to say, “Swim your own race. Don’t just focus on beating the people around you; if you focus on beating your own times over anything, you’ll find yourself advancing further than you’d ever think.”
Cali is going to Hilldale College to continue her swimming career and Riley is aiming to break more records and get far in her next season. We look forward to seeing how their journey play out and best of luck!
