Things are changing for the swim team this competition season. Among the newest transitions is the election of the new captains: seniors Tyler Snell, Conor Diggs, Kristin McCasland and junior Katie Dusek.

“Every year, towards the beginning, we take a day of practice to elect captains,” sophomore Will Norton said. “The boys and girls teams go to their respective locker rooms. The candidates give their speeches, and voting ballots are passed around, where everyone checks off two swimmers they want for captain.”

Although most of the captains were elected, there was one exception.

“Since I’m the only senior girl, and captains are traditionally seniors, the coaches went ahead and picked me as the captain,” McCasland said. “This usually doesn’t happen. Ordinarily, if there is more than one senior girl, the team elects from the seniors, but because I was the only one, the team had to pick a junior.”

Dusek was shocked to be elected as captain, but she is optimistic this year will go well.

“I’m not the fastest swimmer, and I probably never will be, so it surprised me to be elected,” Dusek said. “As a captain, I hope to encourage the other swimmers to always do their best and work hard no matter what.”

All of the captains have embraced their new role and the responsibilities that come with the title.

“Basically, the captains are used as the go to people for the coaches and the swimmers,” Snell said. “We are responsible for organizing team events and being the leaders of the team. We are someone the freshmen can look up to and get help from.”

Although this is an exciting time for the new captains, work still has to be done.

“As a new captain, my responsibilities are mostly looking after the team and making sure they know what they are doing in the pool,” Diggs says. “I also believe that one of the main things I have to do is help motivate other swimmers in being the best they can be.”

The lowerclassmen hope the team will follow the captains’ examples.

“The main responsibility of the captains, I’d say, is to be leaders on the team that everyone else can take inspiration from,” sophomore Luke Carter said. “Having dedicated captains willing to come in every day with a strong work ethic goes a long way.”