The Fargo North girls swim and dive team finished their season with 12 athletes competing at state at the Hulbert Aquatic Center Nov. 13-14. Many swimmers competed in multiple events during state. Unna Nelson, competed in the 100 yard breaststroke and the 200 yard medley race. Mollie Peterson competed in the 200 and 500 yard freestyle. Almost everyone who attended state placed top 12 in their events. Both Natalie Gramm and Nelson made the swimming All-State team by beating many people at state and having exceptional times.
The Fargo North girls swim and dive team worked hard since the middle of August to make it to state. Many swimmers look forward to attending state, because it builds team comradery. “State was enjoyable; it’s always fun to have long meetings with your team” said diver Maren Mansour. Mansour broke her toe right before state while perfecting a dive. This caused her to compete with a freshly broken toe.
Like Mansour, the rest of the team had to overcome many obstacles that could interfere with performance. Olivia Nordeng, a swimmer, mentioned that having swim right after a long day of school is difficult. “It’s freezing cold. So it’s just like you have to get into it and prepare yourself to face some hard challenges.”
The swim team values teamwork and bonding. Nordeng mentioned that she took away a bunch of new life skills because of the coaching staff. Mansour says that every year gets better because the teammates learn from each other. The swim team spends a lot of time together, so it’s easy to fix simple mistakes and help each other out. The coach, Talia Butery, organizes events to gather the team together and have fun outside the pool. “A change of environment can be beneficial for team players and overall I just think we were able to get into a good place for the season”
The swim team treasures their senior members, and dread saying goodbye. Mansour speaks out about how much she enjoys the presence of the current seniors. “The senior class is awesome. They are all really good at taking the lead and having fun with everyone.” Many of the other swimmers express gratitude towards the seniors for their mentorship and ability to have fun in a difficult sport. Also, the amazing leadership efforts on this team don’t go unnoticed. “I feel like they’ve done a really good job of demonstrating responsibility and just good leadership overall for a group of people.” says Nordeng.
How was state
What can you take away from the season
How did the team feel as a whole
How did the season go?
What do you think you learned from state
How do you feel the senior class has made an impact on you
What were some challenges you had
How did it feel to watch teammate(s) place at state
How did it feel to place at state
Seniors: How do you feel you’ve grown since you’ve started swimming
The team is devoted to their sport. What has the coach done to build the spirit
Why did you choose swimming and what made you stick with it
What made FN team so special
