The dedicated swim and dive team have been practicing in the frigid weather since the start of the season, representing their dedication and importance the sport is to them. With tryouts right around the corner, sophomore backstroke swimmer Abby Botello depicted what it means to be on the team and the dynamic of relationships and practice.

“We do our warmups at the Circle C pool early in the morning, which is usually 500s (500 yard swim). After warmups finish, we do sets of 850s, kicking, or paddles, but it usually just matters on what we are trying to focus on that day. At the end of practice we’ll do diving, or just a cool warm down,” Botello said.

Chanel Dobrzenski began coaching the swim and dive team three years ago, and since then has made and impact on Bowie swimmers and the program. Botello shared her perspective on the swim coach and the impact that Dobrzenski has had on her in the years that she’s been on the team.

“[Dobrzenski] is very sweet, I love her. She’s like family to me, she coaches very well,” Botello said.

Swim and dive tryouts are set for April 21st from 11am to 1 and August 27th from 6:30 to 8am at the Circle C pool. If interested, email Coach Dobrsenski at [email protected] for more information. Botello described the relationship between swimmers and how new people are treated when they first join the highschool swim team.

“Whenever there is a meet we talk on the bus, sometimes after we go out to eat and get to know each other a lot more. The freshmen that came in this year are treated as family, like we’ve known them the whole time, so the newcomers will do great next year,” Botello said.