Devil victory over Elk Grove sets swimmers up for sectionals

The skies were clear and the sun was shining at Arroyo Pool for the DHS swim meet against Elk Grove on April 18. The perfect weather proved a good sign for members of the DHS women’s swim teams, who emerged with a 112-58 total point victory.

The history between DHS and Elk Grove has been “relatively lopsided”, according to Coach Doug Wright. “I started coaching in ’93 or ’94 and we’ve never lost to Elk Grove.”

However, the win by points was not the only cause for celebration. The women’s swim team made five section cuts, which guaranteed the successful swimmers a spot at the upcoming Section Challenge, held at Palo Alto High School on April 21.

“A lot of our top swimmers will be swimming in the section meet, which will be good competition,” Wright said. “We’re really trying to get as many sections cuts today and build up our team as much as possible.”

Three of the five cuts were made in the race of the day, the 100 breaststroke, in which a strong finish pulled seniors Juliana Arvin and Rachel Johnson, as well as sophomore Emma Meads into spots in sections.

“This year’s swim team is really phenomenal,” Johnson said. “Sections this year is looking really good, I think we’ll do really well.”

The two other swimmers on the JV and varsity women’s teams who also made the cuts were freshman Juju Chan with the 200 IM and sophomore Alice Renaud in the 100 freestyle.

Nevertheless, there were some who fell shy of the required times for sections, like sophomore Haley Blackwell, senior Anna Nicholson, and junior Katie Van Deynze, who was three-tenths of a second short of making the cut.

“It’s frustrating. [It’s] a tough part of swimming,” Van Deynze said. “I know physically I can do it, it’s just getting over the mental thing.”

Overall, Wright was pleased with the outcome of the meet. “[The girls] are worn out by now, but we’re still doing great.”