Over the past decade, Roosevelt’s swim team has remained undefeated in the regular season. Even though this particular meet challenged Roosevelt’s title as undefeated champions, the Raiders still managed to come out on top,  and were able to beat their biggest rival, Bowie.

Participating in 24 events, including freestyle, relay, and breaststroke from distances of 50 meters to 400 meters, the Raiders had a close call with the opposing boys team. With only a 10 point difference, the boys were very close to losing their title. “At some points during the meet the boys were losing,”said William Rosenberg, the senior captain. “I didn’t want my very last regular season meet to be the one loss we had on our record over the 4 years on the team.” The girls, however, won by over 40 points.

The team did many things to prepare for this big meet. Even though practice was cut short due to the snowstorm, many dedicated members practiced outside of school, or participated in club meets. “Practice is the best thing,” stated Charlie Dawson, a sophomore. The team even participated in “good luck” traditions, which include the underclassmen creating signs for the seniors, hosting a potluck, and even shaving their heads for the big meet.

For the senior swimmers, this was the last regular season meet. The team loses some of their most valuable swimmers, such as Jack McKeown and Rosenberg, as well as Henry Tuit Farquhar and Zachary Landau. The girls’ team also loses valuable swimmers such as Claire Mudd, Kristine Pham, and Chloe Aloimonos.

The next step for the team is the county meet on Saturday, February 6, 2016. After that they could qualify for the regional and state meets. In order to prepare for yet another big meet, a sophomore, Amanda Hong, states that the one thing they have to improve on are “starts and techniques.” “Now, it comes down to the little things that can make a big difference, especially in your time.”