After completing an undefeated regular season, the girls’ swim team brought home the second-place trophy from the District 6-1A meet at Indian River State College on Oct. 29.
The team racked up 333 points to become the first team in school history to earn a trophy in a postseason meet. Sarasota’s Pineview School placed first overall with 374 points.

Before turning the trophy in at the front office, the girls have been carrying it around at school, passing it off to one another in a celebratory trophy relay.

The boys’ team placed fourth in the meet, scoring 236 points.

“I love swimming at districts,” sophomore Elena Abascal said. “ Just being at districts is a huge honor, and every time I’ve gone, I’ve broken my personal record.”

Sixteen West Shore’s swimmers qualified for regionals by placing in the top eight for their events. They are eighth-graders Becca C. and Conner S. freshmen Emily Dubek-Hunter, Gabby Jefferson and Kayla Stevens, sophomores Rosalie Heninger, Erich Heinricher and Kyle Landis, juniors Callie Heuser, Dane Price and Trevor Stamand, and seniors Nikki Gregory, Bernadette Murphy, Kelly Stokes and Benjamin Heuser.

“I’m really excited to be going on to regionals, It’s a really big honor” said junior Callie Heuser. “But I’m not looking forward to being cold and wet all day again.”

The overall joy of victory was tempered with some disappointment.

“I was really upset at first, because I have qualified every other year, and I only missed qualifying by two tenths of a second,” said senior Nikki Gregory, regarding her time in the girls 100-yard backstroke. “But then I realized that I can just focus on performing at my best in the two relays we qualified in.”

 Senior Kelly Stokes empathized with Gregory.

 “I feel personally responsible because I did not shake her arms out before her race,” she said. “It has been our tradition for the past four years.”

 By Nick Baker

 Editor’s note: Brevard Public School policy prohibits the use of last names for middle-school students on district websites.