Bear Necessities Volume 33

This past Friday, I had the opportunity to attend the WBAL Swim Trials at Sacred Heart Prep, always a beautiful setting for a day in the pool.

I arrived during warm-ups, which in itself is an impressive display of coordination. With hundreds of athletes preparing to compete, coaches carefully manage lance space and time to ensure each swimmer can get in their strokes, and be well prepared. It's organized chaos at its finest.

Before competition began, we took time to celebrate two of our seniors. These moments are always bittersweet, as they give us the chance to honor years of dedication, growth, and commitment to the program. This year, we celebrated two exceptional student-athletes, Clare Walsh '26 and Zoe Gainer '26 who have been part of Mercy's aquatics program throughout their entire high school journey. Their contributions and presence will be missed.

There's a synchronization to swim meets, coaches stationed at timing tables, tracking results, and offering constant encouragement, while athletes rotate between warm-up laps, time under the team tent, and cheering their teammates on at the end of each lane. That is always my favorite part of any meet, the support that lines up at the end of their teammates lane. Swimming is a sport that demands incredible discipline and perseverance, where success is often measured in fractions of a second. Watching our athletes compete with focus, energy, and team spirit was a reminder of the dedication this sport requires.