By Jack Stringer, Rookie Reporter

As the fall sports season comes to an end for high schools across the country, a new set of winter sports begin anew.

With arduous training schedules, tryouts and the upcoming season ahead of them, winter athletes have the school abuzz for boys and girls basketball, girls swimming, and wrestling. The girls swimming team recently began camp to get back in shape for their season which begins in early December.

For most people, November means fall, Thanksgiving and a week off of school; for the girls swim team, November means almost every day after school in the pool. For experienced swimmers, this entails getting back in shape and mastering their technique, while new swimmers will have to learn how to do all the strokes.  Regardless of one’s experience level, November will involve hard work, dedication and many hours in the water.

After sending a few swimmers to state last year, the swim team looks to reach even greater heights. With a core of 10 returning seniors to offer their leadership, the team will be stronger than ever. One such senior is Adriana Romeo. Romeo is excited for the upcoming season and is confident her team can improve from last year if they focus on a few things such as “being a bit more dedicated and practicing to [their] full potential.”

The seniors this year view the team as a family, and joining the family is a strong group of freshman swimmers. “Our relays are going to be really good this year because we have a lot of returning swimmers and the new freshmen. I think a lot of them will help out,” said Romeo.

In other sports, freshman and seniors would never join forces before high school, but because of summer swimming teams that are unaffiliated with the high school, many of the incoming freshmen already know the rest of the high school team. This connection will in no doubt improve some already promising relay teams for the Farmers. Swimming is sometimes seen as a purely individual sport, but relay teams require the teamwork and communication that the lady Farmers will have for the upcoming season.

Full of hope and anticipation, the Wheat Ridge girls swim team is not unlike teams around the country. They officially kick off the season with their first meet on Dec. 6.