IKE Swim made waves at county meet with a second-place finish
October 8, 2021
On October 2nd the Eisenhower Girl’s Swim Team competed in the annual Macomb County championship meet at L’Anse Creuse North High School. Out of the sixteen teams in competition, Eisenhower’s Eagles fought hard for a final score of 302 points and the title of second place.
They beat out Anchor Bay, who had a 3rd place finish with 259 points, but were not able to conquer Dakota, a longtime rival and the 2021 champions. The rivalry between Ike and Dakota comes from the back-and-forth wins each school has seen over the past decade. Ike’s most recent wins were in 2018 and 2020, split by a Dakota victory in 2019.
Despite losing the title of reigning champs, the Ike girls had a strong performance at the meet, plenty of fast swims, and are now focused on maintaining a positive attitude as they continue with their season.
This is exemplified by swimmers such as Olivia Bowman, a senior at UAIS and one of the team’s captains, who finished off her last county meet as the winner of the 500-yard freestyle.
“The season was my one chance to actually medal so I’m happy that it was a really good race and I’m really proud of it,” said Bowman.
On top of her individual win, Bowman is proud of the team as a whole and is hoping the positive spirit that was cultivated this year will empower future girls on Ike swim.
“I hope next year’s seniors continue to build on the spirit and continue to have a lot of fun,” said Bowman.
This spirit is echoed by Anna Pontzious, a sophomore at UAIS who had a turbulent start to the season after breaking her hand. However, the injury did not get in the way of her success. She was able to drop time in the 100-yard backstroke and secure Ike an 8th place finish. Pontzious credits part of her achievement to the undeniable support she received from her teammates.
“Our team this year is really close because we all kind of grew up together so all of us were cheering each other on and it felt really good,” said Pontzious.
Brian Cahill, the Head Swim Coach at Eisenhower, was thrilled with the team’s performance both in and out of the water. While there were many great swims to gush over, Cahill was perhaps most impressed by the girls’ commitment and spirit that has bonded the team and encouraged enthusiasm.
“Their closeness, their teamwork, comradery, I’m very proud of this year’s team,” said Coach Cahill.
With a solid second place victory at Counties and unmatched spirit, Ike girl’s swim is looking forward to finishing the rest of the season with fast swimming.
“We’re looking forward to the end of the season when we can really rest and see what everyone can go,” said Cahill.
