As a wise fish once said… “Just keep swimming.” The Upper Perkiomen’s girls’ swim team has done so by breaking multiple records last season and is looking forward to another remarkable season ahead.
Last winter, the girls’ traveled to the district meet at the Graham Aquatic Center in York PA. Beatriz Santos, one of the girls’ swim members, got 5th in the 100-yard fly and 2nd in the 100-yard backstroke. Previously the 100-yard backstroke record was 59.34 by an Upper Perkiomen alumnus, Noel Fresa. Beatriz dove over the competition and broke this record swimming with a time of 58.95 that qualified her for states. Additionally, Beatriz qualified in the 100-yard fly, along with her 200 medley relay team.
On March 15, 2024, the team traveled to Bucknell University, where the 200 Medley Relay team broke yet another school record by about 0.7 seconds. This relay team consisted of underclassmen and upperclassmen alike including Charlotte Forte, Beatriz Santos, Katie Kovalenko, and Ellianna Smith. Together, the relay swam a time of 1:54:71. A day later on March 16, 2024, Santos rebroke her record in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 58.58.
Despite the remarkable prior season, Santos told the WSJ that “Last year we were in the smaller division of AA. This year we’re moving up to the larger school division AAA.” Upper Perkiomen girls’ swim team is fairly small so the girls have to work extremely hard to compete with larger surrounding schools and programs
These records have taken tremendous skill and dedication to break. The girls work hard at practices in the natatorium, coached by Brien Kalnoski. Ellianna Smith told the WSJ that “their practices have changed. Last year, they were 3- 3 1/2 hour practices, and this year, they were cut down to 2 hours. This means we’ll have to work harder. New freshmen and sophomores are joining, which will give new opportunities and new support.”
Anyone can find the girls’ swim schedule and follow the team’s journey throughout the winter season by visiting the Upper Perk athletics page at upperperkathletics.com or by following UP Athletics on Instagram. Overall, this season is bound to make a splash!
