Backstrokers say WOO. Breastrokers say WOO. Flyers say WOO. Freestylers say WOO. This cheer excited our large number of swimmers and after Tuesday’s meet, we were undefeated with a record of 2-0. Leyden used these numbers to their advantage against one of our biggest rivals outside of the Gold division, the West Chicago-Batavia Co-Op Wildogs.

This past Saturday our boys swimming team had their first meet, the Demon Relays at Maine East. There they competed against six other teams and placed first in their division, setting the expectations high with new head coach, Chris Cook at their side. With a win so early in the season, we can only expect great things from our boys swim team.

In the second event of the meet, senior Blake Thompson took second place as he finished with a 2:03.23 in his 200 freestyle. “I think my 200 was decent for it being only the second meet of the year, but I would have liked to go below 2:00. I think that I have to work on my turns, and get up my endurance [to accomplish that].”

It seems like our seniors are a strong class this year, seniors Jake Malo and Dan Moreno were well under the 30 second mark for the 50 yard freestyle. Jake came in with a 26.79 and Dan followed right behind with a 28.84, Dan commented “I felt like my 50 free was decent. I could have done a better flip turn along with a butterfly kick of the wall. Cook always has to remind me to keep my hands open when pulling for freestyle and it’s something I have to constantly remind myself to do while swimming.” The last event of the first half ended on an exciting note.

The 100 fly, well known for being one of the hardest events in swimming was no problem for Rob Gussy as he finished with a 1:02.99. “I thought it was a decent start to a season even though I was having a few back and ankle problems. I still had a good time, it was better than I did on Saturday.” This time puts him almost three seconds off his sectional time from the 2014-2015 season, as he aims to break a minute for this event.

Freshman Rudy Moctezuma, competed for our varsity team last night and swam to prove why he moved up, he finished his race with a 57.63. Only very few underclassmen are part of this elite “Sub Minute club” for the 100 freestyle.

The last event of the meet is always a crucial one in swimming, this spot can either put you in first or make the team fall back into second. Luckily, Leyden was able to place second, third and fourth to win more points and slide right past West Chicago.

With the points totalled up and ready to be announced, the boys waited with anticipation as they wondered if their fast swims would pay off. Finally, the two teams points were announced and our Leyden Eagles had beat the West Chicago-Batavia Wildogs.

As they played “We are the Champions” by Queen on our bus ride home, it’s safe to say that this season is going to be like no other. With their hearts filled with hope and their minds filled with positive attitudes, the boys are hungry for more victories.