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GREENVILLE, N.C. — 

The History

The inaugural swim team competed in 95/96.  There were 12 swimmers (girls and boys) on the first team.  The team has continued to grow in numbers and success over the years.  They originally practiced at the Aquatics and Fitness Center across the river until the opening of Aquaventure in Winterville.  The Girl’s team was the Eastern Regional Runner-up in 2006.  They were Eastern Regional Champions from 2018 through 2021.  The Boy’s team were the Eastern Regional Champions from 2018 through 2020.  They have both been the Conference Champions for the last seven years consecutively.

The Present and Future

The teams’ main goals for this season and the seasons to come are to continue to grow and improve, prepare for the Conference Tournament, Regionals, and States.

The Leaders

This year’s captains were Lauren Bullard, Helen Dennison, Brooke, Despres, Bryce Gooding, and Dylan McIntyre.  The captains for the upcoming season are Kristen Ivey, Caitlyn Dunnigan, Bryce Gooding, and Jay Vazquez. These individuals are chosen by their peers and coaches.  They serve as the team leaders and hold many responsibilities.  We have been very fortunate in that we have had very strong and capable captains in the past several seasons.  They are great role models especially for the new swimmers and the team in general.

The Warmup

The team always performs a team cheer prior to the beginning of each meet.  Other than that, they stretch as a team, perform their warmups in groups (each group is led by a captain or senior), and do a few starts off the starting blocks.

Team Spirit

This team has been very inclusive.  That is something that was traditional before I arrived at DH Conley to teach and coach.  They are always welcomed, included in outside activities, and occasionally mentored by a captain or upperclassmen.  In some years, we have had practice buddies, pairing a new swimmer with an upperclassman.

The team has had end of the year parties, usually hosted by a team parent.  We have occasionally had pasta parties prior to regionals to fellowship and carb load for the big meets.

The Accomplishments

This season (21/22) both the boy’s and girl’s teams won their seventh consecutive conference tournament.  The girls also completed their seventh consecutive undefeated regular season.

They have a history and tradition of pushing themselves to find success as a team.  A positive atmosphere and their own desire to succeed have been their best motivations.  The captain’s encouragement and the hope that they will each help their team succeed are integral parts of the teams’ success.

Coach Sawyer

Swimming at Conley (and in general) has been one of the most positive sports I have been involved in.  A big part of that has been the support of both the boy’s and girl’s teams by the Athletic Director (Rob Maloney), the administration, the staff, and parents.  Coach Maloney has always been extremely supportive of not only our swim teams but all sports teams here at Conley.  Unlike some other sports, swimming really relies on parents as timers and to certify as officials and to run the scorer’s table. This makes the swim program unique.  And… of course, the coaches are such an important part!

This will be the last year that Coach Sawyer will be coaching the Conley swim team.  He has helped bring great success to the program, and I am sure he will be missed.

Good luck Coach!

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