The Owatonna Boys Swimming and Diving team is heading into some of their last meets before the season comes to a close. Having previously competed at Big 9, the team had to maintain their high level of focus and intensity to help them through this meet.

Many of the Owatonna boys swam their best times and placed in their individual events. Junior captain, Logan Steckelberg placed 8th in the 100-meter backstroke landing himself a spot on the podium. Steckelberg said, “It was a cool experience to be a part of as it was my first time placing at Big 9”.

At the beginning of their swim season, the swimmers started with a small amount of yardage, but as the season had continued they increased the yardage. In preparation for their upcoming meets, the team has started a process called taper. With taper, they will now begin lowering the amount of yardage; helping the swimmers to rest and conserve their energy. The team has goals of seeing success come from their section meet. Assistant coach, Tara Lammers said, “The team wants to drop time and see where they can place against other teams in their section. And to see where they end their season so they can have a goal of where to start next season”.

Next up for the team will be their sections meet on Feb. 21 and 22, located at the Rochester Recreation Center. The team aims to drop time in their events while keeping the team’s goals and perseverance that they continuously show throughout the season. The team hopes to see some swimmers qualify for section finals. To qualify, the boys must swim fast enough to make it into the top 16 places.