The fans are cheering. Everyone is on the edge of their seats, waiting for the finish. This is not just one team against one team, this is one team against everyone. This Saturday, the 7th of January, the boys’ swim team will venture into Raider territory to face off against seven teams in Raider Relays. The Raider Relays are not just any swim meet; it is a meet designed solely for relays. There are the standard relays like the 200 yard medley relay, 200 yard free relay, and the 400 yard free relay, but there are also extra relays like the 400 yard back relay, 600 yard free relay, and the 400 yard individual medley (IM) relay.

Relays require more than one person participating in an event in the same lane, and they can either be swimming the same stroke or a different stroke. In swim, there are four strokes: freestyle (free), breaststroke (breast), backstroke (back), and butterfly (fly). Each event in the relay meet uses at least one of the strokes, where at least three people compete in a lane. Depending on the event, each swimmer might be swimming a different stroke. In the 400 yard IM relay, each swimmer will swim a 100 yard IM, which consists of 25 yards of fly, 25 yards of back, 25 yards of breast, and 25 yards of free. Each set of 25 yards is a length of the pool. During the 200 yard medley relay, each swimmer will swim a portion of the IM with the first swimmer swimming a 50 yard back, the second swimming a 50 yard breast, the third a 50 yard fly, and the last a 50 yard free. In another event, the 600 yard free relay, each swimmer will swim 200 yards of freestyle, and no other stroke.

In the relay meet, there is also a diving relay taking place, where each diver performs three dives instead of the normal six. For South this weekend, Senior Carson Kaiser and Freshman Joshua Hittman will be diving. They are both new divers, but have been training long and hard to show their Redwing Pride against the other teams they are competing against. Hittman is so excited for his chance to dive that he said,

“I have wanted to dive for a while, and I’m most looking forward to the Raider Relays because I finally get my chance.”

When asked about Raider Relays, Junior Matthew DeTrana said,

“My favorite part of Raider Relays is the fun relays, and the fact that you can get medals.” Based off of how well a relay does compared to their competition, a relay team can earn medals signifying the rank they got. The first few finishers of each relay event get medals, and those lucky enough to be awarded them get to stand up on or near the starting block to be recognized.

Junior Nathan Groves claimed that his favorite part of Raider Relays is,

“Falling off the blocks when receiving my medal.” He is a very good swimmer, and has been lucky enough in the past to receive a medal and be the one to stand on the block. However, he got so excited last year about earning a medal that he fell off back onto the deck. Even though not everyone receives medals, swim meets can be a good bonding experience for the team.

“I love just hanging out with the team and cheering them on,” Sophomore Lesly Bibiano commented. Bibiano is one of the managers on the team, and is always there to be an extra cheerleader on the sidelines and help out a fellow teammate. Even though she is no longer in her season to swim, she helps the team swim their best.

Senior Andrea Pierini has never swam competitively until he came to South this year. Because of that, he said what he is looking forward to most about participating in Raider Relays for the first time is,

“Trying different strokes and racing with more than one opponent team.” There are more people in the stands cheering, more swimmers on the deck waiting to swim, and more energy from everyone.

The Raider Relays start with diving at 10 a.m. and follows with swimming at 11 a.m. Next weekend, South is hosting their home invite, with diving starting at 10 a.m., and swimming starting at 12:30 p.m. Come out to cheer on your fellow Redwings and show your pride in your school!