By: Alina Rodriguez
At the closing of the song, cheers began to thunder from both the competitors standing around the pool and the spectators watching from above it. The loudspeaker buzzed and cracked as a booming female voice began to announce events.
Froth exploded from the water as swimmers sliced through it, muscles working to go as fast as their bodies allow. Each team cheered on their own athletes, competing cries of joy and anguish coming from the teams. The atmosphere was tense, shouts getting louder as the races ensued. Swimmers dashed back and forth to and from the blocks, preparing for their events- even though 430 swimmers competing made it difficult to move, not to mention get to a competition block. This was Wilson Relays. Fierce competition and rivalries between schools that go back seasons hung tensely in the air as each swimmer worked to do the best they possibly could for their team. The Boy’s and Girl’s teams from the best teams in this area were collected to compete. The energy was high. Before the start of each race, there would be a tense second of quietness before the gun went off. Then, the sound of excited voices would once again rise from the natatorium. After an exhausting day of swimming relays, the results from the meet finally came out. A yell of victory arose as the Wilson Girls found that because their team finished first in four relays, and second in five others, they had won the Wilson Relays title for the first time in seven years. North Penn, the defending champion of the Relays, came in second for the Girl’s swimming teams. The Wilson Boy’s team, who won the Relays last year, finished second in the Wilson Relays, scoring first in two relays and second in three others The Wilson Boy’s team lost to the North Penn Boy’s, having 296 points to the North Penn Boy’s 301. While swimmers competed and cheered on their teams, outside, a silent auction was taking place. The auction was in honor of Wilson Swim Coach Roy Snyder’s wife of 57 years, who passed away in 2015 after fighting a five-year battle with brain cancer. The fundraiser would go to a scholarship established in her memory. Items auctioned off included watercolor paintings, which Snyder painted himself. The auction was successful, and many came out not only for the swimming competition but also to support Snyder, who had been coaching the Wilson Boy’s swim team for 55 years.
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Dylan EdelmanWilson Senior Archives
February 2020
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