As the 2024 Lambert Swim and Dive season gets started, swimmers and divers are excited to bond with the new athletes, compete to win and have an amazing season. Tryouts consisted of an extensive four-day process split up by grade level. Practices and meets started mid-October and coach Scott Langley is ecstatic to dive right into the season.
“We only get four days a week in the water, and we get to supplement the extra day on Fridays with weight training and a dryland course,” Langley said. “Divers have an even worse situation because we only get two nights a week, so last year I got approval from the county to get additional practice.”
The swimmers’ hard work and dedication is being channeled towards a collective team goal: to win the Forsyth County championship and take back the trophy from South Forsyth High School, who wonlast year. Coach Langley is determined to prepare his team to win the Longhorn Way.
“From a coaching perspective, I almost have to play Sudoku for every swim meet, where I take my swimmers and I take the times they’ve swum and I place them in individual events compared to the teams we have,” Langley shared.
This year, Langley is in his first year as head coach and is now more involved in the team through handling meets and organizing swimmers. Working with assistant coaches Berry and Abrams, the coaches do all they can to make sure that everyone can do their best and lead the team to success.
“How can I best serve these kids and what can I do to make their season go so smoothly?” Langley added.
While the coaches work hard to ensure the swimmers have the potential, the swimmers’ hard work at practices and meets is crucial to the team’s success.
Captain Micah Kim knows how much effort the swimmers put in to make their coaches and Lambert proud, having been on the team since he was a freshman. He had an outstanding season last year and he is hoping his upcoming season will be even better.
“Last season, I went to the high school state championships, and I placed 11th overall in the final in the 100 Butterfly, so I was pretty proud of that,” Kim said. “Our 200 Medley Relay placed third overall in the state, so that was pretty cool.”
This season, Kim hopes to place higher in the same events as he continues his swim journey at Lambert. As an upperclassman this year, he has another role: guiding the underclassmen who are starting their swim journey this year. To do so, Kim has been focusing on making this usually individualistic sport more team-oriented and creating a tight-knit community.
“You practice with these guys every single day and you guys are pushing each other in practice trying to get better together,” Kim said. “I think that’s where the team aspect really comes into play because it’s super important to have people supporting each other.”
As the season is starting up, the Longhorn community is rooting for the swim team to have a stellar season and achieve their goals.
