Meet Your 2024 Captains of the Girls' Swim & Dive Team
The Best in their Element-H2O!!!
After a previous challenging season with a demanding coach, we were uncertain about what to expect from a new one. However, Coach Theune exceeded all our expectations. Her infectious energy, unwavering motivation, and ability to truly connect with the team have been nothing short of transformative. She strikes the perfect balance between keeping things fun and pushing us to reach our full potential. Coach Theune has elevated our team to new heights, and we are deeply grateful for the unforgettable memories we’ve created together!
Hannah Brown:
I first started competitive swimming in 2nd grade on the summer rec league and joined
the middle school swim team sticking with it into high school and in my final year as a
senior. What I like most about swimming is the friends I’ve made along the way and all
the fun we have at the meets and team bonding activities. One of my funniest memories, and there was a lot, but when the 2023 State qualifying team ate 40 cupcakes in one sitting after the State meet we could not stop laughing about it!
I mainly swim freestyle with individual events in the 50 and 100 freestyle. I also
enjoy the 500 and the 200 freestyle as well as the relays.
My greatest highlight of this season was the constant team bonding. In the last few years, too many cliques were formed, so this year, as Captains, Sadie, Rachael, Aman and I really wanted to avoid conflict by planning lots of fun activities to create the close team we have now.
I really admire Michael Phelps because he had set a goal to never miss a practice and he
was able to do this for 5 years straight. It really resonates with me especially when I think
about how much I wish I could skip a practice and go home to sleep or eat.
After graduation, I plan on attending a 4-year university to study criminal justice where I
hope to swim there at the collegiate level.
Rachael Brower:
I have been on a swim team ever since I was six years old, I've never been hand or eyes coordinated, so swimming has always been a place where I can do what I am best at and be in a healthy spot in my own head. My favorite memory was in my sophomore year at conference. I was given a tech suit that was way too small, and I needed six teammates to help get me out of it which took over an hour!
Backstroke has always been my best stroke, so I've done that in the 100-yard backstroke, and the 50 backstroke in the medley relay, but recently I've been doing the 500-yard freestyle, and I've earned my state cut through that. Katie Ledecky is the best distance swimmer on the planet. She is so fun to watch in the pool and I admire her determination.
When I was an underclassman, I always looked up to the captains and how much work and thought they put into planning team-building events and making everything work out, so being able to experience leading people and organizing things to ensure we are all connected has been really fulfilling. Swimming is a physically individual sport, but mentally, we are all doing everything together and so that's why it has always been important to make sure that we are all as strong mentally as we are physically.
After graduation, I plan on being a creative director. I want to attend Michigan State University and get my bachelor's in creating advertising, a minor in advertising analytics, and a master's in advertising and public relations. I love art and problem-solving, so I am so enthusiastic to further my education!
Sadie Vander Heide
I swam for a couple summers on the country club swim team but I officially started swimming as a freshman in high school. I appreciate the ability to push myself beyond what I thought I was capable of. But my favorite part is the team's atmosphere. We all have grown super close over the intense practices and a difficult meet schedule. It really put meaning behind “We are all in this together!” My favorite memory on the team was rearranging the hotel room for state junior year and having a shaving party in the bathroom afterward.
My favorite stroke is Breaststroke. I participated in the 100 breaststroke, medley relay, 200 IM, 200 freestyle relay, and at conference, the 200 fr.
My highlight as a Captain this year was being able to encourage and cheer on my teammates by giving them pep talks, jamming to music, and being a role model of what hard work and dedication can look like.
I look up to the Olympic breaststroke swimmer Lily King. I admire her the most partly because we share the same specialty stroke. But also, because I would spend a lot of time watching and analyzing her stroke technique so that I could replicate her speed in my own stroke. She, along with my coaches, and the hard work I put in, have contributed to the progress I've seen this season.
At this point, I'm still undecided about post-graduation plans but would like to possibly pursue a career in aviation, physical therapy, or sports psychology. Ideally, I would like to attend college out of state and continue my swimming career. My advice to the girls I leave behind me in this sport is to have so much fun in everything you do, the 4 years go by so fast, and if you get nervous, dance it off because “every little thing is going to be alright”.
Amaya Wiseman:
I served as one of the Captains on the dive team, but I started when I was in 8th grade and continued it throughout my four years in high school. What I love most about the sport is the feeling after I have put in so much work towards a dive and I nail it in competition. I also love the family atmosphere that our team has created throughout a very long, very hard season.
One of the highlights was being the person that the underclassman looked up to for support. I was able to see the season from a different perspective and it made me even more proud of our team and all they accomplished this year.
One Olympic diver that I look up to specifically is Tyler Downs because of how young and accomplished he is.
My plans after graduation are to attend a four-year university and major in Political Science, with the goal of ultimately moving to D.C. to work on the communications side of a political campaign!
Tremendous job this season ladies and we wish you the best as you chase after your future endeavors!!