Brooke Price is ready.
The Plum senior knows what the rush of swimming at the WPIAL championships at Pitt’s Trees Pool feels like as well as the work that must be done to be ready.
The Mustangs are in prep mode for WPIALs, set for Feb. 26 and 27, and Price knows there is a lot left to accomplish before then.
“The season feels really long because we start early with training,” said Price, who is 16th in the 100-yard backstroke on the WPIAL Class 3A performance lists. She also owns a WPIAL cut in the 200 individual medley.
Price placed 10th in the 100 back at WPIALs last year (1:00.22) while taking 16th in the 200 IM (2:14.78). Two big goals for her this year are to medal in the 100 back and also go under one minute.
“We push through the winter months, and spring is right around the corner when we get to WPIALs,” she said.
“It is a fun time of the year. Every single meet and every single practice have been building to this final run to WPIALs. We are all really excited to prepare these final couple of weeks. We have several swimmers, like myself, who know what WPIALs is all about. But we also have some who are new to WPIALs, and that is exciting, too, to see them get to experience that. It’s a fun time of the year to see your hard work pay off. It’s my last hurrah, and I am hoping to swim my best with my amazing teammates.”
Price and senior Dom Massie were part of a memorable swim at WPIALs in the 200 medley relay with graduates Giuliana Ricciuti and Kaileigh Smith. The quartet dropped four seconds from their seed time, placed fifth in a time of 1:50.42, and qualified for states.
“We were so amped up to swim our best at WPIALs, and when we finished our race and saw our time, we went to the coaches to figure out who finished ahead of us and behind us,” Price said.
“When we heard fifth place, we were ecstatic. We were blown away, not thinking we might finish that well. We were seeded down a little bit and had to knock off a number of places.”
Plum swimmers have achieved individual WPIAL cuts in every event, and all six relays also have qualified. Plum coach Shane Ging said a number of them are close to adding more individual cuts, getting their first cuts, or hoping to better times for events already secured.
Plum closes out dual meets this week against Baldwin and Woodland Hills, and some swimmers plan to attend a last chance meet Saturday at North Allegheny.
“It seems like we just got back from holiday break, and we had some good practices there,” Ging said.
“We still have some work to do, and then we will start to taper to get ready for WPIALs.”
Ging said Massie and senior Charlotte Faust have been working to get their individual WPIAL cuts. Massie captured an eighth-place WPIAL medal in the 100 free (53.53) last year.
Ivy Hedeen has had a breakout freshman season with cuts in events such as the 200 IM, 500 free and 100 breast with more, Ging said, to get over the final couple meets.
“She hasn’t missed a beat,” Ging said. “She works her butt off and is a fighter. I think a big part of that for her was the implementation of the middle school team last year. She is used to those high intensity meets.”
As of Feb. 2, nine swimmers recorded individual WPIALs cuts, including seniors Elle Irwin (50 free), Delaney Hunsinger (200 IM) and Aiden Irwin (50 free); junior Connor Potochnik (200 IM, 100 butterfly, 100 free, 500 free, 100 back); and sophomores Olivia Miller (50 free), Brayden Fricke (50 free) and Holtin Richard (100 breast, 200 IM, 100 back, 200 free, 500 free).
Price said senior night, shared with longtime friends and teammates, would be an emotional celebration of years of memories. Eleven seniors — Massie, Price, Faust, Hunsinger, Zach Cooper, Wade Keresztury, Elle Irwin, Aiden Irwin, Emma Verkleeren, Hannah Woltjen and Max Woltjen — were to be celebrated.
“We’ve been swimming together since we were little, and we formed such a close connection, almost like siblings,” she said.
“We feel like one big family. We’ve been through so much. Swimming, a lot of times, puts such a mental and physical toll on your body, especially in high school season during the school year. We’ve leaned on each other through every single chapter.”