CANTON — For the first time in a decade, C.T. Branin Natatorium played host to swimmers from the Upper Sandusky High School boys swim team.
The Rams 200-yard freestyle relay team, consisting of Trever Daughenbaugh, Wes Ogden, Brody Williams and Gage Frey, squeezed into the state meet seeded 23rd of 24 teams.
A disqualification due to a false start exchange violation between the second and third swimmers was the result of the Rams first appearance in the boys meet since 2010, but Coach Justin Richardson said there was a positive to takeaway from the boys’ aggressiveness on the block.
Though the race itself did not go as well as the Rams hoped, they hope the end of the state appearance drought will continue.
Daughenbaugh, a senior on the team, said despite there being things that could have been improved on, he has helped younger swimmers know a state appearance is attainable.
Fellow senior Brody Williams agreed with Daughenbaugh and was proud of his team’s accomplishment of making it to state and to be inspiration for the future USHS swimmers.
Richardson agreed with Williams, saying it’s great to remember the great athletes that came before, but he’s looking forward to sharing the journey of his first USHS boys competitors to make it to state and using it to push his future swimmers.
With Ogden and Frey returning, and other young swimmers showing promise, he hopes to continue the uptrend and bring multiple teams, individuals and both boys and girls competitors in the future.
Looking to build on a state appearance after claiming a boys league title are not bad goals for a team that has to travel approximately 20 miles by bus everyday to the nearest indoor pool.