Four Park girls are off to state after section meet

After a season of hard work, girls’ swimming is putting their best swims forward to state, according to senior captain Kathryn Ostrom.
“We have all really pushed ourselves this season, and it definitely paid off at sections,” Ostrom said.

Ostrom was one of the four swimmers to qualify for the state meet. She was joined by senior Hannah Hein, sophomore Emmi Zheng, and freshmen Heather Westwood and Sydney Hall. Along with individual races, some of them also qualified in the 400 freestyle relay and the 200 backstroke relay, which Ostrom exclaimed as one of the most exciting to swim.

“We knew that if we qualified the relays early in the meet everything else would seem easy,” Ostrom said. “All of us were really excited and it gave us energy for individual races.”

Those individual races include a 200 IM and 100 breaststroke for Ostrom, a 200 IM and 100 backstroke for Hein, and a 100 breaststroke for Zheng. These events will represent Park at the state competition Friday, Nov 16 at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.

Ostrom said she has some high hopes for the girls at state, even if competitors are bringing the heat.

“We always got to state with a lot of positive energy, even if the competition is really  difficult,” Ostrom said. “It’s an honor to compete, so we try our best.”

The individual events, as well as the two relays, will represent Park at the state competition Friday, Nov 16 at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.