The boys swimming team is just starting off its season, but the members have been rigorously training in the weight room for months. The boys are eager to finally put all their hard work in the off-season into play and make a splash into this new season.

According to junior Jack Shimabukuro, an advantage the team has this year will be the strong underclassmen.

“I think the team is going to do really well this season because everyone has been working hard to get in shape during the off-season. Our biggest strength this season will be our underclassmen, Gabe Andra, Adrian Acosta, Brandon Fong, and Cody Slutzky, just to name a few,” Shimabukuro said.

Some struggles the team will face this year include the big shoes to fill of the seniors who graduated last year.

“Last year we lost a lot of awesome seniors who were great examples of leaders in and out of the water. While we have some big shoes to fill, I believe our current captains, senior Albion Purleku, senior Sam Paloma, and senior Jacob Bobiles, are all doing a great job of leading the team so far,” Shimabukuro said.

Sophomore Fong is excited to start this season because of the connections he has already made with his teammates in the off-season that will surely show during meets and practices.

“I am most excited to see how we have become stronger swimmers and how much we have improved as individuals and as a team. The team ethic that we build throughout the season will only progress as the season continues,” Fong said. “I think the team will be successful this season because we all work very hard and most of us have been training in the off-season or swimming with our clubs.”

Captain and senior Paloma is excited about the season, and he feels that the team will really do well because they have a lot of promising swimmers this season.

“I think the season will be great. We have a lot of promising swimmers and really have a good chance to send multiple people to the state meet. As for strengths, we are a really close and energetic team. We are all friends and have team bonding together frequently, which in turn leads to a developed sense of trust and productivity between us,” Paloma said.

As a whole, the team has high hopes for the upcoming season.

“Overall it is going to be a great season and people should be sure to cheer us on at our meets this season,” Shimabukuro said.