On Saturday, the the varsity swimming teams took on Hopkins School – a challenge, but one the swimming and diving teams didn’t back off from nonetheless.

“The boys swam and dived really well,” says Kevin Saxton, the head coach of the boys varsity swimming team. “Hopkins was good and they were a little better than us, but we had some great swims.”

The boys didn’t let Hopkins win without a fight – Saxton highlights the performances of Robby Lane ‘18 and James Kim ‘19, who “had some very good meets,” Ashton Smith ‘20, “who has been working very hard and is one of those younger guys who stepped up to contribute,” Michael Hua ‘19 and Jason Li ‘19, who “have been working and swimming very hard,” and Ray Cutting ‘19 who “had a very good meet and has been showing a lot of improvement.

Saxton coaches his swimmers for more than just success in the water – he teaches them skills that they can apply to everything else in their lives: “They have to take care of the little things,” says Saxton, “Swimming, in many ways, is a metaphor for life, and I’m trying to teach more than just how to swim fast but how to be a good person and how to build character.”

As the swimmers dried off on the poolside the divers prepared to face off. Ms. Prickett, the head diving coach, however, notes that the sport has more to it than that. “‘A day without laughter is a day wasted,’” says Prickett, quoting Charlie Chaplin,.“I can honestly say, the Kent School diving team has yet to waste a day.”

Prickett highlights the performances of Katherine Rohrer ‘18, who had a great meet and showed a lot of improvement, and John Kim ‘20, who placed first for the boys team.

“Mental preparation is huge,” says Prickett, “So much of it is seeing yourself do the dive before doing it, and if you can’t see yourself doing it you won’t be able to do it. Diving is probably the most mental sport I’ve ever been a part of.”