The girls swimming and diving team made a splash this season. Particularly, one of the divers, junior Katie McKinstry, broke both the six-dive meet and 11-dive meet school records this season alone while also qualifying for the state championship meet.
McKinstry set goals to make records high and hard to beat during this season. Her achievement did not come easy, though. Dive coach Alex Thierry understands the adversity a diver must go through.
“Every athlete has his or her ups and downs but Katie is working hard to be the best that she can be,” Thierry said.
After working hard at practice every Monday through Saturday, McKinstry achieved her goal.
As to her reaction to breaking these records, McKinstry was elated.
“I’m just so happy and proud of myself. Last year I came within 10 points of breaking the records, and this year I finally did it,” McKinstry said.Junior Lauren Wolf, another member of the swim and dive team, was anything but surprised about McKinstry’s achievements.
“Katie can do anything she sets her mind to. She made it a goal to beat the school’s previous diving record and she achieved that goal,” Wolf said.
McKinstry clearly puts the time and care into perfecting her dives. The challenge of doing well in meets pushes her along to grow with the sport. Wolf notices McKinstry’s passion for perfection.
“Katie is not only an amazing diver; she is so graceful and really tries to do her best to learn new dives and perfect them,” Wolf said.
Thierry also admires McKinstry’s hunger for success, but recognizes the room for improvement every athlete has.
“She still has quite a bit of work to do, but if she stays determined she will definitely be something to watch,” Thierry said.
Coach Thierry also notes the contributions McKinstry makes to the team as a whole.
“I think a good leader or captain should be a good motivator and a good pep-talker, and Katie is really growing into those roles. She is goofy but can be serious at practice. She has really grown throughout this season,” Thierry said.
Wolf agrees with Thierry that McKinstry is certainly a team player.
“Katie definitely takes initiative and really pushes us to do our best and finish our workouts,” Wolf said.
Not only does diving currently bring joy to McKinstry, but she feels that she may have a future in diving. Wolf expresses her opinion of how McKinstry’s future with diving may be successful.
“I think if Katie continues to dive she could be even more amazing than she already is. She could further improve her skills and do great in college,” Wolf said.
McKinstry sums up her mindset in diving with her motivation for the sport. “My best motivation is being the best diver I can be,” McKinstry said.