By Lauren Barbour

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MHS’ boys swimming team were the champions for the seventh year in a row in the Oahu Interscholastic Association (OIA) championships held on Feb. 1 and 2. Although this is the first year head coach Ryan Micale has been with them, they managed to uphold their legacy of wins.

“You can’t really do much better than winning OIAs, right? It was a really good year,” stated Micale. Beside the OIA championships, the swim team also won the West Division championships and will be moving on to participate in the state championships held on Feb. 15 and 16.

Before such a competition, the team members had their own ways of preparing. “Team bonding was a great way to prepare because it gave each individual something greater to swim for,” stated Senior Kyle Yamada. Senior Tomas Sodini said, “I don’t really think about (anything like results),” continuing, “(It) just gets in the way, just kind of makes you lose focus.”

Throughout the competition, members helped make sure their teammates worked hard. “We all kind of support each other,” Sodini said. Yamada added, “Over the course of the season we formed a fantastic community that was set on winning and we achieved just that.”

However, their victory was a result of more than just bonding. “They come to practice, the kids are dedicated, they swim hard. At the meets, at the competitions, they put forth everything,” said Micale. He hopes they will be able to carry on that work ethic, commenting, “I hope they would continue on that trend as they leave Mililani and go into college or the military or whatever else they would endeavor.” Micale also said, “Overall, I think over the entire roster, from top to bottom, everyone swam well and we really won OIAs on the strength of the entire team.”

The swim team will be moving on to compete in states and although a mix of private and public schools will be participating, they are confident they will perform well.