CLOQUET, Minn. - A standard high school girls swimming and diving meet usually includes two teams and a 25-yard pool. Cloquet-Esko-Carlton hasn't seen both at a meet yet this fall.
So far, first-year head coach Stacia Schacht and her Lumberjacks have traveled to Chisholm and Superior, where at the home of the Bluestreaks, the pool was just 20 yards long and most recently where the Spartans call home, the meet featured seven teams competing in relay races.
"It's been a little tough to see really what these girls can do in the pool," Schacht said. "But the girls have been working hard at practice and I have been impressed with some of the times they have put up."
Even with the limitations, Schacht said the 'Jacks have been swimming fairly well, performing solidly on the Iron Range. And although they were by far the smallest team at Superior Saturday, they placed sixth out of seven teams in the relays.
"We were the smallest team at the relays, but we did really well," said Schacht, who is still getting to know her young, but extremely talented CEC swimmers and divers. "It's still very early in the season, but I'm excited to see what we can do the rest of the year."
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The 'Jacks are guided by a trio of Cloquet standout swimmers, including a pair of sophomores in freestyle sprinter Kayla Whipple and long distance butterfly star Whitney Wysocki, as well as freshman Alison Denman, who has been putting up impressive times in a number of different events.
With her team's first dual meet set for Thursday, Sept. 17 at Two Harbors, Schacht is staying optimistic about her girls' chances in a 25-yard pool against the Agates.
"We were right behind them by just a couple points," Schacht said about her team placing just behind Two Harbors in the Superior relays. "So if we swim well like I know we can, I'm pretty sure we can beat them."
