Mia Fackler just began high school this August and joined the Sunlake Swim & Dive team immediately thereafter. Fackler previously “…swam competitively for two years, took a break, and then started synchronized swimming,” also known as synchro. This year marked her first year back to traditional swimming, but she has never done so for a high school team. Mia said that she thought it would “…be really fun and challenging,” and continued to say that “…my experience has checked those boxes.” It is quite a different experience going from club swim in elementary school to synchro in middle school, then to a high school team, but it has been very fun for her.
On this team, she has been able to make “…a lot of friends and grow as a swimmer,” but certainly “…underestimated how much work it…” would be. She, and many others, see this sport as a great commitment; however, high school was not as intense as club swimming for her, so it has been a good way to ease back into things. Still, Fackler says she would not trade “…this sport for the world.” Since it has been a big change starting high school swim, she has been able to find motivation from the upperclassmen. She finds they encourage her to get faster times and train harder, giving it all she can. When asked about how she stays motivated, Mia said: “…beating my own times and my opponents’ times…” motivates her. This ensures she is progressing and keeping up with her competition. Fackler says, “it feels great to give your all to a spirit and see the results from it.” She also thinks this applies to life itself by always having a goal to aim for. This is a great mindset to have and Fackler will go far in life. Though this freshman still has a few years ahead of her at Sunlake, with these strategies, she will keep working hard with the goal of pursuing this sport in college.
