Senior Marauder Abby Hillman may not necessarily have the best times on the Mingus Union High School swim team, but she has an enthusiasm that keeps the team’s spirit more than afloat during the good and bad times.
Not only do MUHS swim team captains have to worry about their own techniques, personal records and winning events, they must set an example of a good teammate, be motivators and most importantly, have the type of leadership that will lead the team to victory.
For the Marauders team, Hillman is the essence of motivation and sportsmanship.
“Abby is motivated,” said Brendon Kenney, head coach of the MUHS swim team. “She has an energy that keeps everybody in a good mood. I’ve even nominated her for a number of sportsmanship awards.”
Hillman, originally an Iowa native, has swum for Mingus Union all four years of her high school career and two of her summers for the Cottonwood Clippers club team. She started swimming competitively because an eighth-grade teacher encouraged her to do so.
“He told us that everybody needs to come out for swimming, so I did,” Hillman said. “It was really hard, but I absolutely loved it, and I stuck with it ever since.” Hillman swims the 50-meter freestyle and 100-meter freestyle individual events and the 200-meter freestyle and four-by-100-meter freestyle relays.
For the full story, please see the Wednesday, Oct. 17, issue of the Cottonwood Journal Extra.
