Record-breaking family

MOSES LAKE – Competitive swimming is nothing new in the DuVall family, with Hollie DuVall – a 1998 graduate of Moses Lake High School who swam for the school’s swim team – and current Maverick sophomore Kathryn DuVall swimming for Moses Lake on the girl’s swim team that just placed fourth at state.

Kathryn DuVall’s first two seasons with the Mavs have seen record-breaking performances, some of which were set by the teams Hollie DuVall was on.

“It was awesome because that was my generation of swimming with the girls that I swam with, and to know how exciting it was for me when our group made the board, and it lasted 20 years before it was broken, and it was done by both of our swim teams,” Hollie DuVall said.

The Mavericks broke the 200-yard medley relay record last season and broke the same record again. Hollie DuVall was an alternate on the 200-yard medley relay team that set the previous record in 1996.

“We knew we could break the record,” Kathryn DuVall said. “We just went in knowing that this swim, we’re going to break (the 1996) record. But then this last one at districts, we really weren’t expecting to break the record. We just swam it to get to qualify for state.”

Kathryn also surpassed Hollie’s team record in the 100-yard breaststroke at last year’s district meet.

“It’s cool because I swam the same event that she swam, so it was really fun when I had passed up her times,” Kathryn DuVall said.

Setting school records is an accomplishment of its own, but there is something about breaking records set by family members that sweeten the deal.

“It’s been pretty cool to know that this was something that my mother did in high school, especially when we’re going up and breaking their team’s records,” Kathryn DuVall said. “Whether it was just people from her team or people that came the year or two after her or swam with her at club. We’re building a new legacy.”

Hollie DuVall said that her daughter is less of a specialized swimmer than she was when she was in high school.

“She’s your all-around swimmer,” Hollie DuVall said. “She can swim fly, back, breast and free. She’s definitely well-rounded.”

Kathryn got involved with competitive swimming when she was five years old, with her mother having introduced all five of her children to the sport.

“I took all five of my kids to the pool, and Kathryn was the only one that survived and wanted to work really hard and be a swimmer,” Hollie DuVall said.

After trying out soccer and tee ball growing up, Kathryn stuck to being a swimmer.

“I really didn’t like the other sports, I’ve never been very coordinated,” Kathryn DuVall said. “So, (swimming) just fit really well.”

Having made the state meet three times in her high school career, Hollie DuVall said she gave this year’s Moses Lake team words of encouragement before last weekend’s state meet.

“Just to stay positive as a team, and to cheer everyone on and let them know that they’ve worked hard out there,” Hollie said. “Be proud of what you just did, not everybody gets to make it to state and you guys are champions just for being here.”

One of the aspects of this year’s state-placing girl’s swim team that stood out to Hollie is the cohesion that each of the swimmers have with each other, always motivating each other to strive and improve both in and out of the pool.

“To watch the team grow as a group and even see the girls get together – not even in the pool – support each other on dry-land workouts and really push each other has just been awesome,” Hollie said. “That reminds me of the timeframe we had when where we were in the water, we were a pusher. The difference Kathryn has is they’re in the water and out of the water and they’re pushing each other all the time.”

Kathryn said this “family” mindset the team has is something she hopes to continue in future years with Moses Lake.

“I’ve got to stick with being more a family team because we have to still support each other all the time,” Kathryn said. “Going forward in the next few years, being one of the leaders on the team (and) really make sure that everyone on the team is welcomed and they know that we’re all supporting them.”

At last week’s state girl’s swim and dive meet, the Mavericks placed fourth with a score of 157 points. Kathryn DuVall swam in the 200-yard medley relay, 100-yard freestyle, 200-yard freestyle relay and 100-yard backstroke. She placed seventh in the 100-yard freestyle and 13th in the 100-yard breaststroke, and the relay teams she is a part of placed 11th (200-yard medley relay) and third (200-yard freestyle relay).

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.