Hannah Dove, junior

Junior Hannah Dove had a strong Regional Meet, qualifying for the State Championships for every event in which she competed. 

She helped lift the team to a first place finish in the 200 medley relay and the 400 freestyle relay. She also took silver in the 200 IM and fourth in the 100 butterfly.

Dove has decided to not compete in the 200 IM so senior teammate Renee Alcala could qualify and compete at state as well. Alcala had finished in third place at the event.

She will individually compete in the 100 fly still and is excited. She got 5th at state last year in the event with a time of 57.16.

“I’ve been swimming it my whole career,” Dove said. “So it’s just really special to like, get to the high school level and go to state for it.”

Going into this year, Dove said she feels like the team has a better chance at putting together a strong team performance.

“I mean, we actually have a really good opportunity to podium at State this year, and we’ve never really had that opportunity before,” Dove said. “It’s definitely a lot more nerve wracking to know we actually have a chance to win.”

Dove said coach John Dissinger has been a major help to her and the team, as well as Coach Greg McLain.

“[Dissinger] is just such a good mentor for us and like I had a really hard season,” Dove said. “A lot of things were going on and he was just always there for me, like a dad and a friend. He’s definitely more of a caretaker than a coach to me. So it’s really special to have someone that cares about me as a person.”

She’s excited for the future and for state.

“It’s just like, the biggest and best opportunity ever,” she said.