After placing fifth at State last season, the girls swim team is diving into the 2025 season and have their first meet on Nov. 1. The team has high expectations after only losing two seniors last year and maintaining a deep roster of returning state qualifiers.
Coach Ginny Palmich is returning for her second year as a coach at Midtown. She said the team has potential to perform even better this year due to; new freshmen that fill gaps, better planning for state relays and the strong number of returning swimmers that placed at state last year.
“Last year’s finish at state honestly wasn’t bad considering where we were as a team,” Palmich said. “We had a lot of first place and podium finishes, probably more than most other teams, but we didn’t have the depth to really push us higher in overall placement. That’s something we’ve made a big priority this year. We’ve got more swimmers, more versatility and I think that extra depth is what’s really going to make a difference for us.”
The increase in depth comes from a mix of upperclassmen, but most importantly freshman bringing in new talent. The team needed a backstroke swimmer, and freshman Avery Wells who specializes in freestyle and backstroke said she is excited for the season.
“So far the team chemistry has been great,” Wells said. “Since the season just started I’m not close with everyone yet, but I know a few swimmers from Swim Atlanta [club swim] who I’m really excited to be on the team with. My goals for this season are to have fun, break relay records and get the best times I can.”
On Nov. 22 the team will attend the McCallie Invitational in Chattanooga, Tennessee; which will be their first travel meet ever, and it’s a highly competitive meet. Junior captain Rhea El-Deiry said she is really excited for this meet specifically and bonding both inside and outside the pool will be important for this season.
““This year our State team from last year, with the addition of some freshmen, are going to compete in the McCallie swim meet,” El-Deiry said.“Not only is this meet a great opportunity but I also hope that it will help bring the team closer together.”
Wells said the early preparation and team bonding has made her even more excited and less nervous about her first high school meet.
“The McCallie Invitational is a really big meet. I’m looking forward to competing and spending the weekend getting to know my teammates and coaches,” Wells said. “I’m also really excited about High School State and contributing to a relay.”
Palmich said this year’s team chemistry has been a top priority coming into the new season.
“Last season, we were a little bit disorganized and I was still finding my footing during my first year,” Palmich said. “This year, we’re focusing a lot more on team camaraderie and structure.”
Palmich said she and the other coaches are working together to plan out different relays, and rosters, to have their team cohesively perform better at state this year.
This year we’re identifying strengths and weaknesses early, plugging any holes in our events, and being really intentional about relay strategy,” Palmich said. “It’s all about being proactive instead of reactive.”
There are key upperclassmen returning this year that with improving times will help the team; El-Deiry who holds two school records in the 200-yard individual medley and the 100-yard breaststroke, junior Sara Paisley Owens who holds the school and state record in the 100 and 50-yard freestyle and juniors Harper Wagner and Dabney Bond who lead the team as distance swimmers.
“We have some of the best girls in the state,” Palmich said. “Owens holds two state records, which is not only impressive but huge for our team when it comes to placing in meets. We also have two key distance swimmers, Wagner and Bond that really add onto the depth of our team, along with key upcoming freshmen like Wells, who will help us fill out our relay teams to hopefully place.
Additionally, this year, Midtown has added George Kimbrough as an assistant coach. El-Deiry said he will have an immensely positive impact on the team.
“I know having Kimbrough this season will be a great addition to the coaching staff and overall team,” El-Deiry said. “He was my coach around five years ago, so it’s really a full circle moment that he will now be a part of the Midtown staff.”
Palmich said there is optimism and excitement for what this year has to hold.
“I’m really excited to watch how much better this season will be,” Palmich said. “Last year we were a really young team, now those swimmers are coming back as upperclassmen, with more experience and confidence. We’ve built stronger team chemistry, more structure at practices, and a real sense of leadership. I think all of that together is going to make this season our most competitive yet.”
