Local athlete swims in championships

Wasilla Waves swimmer Sarah Brettrager recently returned from competition in the Northwest Sectional Swimming Championships in Federal Way, Wash.

The event included a highly competitive field of swimmers from all of the Northwest states. In addition, swimmers from Arizona and New Mexico also competed.

Brettrager, a sophomore at Colony High School, competed in the 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle and the 100-yard backstroke.

"It was a great experience," Brettrager said. "It was good to see other competition outside of Alaska."

Her best finish was in the 50-freestyle, taking 19th place from a field of 114 swimmers.

The shortest of all races in swimming competition, the 50-freestyle is usually the most competitive with swimmers finishing within tenths of a second apart. Brettrager's 19th-place time in the 50-freestyle was 24.32 seconds, exactly one second behind the winner's time of 23.32. Of all the events, she feels the 50-freestyle is her best event.

"I love swimming it because it is an all-out sprint with no room for mistakes," Brettrager said. "I feel like I can go all out and give it everything I have."

Brettrager also swims for the Knights during the high school swimming season and is the current record-holder in Region III for the 50 and 100 freestyle.

As a high school freshman last year, Brettrager competed in the Northwest Sectional Swimming Championships and took 24th place in the 50 freestyle among a smaller field of swimmers.

"I learned a lot from last year's competition," Brettrager said. "I learned to be more mentally strong, which helps me to block out distractions."

Brettrager qualified for the championships by submitting results of U.S.A. swimming-sanctioned events in which she has competed with the Wasilla Waves.

Brettrager swims with the Wasilla Waves swim club year-round, breaking from the program during the high school swimming season to swim for Colony.

The Waves participate in events once a month and special events during the year.

Brettrager believes the experience she gained from the competition will help her advance in the sport and be more competitive.

"It was a chance to better myself and see that I can be competitive at that level," she said. "It was also a chance to see other swimmers' techniques on how they get ready to race and how they race - something I can learn from."