Annual meet galvanizes swimmers in event honoring memory, spirit of Natalie Bolin
Typically, water symbolizes cleansing properties, but for the lady Wildcats, it represents home. On October 7, the highly anticipated Natalie K. Bolin (NKB) Meet was held in the West swimming pool. The themed invitational meet is a peak of the season for many. Bolin died at 16 in a devastating car crash in 2010, and the community dedicated a meet to remember her astounding character.
Throughout the season, girls swimmers are reminded of Natalie’s legacy and try to keep it alive in the pool. This memory fuels the swim team, bringing success and a family-like bond. Assistant coach Lori Salzer knew Natalie through Oshy and witnessed her loving spirit firsthand.
“I don’t think a day ever went by that she wasn’t smiling,” she said. “She was always happy, upbeat, and ready to put the work in no matter what she did. Everywhere she went, she brought a bright light with her,”
Head coach Kelly Wayne hopes swimmers task themselves with the responsibility of encapsulating Natalie’s admirable personality in their own lives.
“I think the characteristics that she embodied during her short time on Earth are what I want all of our swimmers to embody everyday,” she said. “Whether that’s kindness, hard working, swimming the five hundred, or cheering on teammates, there are countless positive characteristics that I think every single person in the pool can encompass, even if they aren’t the fastest swimmer on the team. It is tragic that Natalie was taken so young, but by trying to live through her characteristics and keeping her in mind, we can ultimately become better humans.”
The NKB meet is the perfect way to bring said traits to life. Wayne feels the NKB meet comes at the perfect time in the swim season. Even during summer practices, swimmers anticipate the lively date on the calendar.
“I think it’s a great meet to remember why we love swimming,” she said. “Sometimes, in the middle of the season, swimmers get down, they’re tired, they have homework, and whatever it may be, it’s great for swimmers to remember the love of being in the water. The NKB meet is a chance to appreciate the fun people around you and take a break from all the stress from the school year.”
Junior Samara Zeinert feels a strong sense of unity at the NKB meet. Each team attending chooses a dress-up theme, goes all out, and is supportive towards everyone in the room. This year, the Wildcats busted out their pink apparel for a vibrant Barbie theme.
“Each year, teams from around our area travel to our pool to compete in fun events to commemorate Natalie,” she said. “Since Natalie was known for being positive and caring toward everybody, we make sure that the NKB meet is fun for everybody involved, and for all of our separate teams to combine into one big family.”
Senior captain and 4-year varsity swimmer Carly Salzer has celebrated Bolin’s legacy year after year at the meet and can attest to the energy in the pool.
“There probably isn’t a moment at the NKB meet where someone isn’t dancing, cheering, laughing, or just having fun,” she said.
As with everything, the NKB meet has been altered since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Wayne feels this may be for the better.
“Since COVID, we haven’t had spectators, meaning no parents watching, it’s just teams,” she said. “I actually think it’s created this really special environment as it’s just girls having fun and swimming. There’s dancing, and swimming, and it’s loud. You would never know that there haven’t been spectators because my ears are ringing for hours after.”
Now, with another successful NKB meet in the books, swimmers have the competition season to look forward to. Carly Salzer is ready to push herself and her teammates to achieve their best and make it to state again this year.
“I honestly thought it would be rough losing some good seniors from last year, but I think that we have made this season just as memorable,” she said. “I definitely think we will still get athletes to state this year in November and hopefully a relay or two as well.”
Team dynamics are expected to change from year to year, however, Wayne has stayed consistent with team bonding activities to bring the girls together and make the team feel like family.
“I want high school swimming to be a fun experience for the team,” she said. “I try to incorporate team bonding and games into practice time. On another note, I am especially proud of how each girl is working hard toward achieving their own individual goals; this ultimately makes us better as a team, too.”
Zeinert agrees and appreciates the effort her teammates have put in, both to improve as swimmers and as members of the swim family.
“Everybody pushes each other to be their best selves not only in the pool, but in the community as well,” she said. “We are all very close and connected, and when you enter the pool you immediately feel at home. I know that everybody on the team is like family and that we all support each other no matter what.”
Carly Salzer explains how the environment her teammates create makes the hours spent swimming go by in a breeze, and it helps her swim faster as well.
“When it’s fun and everyone is cheering, it’s way more exciting and easy to get myself going fast,” she said. “I think this goes for a lot of people on the team.”
Along with many team members going to state the past few years, a new pool record has been broken this season by Zeinert.
“It was an absolutely surreal experience,” she said. “It feels so good to finally have my name up on that record board, but none of it would have been possible without my amazing coaches, teammates and family supporting me through it all.”
Wayne is proud of her swimmers thus far, and looks forward to watching them push themselves even harder as the competition season approaches.
“First and foremost, we want everyone to have personal best times at their last meet, no matter what that meet is,” she said. “We always strive to end the season with best times all around. Obviously we would love to send people to state. We’ve had a couple of great years with that, so we’ll see if this is a year of good luck. I think that’s always the ultimate goal is to send as many people as we can. But also, it’s time for swimmers to focus on individual goals and work on the fundamentals to achieve them.”
by Emmy Reichenberger and Jazmine Blustin
Published on October 30, 2023
Oshkosh West Index vol 120 Issue II