Last year, this specific meet against Barnstable remained as the last dual meet of the Varsity Swim Season. This meet determined which team, Barnstable or Nantucket, was to be league champion of the year. Surprisingly, our rather small team of Nantucket swimmers was performing rather well, and Barnstable had become quite nervous. The entire meet was so close that everything was left up to the last race, the 400 free relay race. The team who won this race would also win the Bay Colony Conference Championship. This freestyle race remained very close, all the way up to the last leg of the relay, which was me. I had been placed in the center lane, lane number three, the one which was expected to come in first. As I stood up upon the starting block, the pressure seemed to remain all on me. Try as hard as I might, I was completely blown away by two Barnstable boys on either side of me. They placed first and second, leaving me behind in the dust. Needless to say, Nantucket lost the race, the swim meet, and the Bay Colony Conference Championship. I was devastated, so hurt that I had already begun to cry, and couldn't help it.

Perhaps, out of all my swimming experiences which still remain in the future, Barnstable may prevail as the most memorable. Sometimes, I find, bad experiences can actually exceed the good ones. When viewing it this way, to have been dusted in 53 seconds was better than to have won. Experiences like these force me to learn, and to challenge myself against all odds. In the end, if all else fails, I've tried my hardest and that alone makes me successful.