By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – As freshmen, they were the few. Now they’re the proud, mariners in the water as Bedford North Lawrence starts to navigate back to status as a sectional contender during the 2024-25 campaign. That takes numbers and talent, and the Stars have both.
BNL seniors Kat Kwayke, Cookie King and Francesca Orozco remember their first year in the program. They comprised half the roster. That made it impossible to win dual meets or battle for a postseason team title. Their reward for perseverance and dedication will be a more memorable final campaign.
The Stars started official practice sessions for the upcoming season on Monday afternoon, and the pool was much more crowded, with an expected roster to push toward 20 swimmers. Rather than just a few ripples, they’re making waves. They intend to do that all year, with the goal of making a splash in the state tournament.
“The bottom line,” BNL coach Adam Young said, “is the girls team at BNL is back.”
BNL ended its dual-meet drought last season. Now the Stars intend to compete for their first team sectional crown since 2018 (and third in school history), and qualify athletes for the IHSAA state championship.
“It’s exciting,” King said. “We knew we would not be able to win any meets my freshman year because we didn’t have the manpower. Last year we were able to win a meet, now we’re hoping to win a lot more.”
King will be one of the fast ones to watch. She finished third in the sectional in the 100 butterfly, and she will also play a key role on multiple relays. Ava Lipp was a breakout star in the 100 backstroke last year, earning the top seed in the sectional before settling for second. Amelia Rich gained valuable experience last season, and now a promising freshman class has joined the ranks.
“We have a nice freshman class, a lot of talent in that class,” Young said. “We had some kids develop last year, so they’ve had a nice springboard into this year.”
BNL has ground to cover. Jasper dominated last year’s sectional while BNL was fifth in the field. Advancing to the state meet in an event requires winning a sectional title. The Stars have learned what it takes.
“I would like to go to state,” King said. “I’ve have to work really hard. The small team as freshmen caused us to realize how much hard work it takes.”
“We worked really hard as a small team,” Kwakye said. “With all the girls we have this year, if we work just half as hard, we’ll accomplish a lot.”
“I’m proud to be part of a team that has grown so much,” Orozco said. “I know we will continue to grow for the future.”
BNL will open the season on Nov. 26 at Edgewood. The Stars have a lot of boxes to check off.
“It’s time for some payback,” Young said. “They had to take some beatings over the last four years. Now it’s time to start really competing. That’s one of our goals, to have some girls go to the state meet. And we have the talent to produce that. We want to get back to state, whether it’s one person or relays, and we want to be competitive.”
