While Nacogdoches High School water polo teams gear up for their final push into the playoffs, Dragon swim teams are preparing for the start of another season.
Both swimming and water polo – and there are a number of team members participating in both sports – were at the Boys & Girls Club pool Monday morning for media day.
The water polo teams, now in their fourth year of competition after launching the program in 2022, are once again in strong positions for postseason berths. The boys stand in second place in District 5-6A, and the girls team is tied with Heath for first place. The top four teams qualify for playoffs.
Both water polo teams qualified for the playoffs a year ago when the Dragon boys were district champions and the girls finished in second place.
With three matches remaining, the regular season is almost complete. Nacogdoches hosts Rockwall Tuesday (Sept. 23), travels to Heath High School on Saturday and wraps up the regular season by hosting North Forney on Oct. 3. The home match against Rockwall begins at 4 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club pool with girls playing first and the boys beginning around 5:15 p.m.
The swim team will be in Waco on Oct. 18 for a meet at Midway High School. The following Saturday, Oct. 25, NHS will host the Dragon Invitational at the Boys & Girls Club pool.
Last February, Livia Whitaker finished fifth in the Class 5A girls 100-yard butterfly at the state swimming and diving meet in Austin. Grant Copen finished 12 in the boys 100 breaststroke. Both Whitaker and Copen return for this swim season.
The Dragons had three relay teams qualify for the state meet. It was the 25th straight year Nacogdoches High School had swimmers qualify for the state competition.