Memories of a Gator: Sarah Jones

“Wait… You still do swim team?”  After graduating from high school this past spring and entering into my last summer before college, many of my friends have asked me this question when I mention the Gators.  When they ask with a laugh I tend to answer in the most condescending and questioning way I can.  “Yeah!?!,” I say, because 13 years and  6 divisions later, I cannot imagine doing summer any other way.  It simply just would not be summer without a horrible one-piece tan, the lingering smell of chlorine, and the Mount Vernon Park Gators.

As my time with the Gators is drawing to a close, I find myself thinking back on what has made MVP swimming so special to me.  I remember when dryland consisted of running around the pond and when the coaches had me convinced that there was a real alligator living below the First Aid room.  I remember when Matthew Makin was a newborn (he loves when I tell him that story) and how the end-of-the-season banquet was the greatest night all summer.  I remember when I was once the gangly 8 & under that the coaches could toss around, and now suddenly I am the coach who does the same to the current little gators.  I have no idea how these last 13 years flew by so quickly, but I have enjoyed every minute of that time with the Gators. 

Throughout it, easily one of the greatest and most powerful memories on this team came when we swam at Dunn Loring when I was 8.  It was an incredibly close meet and we were in Division 7 at the time, but it seemed like the biggest deal in the world.  When we got to the 15-18 boys relay the score was tight, and Steven Berry pulled off one of the most incredible relay comeback swims I have ever seen to clinch us the win.  I remember the team going insane and I was so happy and full of emotion I had to keep myself from crying of joy.  I think that was the moment when I realized how amazing and powerful sports can be, and I have Mount Vernon Park to thank for that.

As I have gotten older, my time in the pool has decreased while my time on the lacrosse field has rapidly increased, as I discovered what I am really passionate about.  But even when swimming in the offseason became nonexistent for me, MVP has always welcomed me back each summer with open arms.  I know confidently, in all the ways it has affected me, the Gator swim team has helped prepare me for school and lacrosse next year at William and Mary, and for that, I could not be more thankful.