“What I’m most thrilled for is the possibility of transforming this club into a team next year,” were the last words uttered by former swim captain, Julian Moll ’21, a member of the Archbishop Riordan swimming team in 2020. 

Three years later, the swimming team has gone on to wage a full-blown competition across the West Coast. 

As the swimming season shortly closes, the Riordan team has pulled through with determination, as they compete in four different regions of play, CA (California), CCS (Central Coast Section), CCS-CC (Central Conference), and the WCAL (West Catholic Athletic League), while also in four different competitions: freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly. 

The Riordan Swimming team has been competing against Saint Ignatius and Sacred Heart Cathedral with a membership of 17 male and 15 female swimmers, led by their coach, Gwen Dornan.

The team has been ranked fourth for the CCS and WCAL as of the 2022-2023 season, alongside an estimated statistical average of 30.48 seconds, for a 50-meter freestyle swim, for the male team and an average of 33.84 seconds for the female team. The intermediate time of a 50-meter swim from the age gap of 14-18 is 56.8 seconds.

As one of the team swimmers, Thomas Slattery ’24, stated, “We did a lot better than last year,” humorously adding, “We beat Sacred Heart!” 

However, the team still wants some improvements for the team, as Francesca Delgado-Schaumberg ‘24 stated, “We need more support,” further adding, “We need real swimsuits as well.”

The Riordan swimming team also wishes to expand its team and its operations to advance in the future and perhaps draw in some new swimmers to the competition line. 

“We need to build a pool on the third floor and a wall,” jokingly stated Column Slatterly ‘24.