Eatonville Swim Team Captures Back-to-Back Wins Over Clover Park, Steilacoom

The Eatonville High School girls’ swim team delivered impressive performances last week, securing victories against both Clover Park and Steilacoom. Led by standout swims from Senior Captains Kaylee Bernt, Gracie Forsman, and Junior Captain Annika Howard, the Cruisers showed dominance in both meets, achieving district qualifying times and personal bests along the way.

In their victory over Clover Park, Senior Captain Kaylee Bernt set the tone for the Cruisers with wins in both the 200-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle. Junior Captain Annika Howard followed with a win in the 200 individual medley, and an exhilarating come-from-behind victory in the 100 butterfly.

Eatonville’s depth was on full display in the 100 freestyle, as Senior Captain Gracie Forsman clinched first place, while sophomore Lily Hays dropped over five seconds off her lifetime best to secure second in a 1-2 sweep for the team. Junior Nicole Tomyn grabbed another first-place finish for the Cruisers in the 100 backstroke, while Forsman earned another win in the 100 breaststroke, improving her district qualifying time.

To cap the meet, the Cruisers’ 400-yard freestyle relay team of Tomyn, Howard, Bernt, and Forsman delivered a convincing win to secure Eatonville’s 82-69 victory over Clover Park.

Eatonville's winning 400 Freestyle team of Annika Howard, Kaylee Bernt, Gracie Forsman, and Nicole Tomyn pose for a photo. Photo: Sarah Howard

In a surprising result, Eatonville went on to defeat Steilacoom for the first time in recent memory, with a series of standout performances. Senior Captain Kaylee Bernt once again led the charge, dropping 6.44 seconds off her season best to win the 200 freestyle and qualify for districts. Bernt later delivered an astonishing time drop of 18.07 seconds in the 500 freestyle, securing another district qualifying time.

The Cruisers shone in the 200 individual medley with a 1-2 finish, as Howard took first place and Hays touched out her opponent for second. Forsman added to the team’s success with a second-place finish in the 50 freestyle, earning a district qualification. Tomyn had a lifetime best swim to win the 100 freestyle.

The Eatonville dominance continued in the 100 backstroke with a clean 1-2-3 sweep, led by Tomyn, followed by senior Bella Wolters in second and Hays in third. Forsman closed out individual events with a season-best time in the 100 breaststroke, further improving her district qualifying time.

The Cruisers finished the meet strong with another relay win in the 400 freestyle, featuring Tomyn, Howard, Bernt, and Forsman to finish off the Sentinels and claim an 88-78 team victory.

Next up, Eatonville will host the Foss Falcons on Tuesday, October 1, followed by a rematch against Fife on Thursday, October 3 at Eatonville.