BonnerSprings.com

Winning was hard to come by this season for the Bonner Springs boys swimming team.

Still, the Braves had their share of winning moments — many of them involving the same two teammates.

Jacob Sopher and Philip Holcomb are special-needs swimmers who compete for the team. They’re not the fastest in the water, but BSHS coach Lynn LaNoue knows they are among the most passionate and enthusiastic members of the team.

That was evident on Wednesday, Feb. 10, when the team closed out its season at the Independent League Championships at the Bonner Springs YMCA.

Sopher was swimming the 50-yard freestyle, and the pool was abuzz with excitement. As Sopher reached the wall to make a turn, he paused and smiled at all of the onlookers who were encouraging him to finish. He was having a great time.

“Jacob is the crowd favorite,” LaNoue said of the first-year swimmer. “He has a lot of fun, and the team really rallies around him.”

Holcomb is a fan favorite, too, and he paved the way for Sopher to join the program. Holcomb is in his second season competing for the Braves, and he has brought the home crowd — as well as opposing teams and coaches — to its feet on multiple occasions with his spirited races.

The pair have made a positive impact on the Braves. LaNoue said Holcomb has never met a stranger, and Sopher is always comfortable in his surroundings at the pool.

LaNoue has had limited experience with special-needs swimmers in his past, but he said this experience has helped him better understand the challenges they face.

“As a coach, you want (Jacob and Philip) to swim just like everybody else. That’s the goal,” LaNoue said. “They have fun and have their own goals that may be different, so it can be a balance.”

The Braves have welcomed the two swimmers with open arms — a fact that is evident when half of the team lines up at each end of the pool encouraging their teammates to keep on swimming during races.

“At first I was a little worried about what the other coaches may think about (Jacob and Philip) and if they would perhaps slow down the meet,” LaNoue said. “I just don’t care now. I put them in events that they will not be disqualified, and they swim well and have a lot of fun.”

Unfortunately for the Braves, the inspiration didn’t carry over into the wins column for much of the season. As a team, they struggled to turn in the type of results they hoped to throughout the year, and the team didn’t qualify any individuals for the state championships.

Even so, BSHS did have some solid in-the-water results.

LaNoue said after the Independent League Championships that his team did not perform up to its potential in the season’s final meet by taking fourth.

“We finished better than I thought we were going to heading into the ILC,” LaNoue said. “Not everybody swam their best times. I would have liked to have walked away with a trophy, but some guys just didn’t perform up to their best ability.”

The Braves did finish in front of rival Turner for the first time all season, which has to be one of the season’s biggest bright spots.

LaNoue said the team was faced with challenges all season. One week it was a pool that needed maintenance. The next it was half his team missing practice due to illness. Other weeks it was swimmers not committing fully to their team.

“It has been a tough season. I learned a lot of lessons,” LaNoue said. “As far as team size and tryouts go, I need to change that philosophy because the current way isn’t working too well.”

The team made some strides that LaNoue found encouraging. Some of the basics took hold and the younger swimmers made serious strides throughout the season.

“It is nice to see guys when they start getting it and make big changes in their streamline,” LaNoue said. “Our leadership on the team is growing, but it has a way to go.”

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