Multiple impressive marks adorn the girls swimming record board, but one number in particular stands out: 2013.

That’s the year that the oldest swimming record still intact was set, Andi Johnston’s 100-yard backstroke. The rest of the records are more recent additions, most having been set just last year. In fact, over half of the records, and all but one of those set last year, now belong to two juniors—Emily Barrier and Amy Fromme.

The duo’s freshman year, new marks slowly started replacing the older records on the board. Last year, their success catapulted the majority of their races into history.

“[Their success] is actually kind of new,” remarked second year head coach Rob Huey.  

Freshmen year, both girls qualified for state but neither finished in the top 16, contributing no points to the team.

In 2016, the results were more positive. Barrier came out of the state meet with a fourth place in the 100-yard freestyle, sixth place in the 200-yard individual medley, and fifth and ninth places in the 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relays. In addition to being on the same two relays, Fromme added points to the team with her 12th and 16th places in the 200-yard and 500-yard freestyles.The team finished eighth.

“The goal [for this year] is to just work through them motivation-wise and training-wise to just keep getting better and improve on their times so they can move up in the state,” added Huey.

Last week, the team did one of their hardest workouts of the season: a drop set. This entails sets of three and a half minute long intervals swam repeatedly. As soon as the time cut-off is missed, they move onto the next of the ten events. The workout lasts the entire hour-and-a-half long practice.

So far, trainings like these have made an impact, helping the girls gain a mental and physical edge on their competition and pushing them to new heights.

Barrier has currently recorded the second fastest 200-yard freestyle and fourth fastest 100-yard freestyle in 5A this year. Fromme clocks in at eleventh for both the 100-yard and 200-yard freestyles. Their relay teams, the 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle, are ranked sixth and ninth, respectively.

In two weeks, Barrier, Fromme, and the rest of the team will take on 5A’s best female swimmers at the Veterans Memorial Aquatics Center in Thornton to compete for the title of state champion. Feeding off the current strong rankings, the goals for this year are much loftier than they were last year.

“I think, and hope, that state will go well,” said Barrier. “My goal is to win the 200 free at state and place in the [top eight] for my other events.”

Fromme just wants to race like she knows she’s capable of.

“I don’t like the pressure of specific numbers floating through my head, so I try to set my goals more on what I’m doing while I’m swimming,” Fromme said. “My goals for the rest of the season are to focus on hitting every turn hard in the 200 free and racing as hard as I know I’m capable of at conference and state.”

Individual results won’t be the only thing the girls have in mind, though.

They lead a seventh-ranked team, who’s looking to record a top ten finish at state for the second year in a row.

The Lobos lost a couple of state-level swimmers to graduation but hope to keep the momentum from last year’s strong finish going.

“To be ranked seventh at the beginning of the season is really good for us,” remarked Huey. “We’d love to stay in the top ten in state. I’m expecting that we drop a little bit, but getting in the top ten. That’s basically our goal.”

Added Fromme, “Qualifying for state and setting records is more about contribution to the team and it is my individual performance. I love knowing that I can represent Rocky at the state level and score points for the team.”