I know that Uni swimming isn't the best school sports team, but I do believe we really should get more respect than we actually do. Just because our team goal isn't about winning and focuses more on personal improvement doesn't mean we don't do well.

We really do work our butts off. I mean what other team wakes up before 5 o'clock in the morning to get into a freezing pool for a strenuous swim practice? OK, track people, I know you guys have morning practices, too, but you don't have them EVERY DAY for three months.

We can't shave our legs until sectionals. We have meets every Saturday, so we not only lose one day of our weekend, we lose our Friday nights, too. We smell like chlorine all the time.

And while braving the elements of nature is pretty heroic and all, braving the elements of a pool can sometimes be just as bad. You not only have to endure the constantly changing temperature of the pool (which usually ends up on the colder side), but you've got to be able to successfully maneuver around other swimmers in the pool in such a way that does not injure anyone.

But despite all these not-so-great aspects, we still manage to have fun. We've got music blaring during our warm-ups from CDs that we've burned — and sometimes if we're lucky, during the whole practice.

You've got people making silly blunders and mistakes that seem completely hilarious at 5 or 6 in the morning. And even though we're swimming for most of the time, there is still plenty of time to talk and chill. There's just something about swimming together in a crowded lane in the early hours of the morning that just gets everybody really close.

With sectionals fast approaching, our season is drawing to an end. Even though I'm looking forward to being able to wake up every day at a normal time, I know I'm going to really miss the swim team for all the reasons above and many more.