It’s season two for Old Rochester Regional High School’s swim team, and this year the swimmers’ commitment has reached new depths, says Head Coach Carly DeBeau.

“Their attitude this year is, ‘We want more!’ They’re really eager to go the extra mile, literally and figuratively,” she said. “It’s every coach’s dream.”

Co-captain Julianne Mariner, a junior, agreed.

“We definitely take it a lot more seriously. We have goals now,” said Mariner.

The co-ed team has grown since last year, despite losing four seniors.

The addition of five new boys, bringing the total to nine, was a boost for the aquatic Bulldogs.

“The boys all came from some type of a swimming background, and they’re eager to learn,” said DeBeau. “The bar is a little bit higher than when we started last year.”

But the young team continues to be in building mode, and the boys team's small size proves a challenge when competing against much larger schools.

At 0-4 for the season thus far, DeBeau said the male swimmers often come up against teams with 30 boys. “It’s just a numbers game at that point.”

The girls have fared better, with two wins and two losses. The addition of two new assistant coaches, including a diving coach, also promises to improve the team’s chances of competing on an even playing field with more established teams.

Without diving, the team forfeits points at every match, but two “brave” girls have stepped up to the board to learn.

“From what I hear from my diving coach, these ladies are natural divers,” said DeBeau. “We lost some meets last year due to not having diving.”

The regular season ends with a meet on Tuesday, but a few swimmers hope to make it to sectionals and statewide competition. The girls 200 freestyle relay is less than a second away from qualifying, and a couple of the boys are close to qualifying for individual events, said Mariner.

“We’re just focused on trying to get some representation to our sectionals meet,” said DeBeau.