DUNCAN —
No matter the sport, Senior Night is always a time of celebration and reflection.
For the Duncan High swim team, that time is today at the Simmons Center (4 p.m.), and for seniors Mason Lang, Peyton Gandolf and RoseMarie Wagenseller it’s also a chance to look back on the success they have achieved over the past four years at DHS.
“They all have a lot of good leadership skills which carry over to our team,” Duncan coach Andrew Bowers said about his senior class. “Anytime you have a good group of seniors like this leaving, then it’s tough. Senior night is always memorable and something they will remember for the rest of their lives. It should be a memorable night for all of them.”
During his time as a Demon swimmer, Lang was able to swim alongside Andy Stewart, Kaitlyn Loafman, and Grant Walker among many others. He said that while he is sad to see this portion of his life end, he’s excited for the new journey to come with going to college.
“My first thoughts are that this has been an amazing year and this has been one of my favorite things to do,” he said. “I’m sad that I’m leaving but I feel like I’m ready to move on with on my life and enjoy college. I remember all the friendly competition I had with everyone during practice. We always pushed one another to be the best we could possibly be.”
Gandolf said while his competitive swim journey might be ending, he’s not planning on giving up swimming in general anytime soon.
“I’m going to keep on swimming even though I’m not doing it competitively anymore,” he said. “There’s a sense of happiness for me since I won’t have to do workouts. Our team always got along and worked things out whenever we needed to. If something did go wrong then we were able to fix it and that was something I’ll always remember.”
For Wagonseller, being on the swim team for her meant proving herself on a constant basis and getting better all the time.
“I’m probably going to miss the swim team when I graduate for sure,” she said. “Swimming has taught me a lot about working hard. I never thought I would even be on the swim team to be honest. But, always improving my times was something I’m very proud of doing. This sport is a lot of hard work but it will definitely benefit them in the end.”
Of course, all three seniors were more than willing to share some of their favorite memories as members of the Duncan High swim team.
“My favorite memory would have to be last year when I made state in the backstroke event,” Lang said. “I had no idea I had even made it to state. When I looked up and saw the board, then I was excited and shocked to see I had made it to state.”
“That’s a hard question to answer,” Wagonseller said. “But I would have to say it’s all the memories I have with all these people I have met. We have plenty of great times to look back on and enjoy.”
“When I went up to Edmond and I got my time way down in my event,” Gandolf said. “I never knew I could keep getting my time down so much. That was definitely a favorite for me.”
Coach Bowers even added his own personal memories of his senior trio.
“Mason can bring home a state championship for sure,” he said. “Getting the experience last year for him was a great thing. He won’t have to worry about nerves this year and I think he’ll swim a lot better. RoseMarie and Peyton’s efforts are to be admired. They both give so much effort in practice and in meets. They are some of the hardest working athletes I have ever been around.”
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Related Photos
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From left to right, Duncan seniors Mason Lang, RoseMarie Wagenseller, and Peyton Gandolf will be swimming their last home meet today at 4 p.m. at the Simmons Center. EVAN GRICE/THE DUNCAN BANNER
DHS seniors set for last home meet
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