This past weekend’s State A Swim Meet at the Aberdeen Aquatic Center was a highlight of the season for dozens of competitors, but it was extra special for one swimmer in particular.

Mitch Rux is the lone senior on the Aberdeen Swim Club Stingrays and was participating in the final meet of his eight-year career with the squad.

“This is my last state meet,” Rux said, “last meet overall.”

Rux has experienced both the highs and lows of the sport during his time with the Stingrays and there are two things that will be remembered the most.

“All the friendships I’ve had, all the friends I’ve gotten to make along the way. They’ve meant the world to me. They’ve made this sport what it is,” Rux said. “On a deeper note, all the hard times I’ve been through. That has made me the person I am today, all the hard times I’ve been through. I’ve had a ton of injuries in the time I’ve been a swimmer.”

Those setbacks include a concussion and three knee dislocations.

Yet, Rux perservered through it all to keep competing in the sport he loves.

Rux will be attending Northern State and going into secondary education. Next up, though, is a coaching stint with the team.

“I’ll be coaching for zones here in a couple of weeks,” Rux said, “and I’m super excited about that.”

Rux was contemplating competing in his last ever events for the Stingrays Sunday afternoon and tried to put that in perspective.

“I think I’m going to be real sad. It’s going to be bittersweet,” Rux said. “This last winter meet I climbed out of the water and that was the hardest climb out of the water I’ve ever had in my life, just because it was coming to an end here real soon.”

ENJOYING THE HOME-COURSE ADVANTAGE

While other sports have a home-court or home-field advantage, members of the Aberdeen Stingrays were enjoying hosting the State A meet this year.

“It’s nice to actually be home and have a bunch of support from the town and sleep in your own bed,” said 15-year-old Katelynn Dallmann.

While she said she thought she could have recorded better times, she was pleased with how she finished up.

“I think it was pretty decent,” Dallmann said. “I think I definitely could have gone harder, but I’m proud.”

Dallmann enjoys being a member of the Aberdeen Swim Club and the comradery that comes with it, noting that she likes “the team and that even if it is an individual sport, that we all work so hard as a team to represent ourselves. We’re just a big family.”

SAVING HIS BEST FOR STATE

Ryan Schmidt of the Aberdeen Swim Club capped off his regular season with a record-setting time in the boys’ 200-meter butterfly.

The 13-year-old said he had a strategy heading into the event.

“My strategy on that is, I try to take it out on a moderate pace,” Schmidt said, “and then just try to finish with a fast enough pace.”

That strategy worked out just fine has Schmidt had a goal of two minutes, 45 seconds and swam a personal best time of 2:36.

He was involved in close battle during his race.

“I tend to know where the competition is,” Schmidt said. “In your head you’re just thinking about trying to keep your strokes together and just try to get to the end.”

While Schmidt tries to beat his competitors, he said in the end, time matters more than foes.

“I go for times, because I want to get the best times I can,” Schmidt said. “You always have to be concerned about (competition), too, but my main priority is the time.”

REPRESENTING SMALL SCHOOL SWIMMING

While most of the competitors at the state meet were from South Dakota’s largest cities, Emari Kaufman of Webster was doing her best to represent one of the smallest programs in the state.

Kaufman said it can be intimidating facing swimmers from much larger towns, but tries to block out that idea.

“Just think that you’re in your own world,” Kaufman said.

The 13-year-old recorded her personal best time in the 100-meter backstroke. The event can be challenging because swimmers have to look up into the sun the entire race. Kaufman said she keeps her eyes open despite having to face the glare.

“You have to keep your eyes open,” she said, “because you have to see the flags.”

Kaufman also competes in volleyball, basketball, and track and field. Volleyball starts in slightly more than a week, but Kaufman was focused on the pool Sunday.

“I worry about swimming,” she said, “and then once that sport’s over I’ll worry about volleyball.”

Kaufman said swimming is her favorite activity, because of the individual nature of the sport.

“It challenges you a lot more than all the other ones, and it’s a lot more involvement than all the other sports,” Kaufman said. “It’s kind of by yourself and you don’t get put in for other things. You don’t get taken out.”

GETTING BETTER WITH AGE

Among those competing at the state meet was former Aberdeen Swim Club standout Adam Kastigar.

After swimming at Grand Canyon University, Kastigar took a break from the sport, but has now returned to the water.

Kastigar, who will turn 30 years old this year, clocked his best ever time in the 100-meter breaststroke on Sunday.

“I just enjoy racing still and I’m still getting faster, even at this age,” Kastigar said. “That was my best time of all time.”

He said after all of his years of competing, he is still gaining knowledge about the sport.

“I just enjoy swimming” Kastigar said, “and right now I’m learning more and more about swimming than I even did back then.”

Now a resident of Sioux Falls, Kastigar said it did feel a little unique competing against swimmers half his age.

“It’s fun to see the young kids that I grew up swimming with when I was an older kid,” Kastigar said. “It’s kind of weird swimming against them, but it’s fun to push them too and get pushed by some of them.”

Kastigar said he enjoys the chase of trying to get better and encouraged others to keep on swimming, regardless of their age.

“I just enjoy swimming,” Kastigar said. “I just want everyone to know that they can keep swimming until they’re old and you can still improve on something in the water.”

OVERCOMING A MAJOR SETBACK

Hannah Nelson of Sioux Falls is an overcomer.

The 20-year-old swimmer lost one of her legs due to bone cancer when she was 11. Instead of feeling sorry for herself, Nelson found out that she could still compete in the pool.

“I started when I was 9, and I just kind of did it for fun,” Nelson said of swimming, “and then once everything happened and I healed up and I could do things again, I started back when I was about 14, and I was like, you know what, I can still do this.”

Nelson wears a prosthetic when she’s not swimming, but removes it when she gets ready to race.

The former Yankton High School graduate, has learned to get up on the blocks without the use of one of her legs.

“That’s why my arms are so strong,” she said, “and my other leg is so strong.”

Nelson has qualified for the Paralympics and will leave for Manchester, United Kingdom on Tuesday.

“It’s my first year on the Para National Team and I made the world roster my first year,” Nelson said, “so that’s pretty cool.”

Nelson will be competing in the 400-meter freestyle at the world championships.

Her hobbies actually fit in well with the Paralympics

“I like to lift. I lift for swimming and I lift for fun,” she said. “I like traveling so being on the Para National Team, we get to go different places.”

Nelson said competing with one leg just seems natural because she’s been doing it for nearly a decade.

“I don’t remember swimming with two legs, really. I mean I did, for like a couple of years,” Nelson said. “I guess I just swim with my arms. It’s kind of unbalanced. My body has just adjusted. My left side, my core is strong, and my arms are strong.”