On Saturday, April 1st, more than ten schools from around the Antelope Valley and beyond came to compete in the annual Dan Tran Invitational Swim Meet. The meet, originally named the Antelope Valley Invitational, had its name changed several years ago in honor of Dan Tran, a swimmer from Quartz Hill who tragically died in an accident in 2009.

It was held at Eastside pool with more than 300 swimmers attending. The pool was packed full of cheers and splashes, and there were events including the four strokes: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. Quartz Hill quickly scored many points with many of their relay teams and individual swimmers scoring first.

Oshini Cooray, a sophomore varsity swimmer, stated, “The events were a bit tough and I didn’t do as well, but that’s fine. I feel like Quartz Hill did a great job today with their races and the cheering. My favorite thing about this meet is that it’s not like regular competitions. This is a meet in honor of Dan Tran and it shows their support for a fellow swimmer.”

Considering her favorite aspect of the meet, Cooray also said, “I think the events to watch were the alumni relays since they brought past swimmers to race, and it was fun to see them again.” Each school gathered a relay team of graduated swimmers and they swam several relays. Some alumni came from classes dating back to the 80’s.

Junior Ayden Howell stated, “I was incredibly anxious for my events, but I’m glad I got to swim what I had to. I enjoyed the meet. It was a great way to see everyone from around the valley and beyond. I also think it was a great way to see the competition.”

Ayden also enjoyed watching the alumni relay because it was a chance to see his old swimmer friends again.

Howell said, “I loved being able to cheer for all of the swimmers, but especially Quartz Hill. It’s one of the best feelings when you win a race, but it’s almost better to cheer your friend to victory on one of their races.”

Quartz Hill definitely splashed away their competition at the Dan Tran Invitational. They scored first in all categories: Junior Varsity and Varsity Boys and Girls.

Although it is early in the swim season, many can tell that the Rebel Swimmers have great things in store for the weeks to come.