The Riverwalk Roar

Happy Sunday, Pride!

I hope each of you had a wonderful and restful weekend. My family and I spent Saturday at a five-hour swim meet, and on Sunday I treated myself to the theater release of Hamilton.

As many of you know, I’m a swim referee, which means I spend plenty of time standing on a pool deck. Five hours of races gives you a lot of space to think, not quite as peaceful as cutting the grass, but still time to reflect.

Most of you know about the success of our cross country teams last year. To recap quickly: they are fast. Our boys’ team won the 1A state championship and our girls finished as runner-up. And here’s the spoiler alert for this season: they’re still fast.

As I was watching swimming yesterday, I couldn’t help but compare. Out of 20 teams competing, 19 were from large 4A and 5A schools like Fort Mill, Rock Hill, Dorman, and Irmo. And then there was us—Riverwalk Academy (we're classified as 1A because of our size). In some races, we "held our own." In others, the difference was obvious. We get 45 minutes of pool time each day while our neighbors train for nearly two hours. Our roster has 10 swimmers; theirs have 30 to 50. On paper, we are clearly different.

But here’s where my thinking shifted. It isn’t really about being different—it’s about courage.

Take our boys’ 400-yard freestyle relay (Lucas Poole, John Parrish, Philip Shugart, and Marquis Williams). They knew before stepping on the blocks that they weren’t going to beat Mauldin, Northwestern, or Fort Mill. And unlike in the movies, there was no miracle ending where the underdogs snatched victory from the giants.

Instead, here’s what happened: four young men climbed onto those blocks anyway. They stared down the challenge, knowing the odds, and swam their hearts out. And that, to me, is bravery. The same is true for all 10 of our swimmers. Each one showed courage by stepping up, knowing the likely outcome, and competing with pride.

But here’s the part you might not know. Yes, those 4A and 5A schools blew us out of the water—literally and figuratively. But every single one of our swimmers swam a personal best yesterday. So did all three of our relay teams. And if that wasn’t enough, this morning I compared our times to results across all 1A schools in the state. Here’s what I found:

Riverwalk Swimmers Among the Top in 1A:

• 50 Free: Audrey Wilson (1st), Moises Hudson (3rd)

• 100 Free: Kendall Crisp (3rd)

• 200 Free: Lucas Poole (2nd)

• 100 Back: Moises Hudson (1st), Lucas Poole (2nd), Marquis Williams (3rd)

• 500 Free: Audrey Wilson (1st)

• 100 Back: Cecilia Hudson (2nd)

• 100 Breast: Audrey Wilson (1st), Gideon Nash (2nd), John Parish (3rd)

• 100 Butterfly: Cecilia Hudson (3rd)

• 200 IM: Cecilia Hudson (1st), Gideon Nash (1st), Mason Burns (2nd)

• 200 Free Relay (Boys): Riverwalk Academy (2nd)

• 400 Free Relay (Boys): Riverwalk Academy (1st)

• 200 Medley Relay (Boys): Riverwalk Academy (2nd)

  
  

So yes, we may look different when lined up next to the bigger schools. But yesterday reminded me that courage and determination matter just as much as numbers on a roster or hours in a pool. And the results show that our swimmers are not only brave, they’re among the very best in the state.

At Riverwalk, we talk often about having Pride in Every Step. Yesterday our swimmers showed us exactly what that looks like: courage to step up when the odds aren’t in your favor, perseverance to push for personal bests, and pride in representing something bigger than yourself. Whether in the classroom, on the stage, or on the field, that same spirit drives us forward. And when each of us takes those steps—big or small—with courage and pride, we move our whole community closer to greatness.

Have a great week, Lions!

In Pride and Purpose,

~Dr. Compton