Student Athlete of the Week Reese Lavigne

Knowing that she likely won't swim competitively in college, Reese Lavigne is simply trying to enjoy her senior season. The fourth-year Niwot High School swimmer has accomplished plenty in her prep career and wants to cherish these final days with her teammates.

"It's been great," Lavigne said. "We do have a close-knit team, and I'll be hanging out with my swim friends outside of swimming a lot. A lot of the seniors that I'm friends with, I've swam with them all of high school, so I know them pretty well. It's just really fun."

Lavigne said that she has grown particularly close with fellow seniors Daisy Bui, Charlotte Heuer, and Mya Blair.

"This is the time (of year) when I see all my swim friends the most, so I've been non-stop hanging out with them before I leave for college," said Lavigne, who began swimming at around five years old.

Additionally, Lavigne is focused on qualifying for the Class 4A state championships. Her goal is to make state in the 100 backstroke, an event that she fell just short of qualifying for last year.

Unfortunately for Lavigne, she has been slowed down somewhat by a shoulder injury. She's spending extra time stretching, though, and remains optimistic that she'll find her way into the state meet.

As a junior last year, she competed at state in the 200 medley relay. Niwot's team of Lavigne, Juliana Strope, Shefali Joshi, and Catherine Knight took 12th.

"It was a lot of fun," Lavigne said. "We also did a lot of things leading up to state. We had practices and then we gave each other gifts."

Last year, Lavigne also got to swim one final season with her older sister, Rowan, who was a senior. The younger Lavigne will forever be grateful for the numerous rides she received from her elder sibling.

"I had a chauffeur to and from practice, and that was fun," Reese said. "Also, she's really good at swimming. She swam for club teams, so she was a person I could go ask questions to when I needed help."

Lavigne said that both of her parents are doctors and she'd like to follow in their footsteps after high school. This past summer, she gained some valuable pre-college experience by shadowing doctors at nearby practices.

"I want to go into biomedical engineering but then I want to go to med school and become a doctor," Lavigne shared.