DeKiep, Peetz compete in State swim meet

WAUKESHA – A pair of Tomahawk swimmers took part in last week’s WIAA State Championship meet in Waukesha.

Coach Theresa L’Esperance said it was “going to take more than a snowstorm or having a parent drive the school van due to the inclement weather” to stop Dane DeKiep and Bruce Peetz from attending the meet.

“And then, having to turn around and return to the school to switch the van due to a mechanical issue,” L’Esperance added. “With ‘three strikes you're out’ gone, we headed down to Waukesha to have an exciting, wonderful, thrilling night of swimming.” 

L’Esperance said DeKiep and Peetz delayed swimming slightly because they were slated to compete in the second half of the meet. At the break, both swimmers warmed up one final time to prepare for their events.

Both DeKiep and Peetz were “extremely relaxed and calm due to the fact that our team was keeping the guys loose and having a great time,” L’Esperance noted.

“Bruce began his event exactly as I had hoped by swimming his first 100 with the 55 split,” L’Esperance stated. “This looked promising, two seconds faster than the previous week. We couldn't have been more excited. Then he continued each length of the swim by swimming exactly how we had planned, pacing around 29 or 30 seconds for a 50. With 75 left to go, the plan was to really burn his legs and kick as fast as he could, but something appeared to be wrong. He did not speed up in his last 75, and actually with 25 to go, appeared to be struggling. With a finish time of 5:06.88, Bruce had set a new school record again for the third time this season. The team was jumping for joy at his accomplishment, yet we knew something was wrong. Bruce's hamstring had seized up and with 75 yards left to go. That explained the reason why he did not improve his speed. What an accomplishment, breaking a record that stood for 10 years, and now belongs to Bruce Peetz, who shall remain on that record board for some time to come.” 

While Peetz swam, DeKiep kept control of his pace cards.

“I wanted him on the deck to feel the excitement of swimming at the state meet,” L’Esperance explained. “Dane had been focusing on his turns for the past two weeks of practice, extending his wall work by streamlining really relaxed and then having a quick underwater kick. At 50 yards, Dane swam his fastest first 50 of his 100 in school history, with a 26.98 time. It almost looked as if he was going to win the heat; he was seeded 14th entering the pool. The team was jumping up and down, encouraging Dane to swim as fast as he could. As he hit the wall, the time did not show a new school record; he had missed it by two 100ths of a second, the blink of an eye. Dane not only improved his seed time, but he also moved from 14^th place to 12^th; a great swim. The disappointment in his eyes softened as he realized he had beaten a conference opponent from Rhinelander. The Great Northern Conference (GNC) has developed many friendships between the teams, but once in the starting blocks, all friendships dissolve. It's always a good day to beat a GNC opponent.”

L’Esperance said it will hurt losing Peetz next year, but the team is excited about what they can possibly do in the future, and setting up summer practices to be ready for the 2026-27 swim season.

“Thank you to Mr. Germano for helping drive the team and take over the photo ops,” L’Esperance stated. “From the Tomahawk Leader, WJJQ, the school district and a group of strong families, all are needed to support our Hatchet swimming team, and I thank you all. Go Hatchets!”