Two Ryders named athletes of the month

Wave Ryder team members Sonja Ring and

Hunter Stephens-Parks were recently named October Athletes of the

Month for the local swim club.

Ring, 11, is in seventh grade at

Whitefish Middle School. Her best discipline in the pool is the

200- meter individual medley which includes the butterfly,

backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle.

Ring has been swimming competitively

for about five years. She tried other sports, but swimming is where

she is most comfortable.

“I tried basketball because I’m tall,”

she explained. “But the ball kept hitting me in the face. I’m a

better swimmer.”

Her goal this season is to make the

state swim meet and she says she is really close to hitting the

necessary time.

Stephens-Parks, 10, is in fourth grade

at Muldown Elementary School. His best discipline in the pool is

the 200 breast stroke. Stephens-Parks began swimming competitively

about three years ago. He recently finished his first 500-meter

freestyle race.

He enjoys swimming with the Wave Ryders

and says some of his favorite days at practice are dry-land

training. The team works on strength those days by performing

squats, push-ups and sit-ups.

Stephens-Parks says he hopes to make

the state meet, too.

Both team members train with the Wave

Ryders about four days a week and sometimes on Sunday.

The criteria to earn the Athlete of the

Month award includes academics, attendance, meet performance,

practice performance, sportsmanship and coach observations.