LaredoBuzz.Com

Courtesy Alex Meyer,

(Laredo, Texas)-At 5:30 am in the morning, most high school students are either in bed or getting ready for school. United High School sophomore Danielle Perales however, wakes up at that hour to train for an hour at North Central Park pool before heading off to school at 8:00 a.m. Danielle knows that time spent training is crucial to her success. At the age of four, Danielle was introduced to swimming by her mother. Soon her parents found it nearly impossible to keep their daughter out of the water. Flash forward 11 years, and Danielle Perales is now a state qualifier in the 100 backstroke and one of the most successful swimmers in the city of Laredo. “My freshman year was exceptionally good,” explains Perales.

Danielle had moved to Laredo from El Paso in 2014, and committed to making a name for herself in swimming. It was in Laredo that she began training with the Laredo Barracudas Swim Team, and soon she would witness the fruits of her labor blossom in the pool. “My times had improved tremendously from where they were”, said Perales. Danielle would then go on to swim for United High School under coach Paul Kane. “I swam the 100 backstroke, 200 freestyle, and 100 freestyle during my first (high school) season. At the district meet I competed in the 100 backstroke and 100 freestyle where I placed first in both events” said Perales. At the Regional meet, Danielle again emerged victorious with a medal. “After making it to the Regional meet in both my events, I placed 3rd in the 100 backstroke, only missing 2nd place by milliseconds” Perales continued.

This extremely close loss would serve to light a fire inside of Danielle. Her desire to improve and win was augmented, and she worked even harder as time went on. As a freshman, Danielle demonstrated that she could compete against and even surpass some of the best swimmers that the city had to offer. Danielle realized that her sophomore year would finally give her the chance to grasp the spotlight, and proved to herself that she could be the best with continued hard work and dedication.. “My sophomore year was defined by two main goals. Making it to the state championship meet and breaking a UISD record”, said Perales. With her determination to achieve these goals, Danielle has already made one of them a reality. “This year I walked out of the district meet with 4 gold medals, and was ranked 2nd in the 100 backstroke for the region” Perales said. Danielle was the only female competitor at the District meet who managed to win gold in all 4 of her events, and she even put the defending 100 backstroke regional champ on notice by pulling an upset win over her at a swim meet earlier in the season.

At the regional meet, Danielle placed 3rd in the 200-freestyle missing 2nd and a state berth by only a second. “Although I was an underdog going into the 200 free I managed to win 3rd” explains Perales. With only one more chance to accomplish her goal of making it to state, Danielle swam the 100-backstroke relying on the skill she obtained through months of training. Once the race was over, Danielle looked up at the time-board and saw that she placed 2nd, earning her a trip to Austin for the state championship meet.

“Making it to the state meet is extremely surreal to me. To be completely honest it hasn’t sunk in yet.” It is at the State meet where Danielle aims to accomplish her second goal of her sophomore year, breaking a UISD record. In order to achieve this goal Danielle will have to be at her absolute best. Her friends, family and coaches will be there to cheer her on, so she feels very confident that she will walk out of the meet holding a new 100 backstroke record. After the state meet, Danielle says she will continue working harder in order to accomplish more. “As for the two years of high school ahead of me, it’s pretty simple. I want to work to get a first-place win in the 100 backstroke at regionals and make it to state not only for both my individual events but my relays as well. My teammates work extremely hard and I feel if they continue then it will pay off this upcoming year.” Danielle also plans to add more swim records under her belt saying, “When it comes to the UISD records, I definitely want to start taking out the old and putting in the new”, she concluded.