Star sophomore swimmer Hannah Geng began competitively swimming at only five years old. Ten years later, Geng is still swimming and thriving. As only a freshman, Geng was a breakout star, qualifying in both the 100 butterfly and 200 freestyle.

With Division One dreams, Geng’s grueling schedule takes up most of her time. She lifts three times a week and swims eight to nine times a week. Despite her time-consuming schedule, Geng still finds ways to stay involved in school, being on the track team and virtual play league. 

“It’s like all year. There’s not really breaks. There’s like two different seasons, winter and then there’s summer too,” Geng said.

Geng’s work ethic and time pay off as she has already qualified for state. Not only that, but during club season since she was seven, Geng has been going to state meets and competing against high college swimmers. 

“I’ve been going to state since I was like seven, and then I’ve gone to some sectionals meets and some zones meets where which are, like the Midwest area and like, against some pretty high college swimmers,” Geng said.

However, qualifying is only the first step in reaching her goals for the season. Next for Geng involves earning a Futures cut, a competition where the entry level is highly selective, and only five meets are held throughout the United States. Geng also hopes to place in the top three in her event at state. 

Success may look easy on paper, but that doesn’t come without hard work. Geng works out every single morning and afternoon on weekdays with her only off-day being Sunday. That’s only the physical part as well.

Her work ethic and determination have earned her a reputation as one of West High’s most promising athletes. As she continues to strive for greatness, Geng’s journey is just beginning, and her future in swimming looks brighter than ever.

Junior Emma Moniza has been involved in gymnastics since she was two years old, starting with recreational and moving on to competition at six. Currently, Moniza is competing at level 10, the highest level in the Junior Olympic Program.

In the last two years, Moniza has achieved fantastic success, from placing first on the beam at the state competition during her freshman year to qualifying for nationals as both a freshman and sophomore. Last year at the Western Nationals, she placed seventh in the nation on beam and in the top ten overall. As she reflects on her accomplishments, Moniza hopes to reach even more this competition year. 

“Qualifying to nationals is the end goal. That was my goal last year, and it’s my goal again this year because that’s where you get seen by a lot of colleges,” she said.

However, Moniza’s success is a result of intense dedication and hard work. Over the summer, Monzia practices five days a week with her team, with extra lifting on Wednesdays. 

 “We would stay after practice a few times, eat lunch at the gym, and do an additional two to three hours,” she said.

Her work doesn’t stop there. During the school year, she goes to practice right after school on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, followed by lifting after practice on Saturday. 

With nationals in her sights once again, she pushes herself physically and mentally to achieve even greater success.

Small may be in her name, but Audrey Small ’28 is anything but that. Standing at 6 foot 3 inches and the only freshman on the varsity volleyball team, Small is an outstanding athlete. Nearing the fourth year of her club volleyball career, Small will play for Iowa United Volleyball. Her club team last year was one of 50 teams to qualify in her division at nationals. With thousands of teams competing yearly, earning a bid to nationals is quite an accomplishment.

When it comes to mindset, Small believes one should give it their all when they’re playing.

After winning first in the state, Small and her team found success at the national level, placing ninth in one of the highest divisions. Small has also been selected to play on Iowa’s all-star team for the past three years. With over 500 tryouts, only twenty girls are selected for the final rosters. 

“Typically ten get chosen, like per team, and I’ve always been on the top team,” Small said.

Now, Small has taken her talents to the West High courts. Despite being the youngest on the team, Small is the starting middle blocker for the Trojans. In her first high school season, Small already leads the Trojans in overall blocks and aces. 

“At the start, I was very nervous, but the team has been very welcoming, and they’ve been super nice. And being on varsity my first year was hard, but it’s gotten a lot easier, and it’s really fun playing with other girls,” she said.

Off the court, Small is testing out some new clubs at West High, including the Virtual Play League. She is excited for the high school season, and her future is looking bright.

Senior Emma Potthoff has played competitive soccer for Iowa Soccer Club (ISC) since first grade. Ever since then, she’s been a stand-out on the field.

Potthoff was selected for first-team all-conference as a junior during her high school season. During the club season, Potthoff won the National Player of the Year award for ISC and was selected to play in a Lou Fusz tournament as a guest player. Which is known to be one of the best soccer clubs in the Midwest.

Her hard work and philosophy translate into her success. Potthoff believes that being afraid isn’t real and that it limits one’s success.

None of these awards have come without hard work and dedication. Attending four practices a week and additional conditioning, being exceptional, was always meant for Potthoff. 

“I lift and do endurance conditioning work and just like my own practices,” she said.

Her work and training paid off, as Potthoff is committed to playing Division One soccer for the University of Iowa. After the first trimester, Potthoff plans on graduating early to start training. 

Since third grade, sophomore Sasha Baldwin has played basketball competitively through several clubs, her school and tournaments.

With her dedication and time commitment to the game, Baldwin landed a spot on the West High girls varsity basketball team in her freshman year; she was the only freshman to make the team. 

Currently, Baldwin is focused on her basketball through All Iowa Attack (AIA). AIA is a youth basketball program providing player development and professional coaching to young athletes like Baldwin and once Caitlin Clark.

Every year, AIA creates a Nike Elite Team to compete in an annual tournament featuring 32 of the best youth groups in the nation to be crowned Nike National Champions. Some of Baldwin’s hopes for this year include making the Nike Elite Team like her team did before, placing third, and assisting her team to a state title during her season at West. 

Baldwin holds herself to a high standard when it comes to basketball. She trains rigorously in and out of school to ensure that she can perform her best. With conditioning such as lifting weights, practicing with the ball and agility training, you can be sure that Baldwin will be ready to compete. 

“I shoot every day and lift at school, outside of school, and I do lots of conditioning in the mornings,” she said.

Sahsa believes one should always give it their all, even if their all is only 10%.

Through Baldwin’s hard work and dedication, she has become a rising star athlete not just among women but in the whole of West High’s community. Her hard work has certainly paid off and will continue to carry her through her bright future. 

Junior Ava Frese has been a dedicated baton twirler for nine years, starting in second grade.

Frese trains rigorously with Ambition Baton Studio. On Mondays, she has dance class from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. She then does private lessons on Tuesdays starting at 9:30 at night. Her Wednesdays involve teaching little kids how to twirl. Finally, she and two other twirlers, Julia Dorale ’26 and Ashley Niemec ’24, perform at the West High home football games on Friday.

“We’re put into band class so we can practice with the band for football games,” Frese said.

Frese has competed at state, regional and national levels. Her talent has earned her numerous solo titles, including the prestigious Miss Majorette of Iowa, which qualified her for national competitions.

“We call them pageants, but we have three things. There’s modeling, a solo and a strat, which is like a solo, but you don’t toss it.  Then, we just stand in front of the judge’s table and smile, and then you go sit down at the judge’s table in a chair, and they do an interview,” Frese said.

Despite her extreme accomplishments, Frese sometimes feels underestimated, but she doesn’t let that get to her.

“I find myself being, like, underestimated. People are like, Oh, you’re actually really good,” Frese said.

In addition to her baton-twirling accomplishments, Frese is a standout athlete on her varsity basketball team. Balancing both sports requires intense time management and discipline. Frese stays focused on her goals and does not let outside distractions get to her.

Looking ahead, Frese plans to continue her passion for baton twirling in college, hoping to earn a scholarship. Despite the pressures of being a female athlete in two demanding sports, she remains motivated and driven.

Susanna Olson ’27 has found her streak of success on the girls’ varsity cross-country team.

Olson is an exceptional runner and is always dependable on game or race day. Her competitive running began four years ago.

Ever since she started running, Olson has been training daily. She practices early in the mornings before school, and you can find her often running on her own whenever she has the time. Her efforts have made her a star on her teams and a well-respected athlete in our region.

“I made it to state last year, and I was ranked seventh among [freshman] in the state,” she said.

What puts Olson above the standard is her hard work and the lucrative activities she’s invested herself in. Olson is involved in sports like club soccer, Educators Rising and a job at Chick-fil-A. Her schedule as a sophomore consists almost entirely of AP and honors courses. 

For many of us, balancing a job, multiple sports and school is too much and overwhelming. Even stars like Olson doubt whether they can keep up with the current situation they are leading themselves into. It’s easy to feel that quitting or stopping what you’re doing and resting would be better. Still, part of what makes someone exceptional is their ability to look past the easy and push themselves over the finish line under challenging situations. 

“Just keep on pushing yourself no matter what because it’s gonna hurt, and at the end you’re not gonna remember [the struggle], you’re not gonna remember how much pain you went through, but you’re going to keep your success,” Olson said.