As the infamous Winter Storm Fern approached Texarkana, many students rejoiced at the likely prospect of missed school. However, the district-wide cancellation of school also meant the regrettable cancellation of many sports’ practices. Due to these conditions, the swim team became one of many teams impacted by the weather.
An Icy Reschedule
On Jan. 22, 2026, the Texas High Tigersharks competed in their district championship, originally planned for two days later, earning first place in team scores on the girls and boys teams. While this meet led to triumph, it required very intentional planning from the coaches to reschedule in anticipation of the winter storm.
“We were prepared for district,” assistant coach Susan Likins said. “We knew what district was going to look like, so bumping it up by two days did not really affect our preparation because our kids knew what they had to do, and they did it.”
The Tigersharks emerged victorious from district with 17 gold medals, 8 silver medals and 7 bronze medals. The girls earned 125 points while the boys earned 235. Swimmers expressed general contentment with their results.
“I was satisfied with my results at district,” senior Caleb Lauterbach said. “The meet, for me, is mainly an opportunity to fine-tune race details before region, where I really focus on going fast.”
Snow Storm Strikes the Shark Tank
On Jan. 25, 2026, right as swimmers began heading into a two week-long taper, or a crucial period of reduced training volume before a championship meet, Texarkana ISD announced a suspension of all school-related activities for Monday, Jan. 26. This delay in training lasted until Friday, Jan. 30 and resulted in a total of eight missed practice opportunities for the team to prepare for the upcoming Region Championship.
“Missing any amount of practice at all as a swimmer really just drastically gets you out of shape,” senior captain Jackson Adams said. “I mean, Michael Phelps is quoted saying, ‘[For] every day you miss in swim, it takes two days for you to get back,’ so [missing almost] a week of practice is a major setback.”
During the time off from swimming, some competitors found other ways to stay in shape.
“I did some powerlifting movements [over the break],” sophomore Reagan Ramage said. “I also worked out with my brother to help keep me motivated since I wasn’t swimming.”
Lauterbach and Adams, in conjunction with fellow senior Austin Cargile, met during the later part of the break to go on a run through the snow.
“You don’t want to sit around your house, doing nothing for too long,” Lauterbach said. “It’s just not good for you.”
The Tigersharks worked hard to get back into shape for regionals, even going so far as to attend a practice over the weekend. As they head into this highly competitive meet, they know to focus on their remaining training sessions with purpose.
“As we taper down our volume towards [regionals], it’s important we focus on details and speed,” Lauterbach said. “Clean and fast swimming is what I’m looking for in practice.”
From both an athletic and coaching perspective, the team finds ways to take their given circumstances and work through them.
“[Missing] a full week of swimming is a really big deal, but our kids are handling it really well,” Likins said. “I feel like we are mentally and physically prepared heading into regionals.”
Pushing For Success at Regionals
The team leaves for regionals on Thursday, Feb. 5 to compete on Friday and Saturday. Success can look different for many athletes on the team, and many of them hold high expectations for themselves.
“I’d say success for me at regionals would be taking the 200 Medley relay to state,” senior Gunnar Taylor said. “And hopefully placing a lot higher than I did last year in my 200 IM.”
Pushing through the cold weather and icy conditions, the coaches stay confident that a whole season of hard work and dedication will not be impacted by an unprecedented few days of missed practice.
“I hope that what the team hears from me and Coach Vogan is that we’re going to be fine,” Likins said. “We’ve been preparing all year long, so one week of setback is not going to ruin our season.”
