Fountain Hills is the rare town where you get to see a Falcon in the water. But that typically only happens during swim season.

Speaking of which, the Fountain Hills High School swim team begins its season this Thursday, Sept. 2, with a 4 p.m. event at El Dorado Pool in Scottsdale. Their scheduled opponents for this outing are Anthem Prep and Saguaro High School. While the back half of the season is weighted with more events, the Falcons will enjoy a long break before their second scheduled meet, not happening until Sept. 18 at the Melrose Paradise Recreation Center at 10 a.m.

Similar to their peers on the cross country team, the aquatic Falcons began their season with early-morning practices, in the water at Peaks Athletic Club at 5:30 a.m.

Head coach Patti Schultz has been leading the team for four years, with swim only being introduced at Fountain Hills High School in 2018.

“The sport was actually started at our schools by a couple of students, who I taught to swim many years ago,” Schultz said.

Those students reached out to Schultz to see if she would be willing to coach the team they were trying to form, and she said “absolutely.”

“So, we started four years ago and we’re going strong,” Schultz said. “We have 16 kids this year, which is not bad.”

That roster includes 10 boys and six girls. Of those, five are seniors, three are freshmen and the remainder are sophomores and juniors.

Teaching physical education at Fountain Hills Middle School and having a background in swim, Schultz took to leading the local team like a duck (or Falcon) to water.

“I’m all about the kid making an improvement and creating routines,” she said. “It’s not just about the swim. It’s about all the other stuff, like life skills.”

This year, for instance, the team is putting an emphasis on “Be present, be prompt and be prepared.”

Schultz explained those goals apply to the swim season, but she aims to help her athletes apply it to their everyday lives as well.

The team’s second goal – or tagline, as Schultz puts it – is start strong, finish strong, Falcon strong.

“That’s what we’re all about,” she added. “In a race or in life, that’s the goal.”

Like with many sports throughout the 2020-21 academic year, last year’s swim program took a heavy hit from the pandemic. Practices were altered to keep kids separated as much as possible, but Schultz noted that swim’s advantage is that they train in a chlorinated pool.

“We wore masks before and after practices, too, though obviously not while competing,” she added with a smile. “Unfortunately, we ended up only being able to compete in one meet last year.”

Schools were also limited to just a single state qualifying event last season, as opposed to the four they usually get. The week the Falcons were supposed to compete for a chance to race in the postseason, an outbreak at the high school meant the season was officially coming to a close.

Despite all of that, Schultz said she is proud of last year’s squad for continuing to put in great effort, working hard at practice and taking the sport seriously.

“So, it was a disappointing season, in some respects, but the kids were still there, working and sharpening their skills,” Schultz said. “This year, we currently have 11 meets scheduled. Seven are dual meets and four are invitationals to qualify for state. We have our first meet coming up against a pretty big school, so we’ll see how it goes.”

Schultz said her team is doing an “amazing” job at practice so far this year, with early improvements spurred on by additional work put in over the summer.

As for athletes to keep an eye on, Grace Clark is a previous state competitor and, as a senior, Schulz is expecting big things from her this season. Gunnar Wise is another early standout, alongside Dylan Horsfall. Brendan Davies is a first-time swimmer who is showing promise, and Schultz said she’s got quite a few others on the roster who she looks forward to seeing improve in the coming weeks.

“The goal is to make state,” Schultz said. “But really, it’s about personal improvement. Getting better and learning new skills is the big focus. Swimming is all about technique, and making those little techniques habit can go a long way.”

Schultz said that the team is excited for the season to begin, and thanks the Falcons’ sponsors for helping supply the team with much-needed equipment.

“Our community sponsors have really stepped up and helped the kids out,” Schultz said. “All of that will only make the season better.”