PULLMAN — Just before the upcoming championship season, seven Sandpoint Sharks gave it their all at the Cougar Winter Classic held this past Friday, Feb. 8, and Saturday, Feb. 9, at Washington State University's Gibb Pool.

“Everyone did really well and I’m so proud of the swimmers who pushed through their self-doubts and came out of a swim beaming with confidence," Sandpoint Sharks head coach Emily Renzini said. "I love to see that right before championships."

Lou Foust (15 years old) posted an impressive time in the 100-yard freestyle, finishing sixth out of 14 competitors in 53.97 seconds. He also finished third in the 100 back (1:02.06), fourth in the 500 free (5:22.72), third in the 400 IM (5:03.45), sixth in the 200 back (2:17.68) and fourth in the 200 free (2:00.11).

Xina Schicker (12) powered through seven races, winning five of her heats over the two-day meet. Some of her top finals finishes included fifth out of 10 in the 50 butterfly (39.35) and sixth out of 14 in the 50 free (34.86).

Carter Hutchens (10) also swam in seven events, some of which he swam in for the first time. Showing lots of determination and confidence in the pool, he posted numerous second-place finishes. He was second out of four in the 100 breast (2:08.94), second out of six in the 100 back (2:01.47) and second out of eight in the 50 breast (1:00.66). He also finished fifth out of 10 in the 50 free with a time of 44.03 seconds.

Coach Renzini noted that Nolan Owens (15) swam a strong 500 freestyle, finishing with a time of 7:02.10 thanks to a tenacious final 100 yards, Maximus Brown (15) was strong in 50 free, using a sharp turnaround at the flip turn that propelled him to a time of 26.13 seconds and that Lilly (9) and Delaney (12) Montgomery swam great in their events and had persistent, positive attitudes throughout the meet.

“Overall, I couldn’t be more happy with the results of this meet," coach Renzini said. "It was a small and short one right before championships, but it didn’t stop the Sharks from showing up and making waves."

The Sandpoint Sharks recently competed at the 2025 Inland Empire Swimming Junior Championships, which were held this past Friday through Sunday and were hosted by Manta Ray Aquatics at Moses Lake High's Tony St. Onge Pool of Dreams. An article recapping the championship will be published later this week.