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It’s a rainy afternoon in late October. The summer heat has given way to cool fall afternoons as the leaves begin to fall.

The Manchester Recreation Complex’s outdoor pool has been drained and closed for the year, but on the inside, Coffee County swimming is just getting started.

The high school and middle school swim seasons are about to get under way, and swimmers from Coffee County Central High School, as well as both area middle schools, are gearing up for another season in the water.

For coach Becky Behrendorff, adding to this year’s buzz is the addition of a new crop of athletes to the program. The area’s home school swimmers have been consolidated into the program, increasing the numbers as well as the talent on the roster.

“I’m excited. This is probably my biggest group I’ve had. I’m going into my eighth season with school swim, so this is probably the biggest group I’ve had,” Behrendorff said. “We added probably 10 kids across the board between Westwood, Coffee County Middle and the high school.”

The addition of new home school team members comes on top of the swimmers that have been moving through the program, both at the high school and middle school levels.

“We also have upcoming sixth graders that come into the program too, so that adds a little bit. We graduated eight eighth graders into the high school program last year. I’d say five or six of them stayed with it because they’re (Manchester Makos) swimmers, so it’s just natural for them to want to compete for school too, just to get some more meets under their belt during the school year,” Behrendorff added. “So that was obviously a positive having eight eighth graders come into the program too, but also those 10 home school kids that joined our team is a good addition to the team.”

For all of the program’s swimmers, regardless of experience level, right now the focus at practice remains primarily on the fundamentals. Whether a swimmer is new to the sport or a seasoned veteran, working on the little things will make an impact all season long.

“With the kids that I’m working with, it’s just getting their technique right. Also, the new ones that come into the program that have never swam competitively before, just getting them used to the water, getting the yardage in,” Behrendorff said. “With swimming, the more yardage that you do, the faster you get. The more you can get in, the more you can swim up and down, back and forth, working on that technique. I see progress from that first meet we have to the last meet in all our new kids that are coming into the program. Even the kids that have been with me multiple years, I can see their improvement.”

Coffee County competes in a division that includes teams such as St. Andrews, Franklin County, Tullahoma, Bedford County and Fayetteville. While these teams will often compete against each other twice a year, if not three times, only one meet counts toward the overall division standings.

Last year’s results for Coffee County included the boys’ team finishing as the division runners-up. With a larger group coming in this season, along with returning some experienced Makos swimmers that compete for the high school as well, Behrendorff is excited to see how all of this will impact where Coffee County finishes within the division.

“Hopefully both girls and boys will be top contenders. I’m looking forward to that,” Behrendorff said. “That group is pretty good that’s in the water right now.”

Regardless of where the teams end up in the final standings, Behrendorff still wants to make sure her swimmers enjoy themselves and get to compete in a wide variety of races.

“School swim is fun. They’re in here day-in, day-out two hours. I want them to have a little fun too. I don’t put too much pressure on them,” Behrendorff said. “I like to give them a choice on what they want to swim. There’s obviously some that can only do certain events, but these kids, most of them can do all six to eight events. I kind of try to rotate them through it.”

The swim season kicks off for Coffee County and Westwood next Tuesday with a trip to the Winchester Swimplex to face off against Sewanee and Franklin County. The meet is set to begin at 5:15 p.m.