Steilacoom girls swim remains undefeated, and so does Alejandra Ruppe: she’s “the best swimmer in the water”

“Watch this.”

Steilacoom swim and dive coach Kathy Casey said it with confidence to her assistant. As the pair watched the 400 free relay at the 2A SPSL championships, their swimmers trailed, and an opposing anchor was one of the fastest in the state.

But Casey assigned her secret weapon to the final leg of this league-championship event.

Steilacoom’s opening trio kept them in the race, and it was Alejandra Ruppe’s job to catch up.

The reigning Class 2A state champion in the 200 IM and 100 backstroke, Ruppe took off, but earned little ground in the opening lap.

“I was really nervous on the first 50,” Ruppe said. “I wasn’t really making much progress. But I (didn’t) want to let my team down.”

Ruppe hung right at her competitor’s knees. Casey could “see (Ruppe’s) brain working” as the race came to a close. And in the final ten yards, Ruppe “turned on the afterburners,” overtaking her competition and squeaking out a first-place finish. Casey swears Ruppe’s arms looked longer.

“I knew she would do it,” Casey said.

Ruppe owns four individual school records at Steilacoom, including her state-winning 200 IM time of 2:10.67. She broke that school record three times as a sophomore.

She’s already a state qualifier in all eight events this season. She’s one of only two 2A swimmers in the state to accomplish that feat, along with Lindbergh’s Caelee Truong.

There’s trust in Ruppe among the Sentinel coaching staff, and not only to make confident predictions on a race that, at the time, was led by one of the state’s fastest sprinters. They trust her as an anchor, as a mentor, and as a team captain.

Casey and Ruppe sat down with The News Tribune on Friday, during a late-night practice at Clover Park High School.

“Did you ever watch it?” Casey asked Ruppe, regarding the comeback win at last year’s league championships.

“I did,” Ruppe replied with a laugh. “My mom put it on Facebook.”

At the age of five, Ruppe’s parents enrolled her in a swim program at a San Diego based-YMCA, where the family lived. She started club swimming only a year or two later, and has ever since.

Her brother swam, she said. And on her father’s side of the family, Ruppe’s aunt swam for Stanford.

She’s a lifeguard, and as a freshman, volunteered at Casey’s swim and dive summer camp at Clover Park. If not for the pandemic, Ruppe would have volunteered in 2020 and 2021.

“She’s been one that I can count on,” Casey said. “The last couple of years especially, to help the novice kids in the water, she’s gotten very good at it. … She’s out there working with people in the pools.”

Ruppe picked out the team suits for the team this year, and offered help to the coaching staff. She joins in the fun with the team, Casey said.

“I don’t recall anybody beating you last year,” Casey told Ruppe. “And nobody’s beat you this year so far, right?”

“I don’t think so,” Ruppe replied.

That remains her goal throughout the rest of the year: remain undefeated.

“Well, not me personally, but the team.”

Ruppe hasn’t lost a race, but Steilacoom hasn’t lost a meet, either. The Sentinels locked down last season’s 2A SPSL title, and are gunning for another.

“A great team, I feel like, is probably the biggest help,” Ruppe said. “Constantly, my teammates are always pushing me.”

Last Friday, Casey stood outside Clover Park’s swimming facilities as the team waited for pool access. She recapped their latest blowout victory, and announced a handful of personal records. For every swimmer that had achieved a personal-best time came a shower of applause and cheer.

It was Friday night, and not every swimmer was in attendance, but the majority of the team came prepared.

“It does (say something),” Casey said. “I love this team.”

The perennial 2A SPSL first-teamer still has personal goals. Ruppe continues to map out college plans, despite the pandemic’s recruiting complications.

College swimming isn’t something Steilacoom’s three-time Most Valuable Swimmer has ruled out.

“Last year… was a pretty difficult season for me,” Ruppe said. “I lost some of my motivation. I would just go out there and swim. I feel like now that there’s a set district and state schedule, it’s all come back to me. And now I’m really pumped.”

In her final season, Ruppe wants to defend her state titles, something she couldn’t attempt during last year’s shortened athletic seasons. She wants to participate in a state relay, too.

“I just want to give (Alejandra) everything she can get,” Casey said. “That’s what I want. And I want her to continue to have a fun experience doing that through high school swimming. That’s a big piece of it, for me. That they all have fun.

“And that includes the best swimmer in the water.”