Missoula Prep Sports Network

Competing With No One

Swimming is a sport that is usually associated with summer time activities, but for those that have made it the sport of their chose it is a way of life that is lived 24 hours a day seven days a week 365 days a year. Missoula has been blessed with a strong core of swimmers that have brought prep state championships back to the Garden City year after year and one of those swimmers is making waves at the national level.

Hellgate high school senior Katharine Berkoff has dominated swimming in Montana both at the high school level and on the club level while sparking attention at the national level for her performance in the pool. Katharine has been making waves in the pool from a young as she started to swim competitively for the Missoula Aquatic Club at the age of five. Berkoff’s father David Berkoff talks about why Katharine was so eager to get in the pool, “Katharine wanted to swim because her brother was swimming and she wanted to be part of the action.” From there the young Berkoff gave her all to be the best at a sport that she fell in love with.

There are a handful of sports that come together as a team but when it comes time to compete the athletes do so as individuals fighting for the team. The sport of swimming is unique in the fact that athletes are isolated while participating,  not knowing where you stand in the competition until the race is over. Jay Friend has been working with Katharine for the past four years while she has swam for the Missoula Aquatic Club and has seen her lead her teammates silently as an example, ” She leads through her efforts and actions. At meets you see her with the 12U’s, talking to them, bonding with them, being an example of what it means to be a teammate.”

Sports are an important part of our lives as there is nothing that can teach you more about life lessons at a young age then adversities faced while competing. Often times though athletes are the teachers and we as family members and fans are the students, Katharine’s mother Shirley Gustafson explains what her daughter has taught her about life, “Katharine has taught me that believing in yourself is the most important key to success. It is because she believes in herself that she can commit to the hard work that it has taken to get this level, and it is in a humble, quiet way. It’s unique.”

As a senior Katherine participated in her last event as a member of the Hellgate Knights swim team, but she will continue to compete with the Missoula Aquatic Club as she finishes out her school year. Berkoff has the opportunity to take her skills in the pool to the collegiate level as she recently signed with NC State to swim. Her time in the pool has shown her family, friends, and fans that as long as you believe in yourself you can accomplish anything.