A year ago, Washington swimming coach Spencer Pake said the feeling of winning the 1-A/2-A state championship was surreal. The way they accomplished it was surreal, too.

The Pam Pack placed third in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Bishop McGuinness placed first in the event, and Lincoln Charter finished just behind Washington. The three had hardly any breathing room between them in the standings, but Pake knew the last three events gave Washington’s boys a shot to win the program’s first-ever title.

And that’s exactly what happened. Kevin Andrews won the 100-yard backstroke championship, Eric Lovenberg placed in the 100-yard breaststroke, and the 400-yard freestyle relay squad earned bronze to capture Washington the title.

This year was dreamlike in an entirely different way. The Pam Pack may have snuck up on some teams in 2017, but they were marked men this time around.

Pake prepared his team for the pressure of defending the championship. The Pam Pack swimmers were as mentally prepared as they were physically. After winning by just 19 points in 2016, Washington ran away with its second-straight title by almost 50 points.

“To do it again, it’s all surreal,” Pake said. “We’ve had a talented team for several years. I knew these boys had it in them coming into this year, even after losing the seniors we lost from last year’s squad. They were strong, they had a will to win, and they knew what it took to win. It says a lot about the athletes that we have on our team, and the dedication that they have to make it happen again.”

The meet began with Washington smoking familiar foe Bishop McGuinness by over 4 seconds in the 200-yard medley relay. The Pam Pack kept its foot on the gas as Andrews and A.J. Howard added more hardware to their respective collections. The 400-yard freestyle relay team bookended the meet with another first-place finish.

Repeating as state champion has been a work in progress for over a decade. The boys on the last two teams have been swimming since they were young. Pake’s work with them spans over most of the calendar year and dates back to when they were as young as 5 years old.

“We’ve been building, particularly those seniors, since they were 5 and 6 years old to become championship-caliber swimmers,” Pake said. He heads up the Pam Pack teams while his brother, Scott Pake, is the lead man with the year-round East Carolina Aquatics team.

“A couple of them are heading to the collegiate level. We’ve taught them over the years how to make goals, how to reach those goals and what it takes. They took it and ran with it.”

It’s surreal to think that Pake has helped bring two state championships to Washington in two years. Stepping back and taking a look at the bigger picture makes it look even more deserved, though. He has worked with these athletes in some capacity most of the year for the last 10-plus years.

That’s not going to change. Pake and the Pam Pack boys have set the bar high, and the Lady Pack swimmers in the not-too-distant past enjoyed plenty of success, too. He’s not going to slow down, so expect Washington to enjoy a long stay of prominence.

“We’re still going to have a strong team next year. It’s going to be hard to replace our seniors,” he said. “We’ll see what happens. … Swimming continues to grow. We continue get phone calls from parents that are interested in getting their kids involved at a young age. I think that people are seeing what a great sport it is — not only for the physical aspect, but the mental aspects, too, and what it can do to create success in all parts of life.”

Pake and his brother both take a lot of pride in having built this program from the ground up. In the end, though, they’ve both said time and again that nothing can replace the replicate the sense of accomplishment they get from putting young men and women in the right lane for success.