Sure, part of him felt a little disappointed with the haul the Marshalltown Bobcat boys’ swim team received during the state championships at the University of Iowa Recreation and Wellness Center. He said the team was feeling the same type of disappointment, having come into the meet with high expectations and sitting close to school records.

But overall, the Bobcats’ coach was happy with the performances of his team — and the progress the program made this year.

“You set your goals high, and even if you don’t reach them you’ve done something special — and they have,” Loupee said. “The fact that we continued to drop time is a testament to their work ethic and adjusting to the stage.”

The Bobcats had two medals Saturday, one individual and one in a relay. Senior Carson Beals, who entered the meet as the sixth seed in the 100-yard freestyle, started strongly in his heat but finished in seventh place. It was good enough for a medal to end his career as a Bobcat, even though he had hopes of competing for a win.

T-R PHOTO BY NOAH ROHLFING - Marshalltown High School senior Nash Perisho competes in the 200-yard freestyle during the Iowa Boys High School State Swimming Championships on Saturday at the University of Iowa Natatorium in Iowa City. Perisho placed ninth in a time of 1 minute, 44.60 seconds.

Beals finished with a time of 47.22, a half-second improvement from his district time and a lifetime best.

Loupee said the improvement Beals has made in the past four years has been a pleasure to be a part of.

“He did very well, I am very pleased for him,” Loupee said. “He’s been a mainstay for us and someone we’ve depended on for most of his career.”

The other medal for Marshalltown came in the 200-yard freestyle relay, where the Bobcats finished in sixth place thanks to the group of Beals, Marcus Barker, Aaron Seberger and Nash Perisho. They came through with a time of 1:27.19, nearly a full minute better than the district seeding time of 1:28.11. In this relay, Loupee said Beals nearly broke the school record in the 50-yard freestyle.

That was the end of the awards for Marshalltown, although the Bobcats were active in four more events. Perisho finished 17th in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 52.79, nearly four-tenths of a second faster than his district time of 53.13. Perisho was also in the 200-yard freestyle event, where he finished just out of the podium positions in ninth place. He cut a full second off of his district time, going from a 1:45.63 to a 1:44.60. Beals finished 15th in the same event.

Loupee said he loved Perisho’s moxie during his time with the Bobcats.

Other seniors in attendance, Brock Keeler and Tyler Downey, didn’t make the podium, but Loupee expressed his pride in them for their careers with Marshalltown. He pointed to Downey’s inner strength for participating in the 400-yard freestyle relay despite still suffering from Henoch-Schonlein purpura in his legs and abdomen. The Bobcats finished 14th as a team in the event. Loupee made sure to point out all 10 seniors for the Bobcats, even the ones who weren’t at State Saturday, and thank them for their efforts and contributions to Marshalltown swimming.

Barker finished 23rd in the 200-yard individual medley and cut a second-and-a-half off of his qualifying time from districts.

Overall, the number of people who qualified for state by itself meant this season was a success for Marshalltown — and Loupee hopes that his swimmers will look back on Saturday with pride.

“These kids proved a lot of people wrong, and I hope they are very satisfied with what they’ve done,” Loupee said.