Out of the pool, they can't stop talking. In the pool, their records speak volumes.

Punahou's girls swimming team, the most dominant in state history, will part with 16 seniors at the end of the season. In that class are a group nicknamed the mynah birds because, as their coach puts it, "they never shut up."

Vocal, outgoing and fun as they are, seniors Rachel Cote, Michelle Yoshida, Kelli Moy and junior Christel Simms have done a big part in continuing the program's storied tradition. Going into this week's 50th Local Motion/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association Swimming and Diving Championships on Maui, the Buffanblu girls have won 43 state titles.

Yoshida, Cote and Simms are part of five of the 13 state records, all of them set at last year's state meet.

"Up in the athletic offices, there's a wall with our state trophies," said Cote, who will be swimming for Pepperdine next season. "We've had a few meetings in there and you can see how many times Punahou has won. You've always just heard, even in the seventh grade, about the tradition of Punahou swimming."

At last Saturday's Interscholastic League of Honolulu championships, the foursome etched their names on another record in the 200 freestyle relay with a time of 1 minute, 39.18 seconds. Accomplishing the feat was just as good as doing it with your close friends.

"It's been an honor," said Cote, who also set an ILH meet record in the 100 backstroke. "There's so much history and tradition within this program. To be part of it is really cool, especially with my best friends in the relay teams for so many years now."

GOOD FRIENDS

Swimming together, they bring their own brand of fun to the pool. Their personalities are as distinct as their ability to push and motivate each other.

"They're great because they're able to have fun," Punahou coach Jeff Meister said. "Traditionally, I wouldn't consider our sport fun.

"Your face is in the water, it's back and forth, it's cold, it's dark in the morning, all kinds of stuff. So it's not a fun sport but they're able to find enjoyment and fun with it. They're able to find balance and know when it's time to work and get going, they do that. That's hard at their level."

Their friendships have as much of an influence on swimming as their personal drives.

"There's a comfort level because it's going to be OK no matter what you do," Cote said. "But it's hard because you want to do your best for the people you care about."

No matter how hard they go in the pool, their personalities never seem to tire. And neither does all that chatter.

Meister said they've always been polite and respectful since they were kids, but if none of the coaches said a peep ...

"He calls us the mynah birds," said Yoshida, who will be swimming for Fairfield University in Connecticut. "We always talk and go to his office and bother him. We're always hungry so he always has snacks. We're really nosy but I don't think he minds too much, hopefully.

"We'll be gone next year. I think he'll miss us."

HUMBLE STARTS

No one could have predicted how all those youth swimming practices would pay off. "They started off like all the other kids, entry-level swimmers," Meister said. "You see where they're at now."

Each found her own motivation and reason to return to the pool over time. Simms, who competed for the U.S. junior national team last year, was recently invited to compete for the Philippines at this summer's Beijing Olympics.

"It's a great honor to do that," Simms said of going to the Olympics, where she has qualified for the 100 free and hopes to turn in a qualifying time for the 50 free. "It just shows how far I've gone. I'm still surprised that I'm going to the Olympics.

"That just makes me want to push myself more, to focus and train hard because I'm going to the big stage now and everybody will be watching."

Yoshida remembers watching the varsity team since she was 7. They set an example for her then, and she hopes to do the same.

"When I started getting older, I got a chance to actually practice with them sometimes and it was really intimidating because they were my role models," Yoshida said. "Just to know that I'm in their position right now and hopefully be a role model for others, it's an honor especially since it's been going on for decades."

Swimming with tradition has been as much of a learning experience about one's self as it's been about learning about those around you. It's also what keeps them coming back.

"I'd say it's taught me to have pride in what you do and to have pride in others for going through all the hard work," said Moy, who has plans to swim and play water polo in college. "It's really taught me to trust other people and have trust in other people."

Reach Stanley Lee at sktlee@honoluluadvertiser.com.