The month of February is full of high school championships all across the country –at least in those regions where swimming is a winter sport– so our picks tend to skew a bit toward the older age-group swimmers. Still, we saw great swimming from all kinds of meets during the weekend of February 13-15, 2015. Here are the AgonSwim Weekly Wonders:
Matthew Nagler, 13, St Charles Swim Team: 50y free (22.43) – Nagler went a best time by .7 and broke through the 23-second barrier for the first time while leading off St Charles Swim Team’s Boys 13-14 200 free relay at the SCST Chicagoland Championships. He also finished the weekend with a best time in the 100 breast.
Veronica Burchill, 17, Unattached (Carmel Swim Club): 100y free (48.48) – Leading off the Carmel High School 400 free relay at the Indiana High School Girls Swimming and Diving Championship at the IUPUI Natatorium, Burchill crashed through the 49-second barrier, notching a best time by .6. She was nearly 2 seconds faster than she had been at the same meet a year ago, and is now 25th on the all-time list for 17-18 girls.
Erika Brown, 16, Unattached (SwimMAC Carolina): 200y free (1:46.47) – Swimming for William A. Hough High School at the North Carolina High School 4A State Championships, Brown won the 200 free and was runner-up in the 500. Her 200 time was a PB by 1.5 seconds, while her 500 was her best by 8.5.
Kaylee Williams, 12, Kingfish Aquatic Club of Waterford: 500y free (5:07.70) – Williams won the girls 11-12 100 free, 200 free, 500 free, and 100 fly at the Michigan Open hosted by Oakland Live Y’ers. She finished the weekend with new times in the 50/100/200/500 free as well as the 200 back. Williams was fully 19 seconds faster in the 500 than she was at the same time last year.
Michael Lee, 14, La Mirada Armada: 1000y free (9:21.63) – Lee lopped 13.3 seconds off his time while winning the boys 13-14 1000 at the Southern California Swimming Club Championships hosted by Rose Bowl Aquatics. He also won the 500 free (setting the meet record with 4:36.57), the 1650 (dropping 31 seconds to go 15:37.51), and finished with best times in the 200 IM and 400 IM.
Francesca Bains, 16, Woodmoor Waves: 1650y free (16:47.69) – Bains dropped over 21 seconds and finished second in the mile at the Phoenix Winter Invitational hosted by Phoenix Swim Club. Bains achieved PBs in every event she swam, including the 100 free, 200 free, 500 free, 100 fly, 200 fly, 200 IM and 400 IM.
Miriam Guevara, 14, Unattached (West Texas Typhoon): 100y back (56.01) – Guevara picked up her first national time standard in the 100 back while representing Loretto Academy at the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) Division I Championships. Guevara won the 100 back in meet-record time, dropping 1.5 seconds off her previous best. She was also runner-up in the 100 fly and swam fly on Loretto’s 200 medley relay and anchored the 200 free relay.
Tristan Pragnell, 11, Asphalt Green Unified Aquatics: 200y back (2:12.50) – Between prelims and finals, Pragnell dropped 4.5 seconds and wound up third in the boys 11-12 200 back at the Metro Zone Team Qualifier hosted by Metro OME. Pragnell came away from the meet with new times in the 200 free, 100/200 back, 100 fly, and 200 IM.
Nicholas Wukovits, 17, LTP Racing Club: 100y breast (56.45) – Wukovits went a best time by nearly 2 seconds and got his first national cut in the 100 breast at the South Carolina Short Course State Championships hosted by Team Greenville. Wukovits won the 500 free and 100 breast, and went best times in the 50/100/200/500 free, 100/200 breast, and 400 IM over the course of the weekend.
Mallory Beil, 14, Unattached (Northern KY Clippers Swimming): 100y fly (55.96) – Beil achieved a national standard in the 100 fly for the first time when she won the Kentucky High School Region Four Championships. The Dixie Heights High School freshman also finished third in the 200 free and swam on Dixie Heights’ medley and 400 free relays.
Ross Valdez, 13, Carpet Capital Aquatics Club: 200y fly (1:59.26) – Valdez broke the 2-minute barrier for the first time, dropping 8.7 seconds, when he won the boys 13-year-old 200 fly at the Georgia Age Group State Championships hosted by Dynamo Swim Club. Valdez finished the meet with new times in the 50/100/200 free, 100/200 back, 100 breast, 100/200 fly, and 200/400 IM.
Brian Poon, 17, Unattached (Phoenix Swimming): 200y IM (1:47.17) – Swimming for Westford Academy, Poon won the 200 IM with a PB by 1.5 seconds at the Massachusetts Division 1 State Swimming and Diving Championships. Poon also won the 100 breast with a best time, swam breast on Westford’s 200 medley relay, and anchored the 400 free relay.
14 year old Isabel Ivey GSC, I know it looks like a local shout out, but Isabel has been swimming lights out for the last year, multiple Jr Nat cuts, along with the high point at the Florida Age Group Champs meet this year. Isabel is one of the most versatile female age group swimmers in Florida and I think well deserving of a shout out.
Bobo… SMASH
WEEKEND OF MARCH 13-15
BOYS
11-year-old Frankie Genna from Bethpage PAL Barracudas Swim Club
23.97 in the 50 free
25.95 in the 50 fly
59.26 in the 100 IM
17-year-old Michael Jensen
43.29 in the 100 free
1.35.31 in the 200 free
9-year-old Eric Kupsky from Pocono Family YMCA
5.36.54 in the 500 free
11-year-old Colton Frantz from Sarasota YMCA Sharks
10.35.80 in the 1000 free
9-year-old Chase Swearingen from Buckeye Swim Club
29.85 in the 50 back
1.04.13 in the 100 back
12-year-old Brett Feyerick from NCAP
25.68 in the 50 back
13-year-old Destin Lasco from Pleasantville Aquatics
47.93 in the 100 free
50.37 in the… Read more »
WEEKEND OF MARCH 6-9
BOYS
10-year-old Josh Zuchowski from East Coast Aquatic Club
28.49 in the 50 back
1.01.28 in the 100 back
14-year-old Jason Park from Metroplex Aquatics
49.74 in the 100 back
1.48.85 in the 200 back
14-year-old Noah Henry from Tigershark Swim Team
49.80 in the 100 back
1.49.21 in the 200 back
17-year-old Daniel Tran from Aquazot Swim Club
1.43.43 in the 200 back
11-year-old Jordan Dorado from First Colony Swim Team
2.08.76 in the 200 back
12-year-old Max Hardt from Aquastar
28.40 in the 50 breast
1.01.74 in the 100 breast
2.15.12 in the 200 breast
56.44 in the 100 IM
18-year-old… Read more »
Even the decade-extrapolating BoBo still stays mum on Kaii Winkler (Boy, 8, FLA Aquatics)
FGC 14&U JOs:
50 FR – 26.53
100 FR – 57.85
200 FR – 2:04.43
500 FR – 5:29.28
100 FL – 1:04.05
100 BK – 1:07.08
WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY 27-MARCH 1
BOYS
12-year-old Winn Aung from Redding Swim Team
1.45.43 in the 200 free 11/12 NAG RECORD
52.95 in the 100 fly
1.56.05 in the 200 fly 11/12 NAG RECORD
13-year-old Trent Martinez from Tualatin Hills Swim Club
1.42.72 in the 200 free
11-year-old Colin Kingsley from Lake Forest Swim Club
10.25.99 in the 1000 free
14-year-old Trey Freeman from Baylor Swim Club
9.13.86 in the 1000 free
15-year-old Robert Finke from Saint Petersburg Aquatics
9.07.81 in the 1000 free
15.09.70 in the 1650 free
15-year-old Nicolas Albiero
48.92 in the 100 back
16-year-old Benjamin Ho from Palo Alto Stanford Aquatics
1.44.18 in the 200… Read more »
WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY 20-22
BOYS
18-year-old Caeleb Dressel
18.89 in the 50 free
41.90 in the 100 free
45.28 in the 100 fly
9-year-old Humberto Najera from Irvine Novaquatics
5.26.63 in the 500 free
15-year-old Reece Whitley
53.66 in the 100 breast
17-year-old Carsten Vissering
53.75 in the 100 breast
18-year-old Andrew Seliskar
46.13 in the 100 fly
1.43.01 in the 200 IM
GIRLS
18-year-old Kylie Stewart
52.12 in the 100 back
1.52.82 in the 200 back
14-year-old Lucie Nordmann
53.38 in the 100 back
18-year-old Lisa Bratton
1.52.60 in the 200 back
12-year-old Isabel Gormley from Asphalt Green Unified Aquatics
4.21.49 in the 400 IM Second fastest 11/12 performer ever in that event.
And because swimswam is a full month late, I’m going to help them kindly to catch up that delay. 🙂
WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY 13-15. Other performances.
BOYS
9-year old Humberto Najera from Irvine Novaquatics
2.02.32 in the 200 free
5.37.60 in the 500 free
28.69 in the 50 fly
1.03.80 in the 100 fly
1.05.07 in the 100 IM
2.20.01 in the 200 IM
14-year-old Trey Freeman
1.38.96 in the 200 free
9-year-old Alexander Kowalski from FAST Swim Team
5.44.55 in the 500 free
10-year-old Ronald Dalmacio from Rose Bowl Aquatics
27.83 in the 50 back
59.05 in the 100 back
11-year-old Frankie Genna from Bethpage PAL Barracudas Swim… Read more »
I forgot to notice it was a new 100 back 10 and under NAG record for Ronald Dalmacio.
2 more swims from the Indiana Girls State Meet worth mentioning.
Sammie Burchill 16 1:59.66 200 IM previous best 202.7
Emma Nordin 15 4:45.15 500 free previous best 455.2
I think you guys forgot Jake Foster. In the 100 breast he won 13-14 Ohio State championships by over 3 seconds going a 56.77. He also beat the state record by 1.98 seconds. In the 200 breast he won by over 9 seconds going a 2:03.26 breaking the former state record by over 2.5 seconds.
Bob, read the headline and the first paragraph. We talk here about the weekend of February 13-15, not March 13-15. 😉