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SwimMAC Breaks National Age Group Relay Record by Over 4 Seconds

2019 NORTH CAROLINA AGE GROUP SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

It was going to take a monumental effort for anybody to derail the TAC Titans 13-14 girls and their National Age Group Record freight train this weekend at the North Carolina Age Group Swimming Championships. The group broke 2 relay national records and an individual national record through the first half of Saturday’s finals session, and looked lined up for another in the 400 medley relay.

But SwimMAC Carolina stepped in front with a big ‘not so fast’ in the timed final of the event. While TAC was well under the old National Age Group Record in 3:42.13, the 13-14 girls from SwimMAC were even faster, swimming a 3:40.43, to take the record. That swim was a whopping 4.34 seconds faster than the old National Age Group Record in the event.

The SwimMAC relay was made up of Morgan RazewskiGrace RaineyKiley Wilhelm, and Maya Gendzel, all 14-year olds. TAC’s 2nd-place relay of Abigail ClarkKeelan CotterClaire Curzan, and Taylor Morris were the same four swimmers as swam on the team’s other 2 record-setting relays.

Comparative Splits:

SwimMAC Carolina TAC Titans NOVA of Virginia
New Record 2nd-Best Ever Old Record
Back Razewski – 54.62 Clark – 54.96 Josephine Fuller – 56.61
Breast Rainey – 1:01.55 Cotter – 1:03.09 Grace Sheble – 1:02.66
Fly Wilhelm – 52.81 Curzan – 51.75 Caroline Sheble – 55.29
Free Gendzel – 51.45 Morris – 51.33 Olivia Erickson – 50.21
Total Time 3:40.43 3:42.13 3:44.77

SwimMAC had 3 legs faster than the old NOVA relay, most notably Wilhelm’s split 2.4 seconds faster than NOVA’s butterflier.

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Onehandtouch
5 years ago

Who coaches these young women? Outstanding work.

Swimmer
Reply to  Onehandtouch
5 years ago

Rob Norman, 2x National Age Group Coach of the year. His kids own every single N.C. Girls age group record except distance freestyle (500+), 100 breast, and 400 medley relay.

NCSwimFan
Reply to  Swimmer
5 years ago

Rob’s fantastic. Gotta wonder why you’re hearing more about him than about head coach Bruce though. What happens when they leave Rob’s group?

MA1104
Reply to  NCSwimFan
5 years ago

They get even faster. Three years ago the top group only had 2 JR. National Qualifiers. Winter Juniors the women finished third with all swimmers under coach Bruce except one.

NCSwimFan
Reply to  MA1104
5 years ago

I’m not trying to say Bruce is a bad coach by any stretch.

TAC is currently leading MAC at this meet by a good margin. They’ve beaten MAC at the Age Group Championships a number of times now in the past couple years. To me there’s no arguing that TAC is doing something at the 14-under level (especially as 13-14s) that sets them apart from MAC.

But at the 15-over level, I still think TAC has something to prove. MAC has been a perennial powerhouse team at both Winter Juniors (East) and Summer Juniors, always in the mix to win those meets. TAC sent most of their Summer Juniors qualifiers last season to the TAC-hosted Futures, where they got fourth… Read more »

Mardo4
Reply to  Onehandtouch
5 years ago

Pretty certain Coach Terry Fritch for Swimmac

NC Swimz
Reply to  Mardo4
5 years ago

I’m sure the TAC Coaches are fine coaches – I wonder how much of their rise has to do with the facility and whether or not that has helped then absorb/gain top swimming talent from the other programs in the Raleigh area… MOR, RSA, others.

I would also be curious to see the training differences between TAC and MAC. If TAC is having more success at 12&Under than 13+ at the State and National levels, then it’s certainly possible that TAC is training their younger swimmers at greater volume and intensity – including dryland – than MAC. And MAC may be more interested in long-term trajectory and performance when it really matters – Senior and Collegiate-level swimming – focusing more… Read more »

Eddie Rowe
5 years ago

Definitely not the blocks. If you can hear them move on starts, they’re stealing momentum from the swimmers, and those blocks are loud.

Swimmer0883
5 years ago

I’ll have to agree about the blocks- TAC is a fast pool,
but the blocks aren’t great

SaintJoseph
5 years ago

All these tech suits and newfangled starting blocks and technical stuff help swimmers swim faster artificially…I say phooey.

NCSwimFan
5 years ago

15-16 NAG is 3:36.53. 15-18 NAG is 3:33.93. This swim is within a shout of both of those. Unreal.

About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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