9/12 Meet @ USN

Syd Lindblom
Thank you all for such a solid start to our competitive season yesterday! Both Harding's and Currey Ingram's coaches approached me individually to let me know how much they love coming to meets at USN because of the fun and supportive atmosphere. That is precisely the reputation we want to build as a team. 

Since this was the first meet of the season, let me first offer congratulations to all of our 5th graders who competed in their first USN swim meet! You all handled it like pros. We also had some 6th-8th graders who were competing for USN for the first time, and it is so exciting to have you all join us. Typically, I recognize "first swims"-- events that athletes compete in for the first time-- in my meet recaps, but for all of our new swimmers, that was true each time they got in the water! Guess what: that also means that all of those swimmers PRed in those events. 

Nonetheless, we did have some returning athletes compete in new events, so I want to recognize those swims. Layla Jahangir and Avery Horst both swam their first 200 frees and Claire Yu and Elliott Karpinos did their first 160 IM while Avi Kerrigan, Austin Choe, and Teddy Sauer completed their first 100 frees. 

In addition to all of the automatic PRs, we had some ABSURD time drops from our returning swimmers at this meet. 
  • 200 Free: Lucy Garrison dropped about 25 seconds (2:53.22), James Michels improved 1 second (2:09.20), and Henry Sloane dropped 23 seconds (2:24.95).
  • 40 Free is one of our trademark USN events, so we had lots of improvements there!
    • Shredded more than 4 seconds: Reya Roy (30.67), Avi Kerrigan (41.61), Oren Schwartz (25.02), James Barbieri (31.41), Austin Choe (35.80)
    • Improved 3-4 seconds: Rosie Hauser (30.63), Brooks Lukach (25.31), Teddy Sauer (40.68)
    • Dropped 1-2 seconds: Ella Murdock (34.56), Emma Tillman (34.88), Owen Spangler (21.67), Caldwell Adams (29.84), James Keiper (31.62), Neel Sinha (32.42)
    • Shaved a little off: Nick Keegan (31.32)
  • 100 Fly: Rose Theobald crushed an 11 second drop (1:19.36) and Elliott Karpinos took down six seconds (1:12.36).
  • 100 Free is another common event with lots of major drops!
    • Absolutely astronomical improvement: Reya Roy took down 38 seconds to 1:30.88! Ella Murdock crushed a 24 second improvement as well (1:45.76). James Barbieri has the second-largest drop of 37 seconds (135.39)
    • Big drops: Claire Yu (-12, 1:06.52), Avery Horst (-16, 1:16.92), Oren Schwartz (-11, 1:15.93), Brooks Lukach (-11, 1:21.72), James Keiper (-14, 1:39.75)
    • 5-10 second improvement: Layla Jahangir (1:10.14), Norah Clarke (1:22.11), Owen Spangler (1:05.09), Henry Sloane (1:07.37), Oliver Burnette (1:11.45), Caldwell Adams (1:27.00), Nick Keegan (1:32.55), Mark Braun (1:35.10)
    • 3-5 second drops: Neel Sinha (1:39.52)
    • 1-2 second PR: Laney Martin (1:20.05), James Michels (58.83)
  • 100 Back: Laney Martin dropped four seconds (1:40.28), Peter Weiss dropped two (1:09.39), and Ian Drewry dropped one (1:12.08). 
  • 100 Breast: Rose Theobald took down 5 seconds (1:23.37), Amelie Schuetz-Sevin dropped 3 (1:29.67), Norah Clarke also dropped five seconds (1:32.00), and Lucy Garrison improved ten seconds (1:34.45)! For boys, Griffin Johnson dropped six seconds (1:24.82), Samuel Womer improved 5 (1:26.03), and Oliver Burnette took down an incredible sixteen seconds (1:26.37).
Oftentimes, I will note our scorers for meets. You will not see the points listed on the side of the results for this meet because it was scored as a double dual-- that means that a swimmer might have earned different points in the meet against Harding and Currey Ingram. At dual meets, only three individuals and two relays from each team are allowed to score in each event. After the third swimmer from each team, there is an "x" next to each successive swimmer's time. That time still counts; the 'x' just indicates that it did not score! This is also one of the reasons why swimmers may end up in an event that is not their favorite-- there are likely risk-free points to earn in that event! 

We did win all of the meets yesterday! 
COMBINED-
  • USN (176) vs. Harding (68)
  • USN (203) vs. Currey Ingram (14)
BOYS-
  • USN (100) vs. Harding (16)
  • USN (102) vs. Currey Ingram (14)
GIRLS-
  • USN (76) vs. Harding (52)
Here's who contributed points: Peter Weiss (160 MR, 100 fly, 100 back, 160 FR), James Michels (160 MR, 200 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Elliott Karpinos (160 MR, 160 IM, 100 fly, 160 FR), Ian Drewry (160 MR, 100 free, 100 back, 160 FR), Brooks Lukach (160 MR, 40 free), Oliver Burnette (160 MR, 100 breast), 160 FR, Griffin Johnson (160 MR, 100 back, 100 breast, 160 FR), Owen Spangler (160 MR, 40 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Claire Yu (160 MR, 160 IM, 100 free, 160 FR), Rose Theobald (160 MR, 100 fly, 100 breast, 160 FR), Layla Jahangir (160 MR, 200 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Avery Horst (160 MR, 200 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Laney Martin (160 MR, 100 back), Panambi Edmonds Cuellar (160 MR, 160 FR), Amelie Schuetz Sevin (160 MR, 100 breast), Norah Clarke (160 MR, 100 breast), Lucy Garrison (200 free), Henry Sloane (200 free, 160 FR), Eliana Wolf (40 free), Lena LeClere (40 free, 100 back, 160 FR), Elaina Yu (40 free), Oren Schwartz (40 free), Syra Bangalore (100 back), Sam Womer (100 breast), Reya Roy (160 FR), Rosie Hauser (160 FR). Having such a long list indicates that we have a team with depth!

One of our team's goals is to send a robust team to the MTHSSA Region Meet in January. This is the only meet on our schedule with qualifying time standards. I am excited to report that we already have SEVENTEEN swimmers who have qualified to attend! Here is who has made those times already:
  1. Oliver Burnette- 100 Free
  2. Norah Clarke- 100 Breast
  3. Ian Drewry- 100 Free, 100 Back
  4. Lucy Garrison- 200 Free, 100 Breast
  5. Avery Horst- 200 Free, 100 Free
  6. Layla Jahangir- 200 Free, 100 Free
  7. Griffin Johnson- 100 Back, 100 Breast
  8. Elliott Karpinos- 100 Fly
  9. James Michels- 200 Free, 100 Free
  10. Amelie Schuetz Sevin- 100 Breast
  11. Oren Schwartz- 100 Free
  12. Henry Sloane- 200 Free, 100 Free
  13. Owen Spangler- 100 Free
  14. Rose Theobald- 100 Fly, 100 Breast
  15. Peter Weiss- 100 Fly
  16. Sam Womer- 100 Breast
  17. Claire Yu- 100 Free
If your name is on that list and you will not be able to attend MTHSSAs on Saturday, January 25th, please let me know ASAP! I am confident that we will be adding more to that list very soon! 

While we swim to get faster and win meets, we are also in the practice of becoming better athletes and humans. Not everything can be measured in just times and places. Here were some great things that the coaches spotted on deck:
  • So much good kicking! Usually, the first meet includes yelling "KICK!" from the side a lot, but even with our 200 frees, swimmers kept strong, consistent kicking throughout their entire races.
  • Lucy and Avery were the first victims of the 2o-yard pool, accidentally stopping a 40 early. They got right back in the game and did not complain!
  • Avery was nervous about her first 200 free, but she approached it exactly as she should: She asked for a strategy the day before and decided to tackle it with a smile. 
  • We didn't review this beforehand, but it is generally considered good sportsmanship to stay in the water until everyone in the race has finished. Even without the reminder, Layla, Laney, and Ian did this. 
  • Overall, we have an excellent cheer squad, but I saw consistent cheering from Griffin, Peter, Oren, Oliver, Elliott, Ian, James, and Panambi.
  • Avi did her first flipturn in her 40 free and then did a flipturn on every wall in her 100 free! Aston tried out flipturns as well! 
  • We always have some goggle issues, but we saw lots of swimmers persevere without perfect vision: Riley, Owen, Caldwell, Oliver
  • I could tell that James K and Caldwell have been really focusing on streamlining off their starts in practice! 
  • Elliott had an excellent final 20 of his 100 fly, almost catching the second place Harding swimmer
  • Griffin, Owen, and Crockett all helped pick up a gross gingerbread mess on the deck. This is also a reminder that any snacks on deck should be in containers and disposed of quickly. 
  • While winning is fun (and we did have some lapping happen in this meet!), close races are fun to watch. The boys' 100 fly, first heat of the 100 breast (with Oliver and Sam), and the first heat of the girls 160 free relay (the C and D relays) had me wondering what was going to happen next. 
  • I had multiple conversations with swimmers who were using their performance to set time goals for the remainder of the season-- often thinking about if they could qualify for MTHSSAs! 
  • Cruze Vanatta is competing with our team this season, but he is a student at DCA. Joining a team with a bunch of people who already know each other is quite intimidating, but Cruze has taken it all in stride. Thank you to all of our swimmers who introduced themselves yesterday, and I hope you all continue to strive to welcome him into our USN family! 
Finally, thank you to our wonderful volunteers! Justin Karpinos might be the only official who can get a meet to run AHEAD of schedule, and we are eternally grateful for him. I hear that the timing competition yesterday ended in a tie with each set of timers getting the exact same time three times. You guys also help the meet run smoothly by directing swimmers and paying attention to your surroundings-- thank you so much!
Thank you all for such a solid start to our competitive season yesterday! Both Harding's and Currey Ingram's coaches approached me individually to let me know how much they love coming to meets at USN because of the fun and supportive atmosphere. That is precisely the reputation we want to build as a team. 

Since this was the first meet of the season, let me first offer congratulations to all of our 5th graders who competed in their first USN swim meet! You all handled it like pros. We also had some 6th-8th graders who were competing for USN for the first time, and it is so exciting to have you all join us. Typically, I recognize "first swims"-- events that athletes compete in for the first time-- in my meet recaps, but for all of our new swimmers, that was true each time they got in the water! Guess what: that also means that all of those swimmers PRed in those events. 

Nonetheless, we did have some returning athletes compete in new events, so I want to recognize those swims. Layla Jahangir and Avery Horst both swam their first 200 frees and Claire Yu and Elliott Karpinos did their first 160 IM while Avi Kerrigan, Austin Choe, and Teddy Sauer completed their first 100 frees. 

In addition to all of the automatic PRs, we had some ABSURD time drops from our returning swimmers at this meet. 
  • 200 Free: Lucy Garrison dropped about 25 seconds (2:53.22), James Michels improved 1 second (2:09.20), and Henry Sloane dropped 23 seconds (2:24.95).
  • 40 Free is one of our trademark USN events, so we had lots of improvements there!
    • Shredded more than 4 seconds: Reya Roy (30.67), Avi Kerrigan (41.61), Oren Schwartz (25.02), James Barbieri (31.41), Austin Choe (35.80)
    • Improved 3-4 seconds: Rosie Hauser (30.63), Brooks Lukach (25.31), Teddy Sauer (40.68)
    • Dropped 1-2 seconds: Ella Murdock (34.56), Emma Tillman (34.88), Owen Spangler (21.67), Caldwell Adams (29.84), James Keiper (31.62), Neel Sinha (32.42)
    • Shaved a little off: Nick Keegan (31.32)
  • 100 Fly: Rose Theobald crushed an 11 second drop (1:19.36) and Elliott Karpinos took down six seconds (1:12.36).
  • 100 Free is another common event with lots of major drops!
    • Absolutely astronomical improvement: Reya Roy took down 38 seconds to 1:30.88! Ella Murdock crushed a 24 second improvement as well (1:45.76). James Barbieri has the second-largest drop of 37 seconds (135.39)
    • Big drops: Claire Yu (-12, 1:06.52), Avery Horst (-16, 1:16.92), Oren Schwartz (-11, 1:15.93), Brooks Lukach (-11, 1:21.72), James Keiper (-14, 1:39.75)
    • 5-10 second improvement: Layla Jahangir (1:10.14), Norah Clarke (1:22.11), Owen Spangler (1:05.09), Henry Sloane (1:07.37), Oliver Burnette (1:11.45), Caldwell Adams (1:27.00), Nick Keegan (1:32.55), Mark Braun (1:35.10)
    • 3-5 second drops: Neel Sinha (1:39.52)
    • 1-2 second PR: Laney Martin (1:20.05), James Michels (58.83)
  • 100 Back: Laney Martin dropped four seconds (1:40.28), Peter Weiss dropped two (1:09.39), and Ian Drewry dropped one (1:12.08). 
  • 100 Breast: Rose Theobald took down 5 seconds (1:23.37), Amelie Schuetz-Sevin dropped 3 (1:29.67), Norah Clarke also dropped five seconds (1:32.00), and Lucy Garrison improved ten seconds (1:34.45)! For boys, Griffin Johnson dropped six seconds (1:24.82), Samuel Womer improved 5 (1:26.03), and Oliver Burnette took down an incredible sixteen seconds (1:26.37).
Oftentimes, I will note our scorers for meets. You will not see the points listed on the side of the results for this meet because it was scored as a double dual-- that means that a swimmer might have earned different points in the meet against Harding and Currey Ingram. At dual meets, only three individuals and two relays from each team are allowed to score in each event. After the third swimmer from each team, there is an "x" next to each successive swimmer's time. That time still counts; the 'x' just indicates that it did not score! This is also one of the reasons why swimmers may end up in an event that is not their favorite-- there are likely risk-free points to earn in that event! 

We did win all of the meets yesterday! 
COMBINED-
  • USN (176) vs. Harding (68)
  • USN (203) vs. Currey Ingram (14)
BOYS-
  • USN (100) vs. Harding (16)
  • USN (102) vs. Currey Ingram (14)
GIRLS-
  • USN (76) vs. Harding (52)
Here's who contributed points: Peter Weiss (160 MR, 100 fly, 100 back, 160 FR), James Michels (160 MR, 200 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Elliott Karpinos (160 MR, 160 IM, 100 fly, 160 FR), Ian Drewry (160 MR, 100 free, 100 back, 160 FR), Brooks Lukach (160 MR, 40 free), Oliver Burnette (160 MR, 100 breast), 160 FR, Griffin Johnson (160 MR, 100 back, 100 breast, 160 FR), Owen Spangler (160 MR, 40 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Claire Yu (160 MR, 160 IM, 100 free, 160 FR), Rose Theobald (160 MR, 100 fly, 100 breast, 160 FR), Layla Jahangir (160 MR, 200 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Avery Horst (160 MR, 200 free, 100 free, 160 FR), Laney Martin (160 MR, 100 back), Panambi Edmonds Cuellar (160 MR, 160 FR), Amelie Schuetz Sevin (160 MR, 100 breast), Norah Clarke (160 MR, 100 breast), Lucy Garrison (200 free), Henry Sloane (200 free, 160 FR), Eliana Wolf (40 free), Lena LeClere (40 free, 100 back, 160 FR), Elaina Yu (40 free), Oren Schwartz (40 free), Syra Bangalore (100 back), Sam Womer (100 breast), Reya Roy (160 FR), Rosie Hauser (160 FR). Having such a long list indicates that we have a team with depth!

One of our team's goals is to send a robust team to the MTHSSA Region Meet in January. This is the only meet on our schedule with qualifying time standards. I am excited to report that we already have SEVENTEEN swimmers who have qualified to attend! Here is who has made those times already:
  1. Oliver Burnette- 100 Free
  2. Norah Clarke- 100 Breast
  3. Ian Drewry- 100 Free, 100 Back
  4. Lucy Garrison- 200 Free, 100 Breast
  5. Avery Horst- 200 Free, 100 Free
  6. Layla Jahangir- 200 Free, 100 Free
  7. Griffin Johnson- 100 Back, 100 Breast
  8. Elliott Karpinos- 100 Fly
  9. James Michels- 200 Free, 100 Free
  10. Amelie Schuetz Sevin- 100 Breast
  11. Oren Schwartz- 100 Free
  12. Henry Sloane- 200 Free, 100 Free
  13. Owen Spangler- 100 Free
  14. Rose Theobald- 100 Fly, 100 Breast
  15. Peter Weiss- 100 Fly
  16. Sam Womer- 100 Breast
  17. Claire Yu- 100 Free
If your name is on that list and you will not be able to attend MTHSSAs on Saturday, January 25th, please let me know ASAP! I am confident that we will be adding more to that list very soon! 

While we swim to get faster and win meets, we are also in the practice of becoming better athletes and humans. Not everything can be measured in just times and places. Here were some great things that the coaches spotted on deck:
  • So much good kicking! Usually, the first meet includes yelling "KICK!" from the side a lot, but even with our 200 frees, swimmers kept strong, consistent kicking throughout their entire races.
  • Lucy and Avery were the first victims of the 2o-yard pool, accidentally stopping a 40 early. They got right back in the game and did not complain!
  • Avery was nervous about her first 200 free, but she approached it exactly as she should: She asked for a strategy the day before and decided to tackle it with a smile. 
  • We didn't review this beforehand, but it is generally considered good sportsmanship to stay in the water until everyone in the race has finished. Even without the reminder, Layla, Laney, and Ian did this. 
  • Overall, we have an excellent cheer squad, but I saw consistent cheering from Griffin, Peter, Oren, Oliver, Elliott, Ian, James, and Panambi.
  • Avi did her first flipturn in her 40 free and then did a flipturn on every wall in her 100 free! Aston tried out flipturns as well! 
  • We always have some goggle issues, but we saw lots of swimmers persevere without perfect vision: Riley, Owen, Caldwell, Oliver
  • I could tell that James K and Caldwell have been really focusing on streamlining off their starts in practice! 
  • Elliott had an excellent final 20 of his 100 fly, almost catching the second place Harding swimmer
  • Griffin, Owen, and Crockett all helped pick up a gross gingerbread mess on the deck. This is also a reminder that any snacks on deck should be in containers and disposed of quickly. 
  • While winning is fun (and we did have some lapping happen in this meet!), close races are fun to watch. The boys' 100 fly, first heat of the 100 breast (with Oliver and Sam), and the first heat of the girls 160 free relay (the C and D relays) had me wondering what was going to happen next. 
  • I had multiple conversations with swimmers who were using their performance to set time goals for the remainder of the season-- often thinking about if they could qualify for MTHSSAs! 
  • Cruze Vanatta is competing with our team this season, but he is a student at DCA. Joining a team with a bunch of people who already know each other is quite intimidating, but Cruze has taken it all in stride. Thank you to all of our swimmers who introduced themselves yesterday, and I hope you all continue to strive to welcome him into our USN family! 
Finally, thank you to our wonderful volunteers! Justin Karpinos might be the only official who can get a meet to run AHEAD of schedule, and we are eternally grateful for him. I hear that the timing competition yesterday ended in a tie with each set of timers getting the exact same time three times. You guys also help the meet run smoothly by directing swimmers and paying attention to your surroundings-- thank you so much!
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