Comets Win Boys Team Title; Harris, Pelaez Sweep Four Events

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 25, 2013

The success continues for the Comets Swim Team and South Florida Aquatic Club.

The Comets boys team won the team title at the April 19 Sunrise 8-and-under Sizzler at the Sunrise Civic Center.

The Comets won with 308 points, edging Plantation Swim Team by two points.

The Comets 8-and-under team swam nineteen best times in the boys’ events. Zackary Harris swept all four stroke events.

Comet swimmers Alejandro Mateus, 7, and Aldo Zepeda, 8, each went four-for-four in best times in the 25-yard freestyle, 25-yard breaststroke, 25-yard backstroke and 25-yard butterfly.

The boys’ relay of Aldo Zepeda, Alejandro Mateus, Fernando Barreto and Randy Smith won the 100-yard freestyle relay in 1:08.11.

The Comets girls’ team finished third and fourth. The unattached swimmers were third with 210 points and attached swimmers fourth with 195. The Comets combined for 405 points which would have placed them second behind Plantation Swim Team.

The girls had ten lifetime best times. Erika Pelaez, 6, won all four events and bettered her best times in the 25-yard butterfly (17.91) and 25-yard backstroke (19.82).

Zaara Lacewaia, 8, turned in four lifetime best in all four strokes.

RESULTS

BOYS TEAM TOTALS: 1. Comets Swim Team 308, 2. Plantation Swim Team 306, 3. Heritage Aquatics 255, 4. YMCA of Broward County 218, 5. Pine Crest 169, 6. Unattached 79, 7. Midtown Weston Aquatics.

GIRLS TEAM TOTALS: 1. Plantation Swim Team 425, 2. Pine Crestt 213.5, 3. Unattached Comets 210, 4. Comets Swim Team 195, 5. Heritage Aquatics 176, 6. YMCA of Broward County 56.5, 7. Unattached 56, 8. Midtown Weston Aquatics 42.

GIRLS

25-yard freestyle:

6-and-under, 1. Erika Pelaez, Comets 17.29; COMETS: 2. Lara Chevaldova 22.01, 3. Vivian Chevaldova 22.63; 7-8, 1. Elizabeth Chevaldova, Comets 16.38; COMETS: 9. Valerie Vank 19.59, 13. Sabrina Osorio 20.06, 18. Sofia Osorio 22.44, best time, 31. Zaara Lacewaia 29.67, best time.

25-yard backstroke:

6-and-under, 1. Erika Pelaez, Comets 19.82, best time; COMETS: 2. Vivian Chevaldova 24.32, 3. Lara Chevaldova 25.90; 7-8, 1. Elizabeth Chevaldova, Comets 18.67; COMETS: 4. Valerie Vank 22.00, 13. Sabrina Osorio 26.60, 16. Sofia Osorio 27.17, 24. Zaara Lacewaia 29.76, best time.

25-yard breaststroke:

6-and-under, 1. Erika Pelaez, Comets 25.17; COMETS: 2. Vivian Chevaldova 27.06, 3. Lara Chevaldova 29.49; 7-8, 1. Elizabeth Chevaldova, Comets 21.02; COMETS: 4. Sabrina Osorio 23.49, best time, 6. Valerie Vank 24.10, 22. Sofia Osorio 30.78, 27. Zaara Lacewaia 32.30, best time.

25-yard butterfly:

6-and-under, 1. Erika Pelaez, Comets 17.91, best time; COMETS: 2. Lara Chevaldova 25.47, 5. Vivian Chevaldova 29.67; 7-8, 1. Elizabeth Chevaldova, Comets 17.58; COMETS: 4. Sabrina Osorio 20.78, best time, 12. Valerie Vank 23.43, 15. Sofia Osorio 25.46, best time, 30. Zaara Lacewaia 32.82, best time.

100-yard freestyle relay:

8-and-under, 1. Plantation 1:19.24, 2. Plantation 1:21.89, 3. Comets Swim Team 1:26.55 (Sabrina Osorio, Zaara Lacewaia, Sofia Osorio, Erika Pelaez).

BOYS

25-yard freestyle:

6-and-under, 1. Padraig McPhillips, HAT 21.36; 7-8, 1. Zackary Harris, Comets 15.07; COMETS: 3. Aldo Zepeda 16.37, best, 5. Randy Smith 17.59, best, 13. Alejandro Mateus 18.86, best, 17. Noah Hew 19.62, best, 20. Kane Dong 20.43, 21. Fernando Barreto 21.16, 23. Miguel Crespo 22.14, best time, 25. Nicholas Giffuni 22.31, best time, 29. Christian Porta 23.66, 40. Sebastian Gonzalez 26.67, best time, 41. Samuel Bullen 26.91.

25-yard backstroke:

6-and-under, 1. Padraig McPhillips, HAT 24.31; 7-8. 1. Zackary Harris, Comets 19.18; COMETS: 4. Randy Smith 20.71, 7. Aldo Zepeda 21.23, best time, 9. Alejandro Mateus 22.22, best time, 12. Christian Porta 23.44, 13. Noah Hew 23.45, 14. Fernando Barreto 24.06, best time, 22. Kane Dong 27.13, 25. Nicholas Giffuni 27.59, 29. Miguel Crespo 29.87, 31. Sebastian Gonzalez 30.64, 33. Samuel Bullen 31.12, 41. Jake Cavanagh 37.22.

25-yard breaststroke:

6-and-under, 1. Owen Williams, Unattached 24.46; 7-8, 1. Zackary Harris, Comets 21.37; COMETS: 5. Randy Smith 24.20, 7. Alejandro Mateus 25.37, best time, 10. Aldo Zepeda 25.80, best time, 16. Noah Hew 26.80, 18. Kane Dong 27.72, 19. Fernando Barreto 27.74, best time, 23. Christian Porta 29.26, 25. Samuel Bullen 30.10, 26. Miguel Crespo 30.32, 27. Nicholas Giffuni 30.46, best time, 32. Sebastian Gonzalez 32.62, best time.

25-yard butterfly:

6-and-under, 1. Padraig McPhillips, HAT 26.63; 7-8, 1. Zackary Harris, Comets 16.16; COMETS: 6. Alejandro Mateus 21.04 best time, 8. Aldo Zepeda 21.27, best time, 9. Noah Hew 21.81, 10. Randy Smith 22.21, best time, 13. Fernando Barreto 24.78, best time, 15. Christian Porta 25.57, 19. Sebastian Gonzalez 28.23, 22. Samuel Bullen 29.11, 24. Kane Dong 29.69, 26. Nicholas Giffuni 29.90, 27. Miguel Crespo 30.09.

100-yard freestyle relay:

8-and-under, 1. Comets Swim Team 1:08.11 (Aldo Zepeda, Alejandro Mateus, Fernando Barreto, Randy Smith), 2. YBC 1:14.15, 3. Plantation 1:14.48, 6. Comets Swim Team 1:26.39 (Noah Hew, Miguel Crespo, Samuel Bullen, Jake Cavanagh).

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO/Comets Swimmers Will Compete In Friday Sunrise Sizzler

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 17, 2013

South Florida Aquatic Club/Comets swimmers will compete Friday at the Sunrise Swimming 8-and-Under Sizzler Invitational at the Sunrise Civic Center.

Nineteen SOFLO/Comets boys and girls will get the chance to put to good use everything they have been learning and working on at workouts at Academic Village Pool in events not longer than 25 meters.

Warm-up is 5 p.m. and the meet begins at 5:30 p.m.

SOFLO/Comets will have eleven boys and eight girls in the field.

Four SOFLO/Comets girls will make their meet debut. They are sisters Elizabeth Chevaldova, 8, Lara Chevaldorva, 6 and Vivian Chevaldova and Valerie Vank, 7.

Other SOFLO/Comets girls competing are Zaara Lacewala, 8, sisters Sabrina Osorio, 8, and Sofia Osorio, 8, and Erika Pelaez, 6.

Christian Porta, 7, will make his meet debut. He will be joined by teammates Fernando Barreto, 7, Samuel Bullen, 8, Jake Cavanagh, 8, Miguel Crespo, 8, Nicholas Giffuni, 7, Sebastian Gonzalez, 8, Noah Hew, 8, Alejandro Mateus, 7, Randy Smith, 8, and Aldo Zepeda, 8.

IF YOU GO

What: Sunrise Swimming 8-and-Under Sizzler Invitational

When: Friday, 5:30 p.m.

Where: Sunrise Civic Center, 10610 W. Oakland Park Blvd., Sunrise

Admission: $2, heat sheet $2. For information call 954-747-4735.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

Atkinson Takes Second At Arena Mesa Grand Prix

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 14, 2013

After a lightning-quick morning prelim among the top three breaststroke qualifiers, South Florida Aquatic Club’s Alia Atkinson came back at night to finish second on the final night of the Arena Mesa Grand Prix.

Atkinson was the third fastest behind Texas A&M’s Breeja Larson (1:08.01) and Hardy (1:08.08) in 1:08.42. All three times are among the top 15 in the world this year.

The three-time Jamaican Olympian finished second in 1:08.41. Her best time is 1:06.79. Larson used a strong turn to hold off Atkinson.

Hardy scratched from finals leaving the Texas A&M swimmers to duke it out.

“It’s been awesome swimming here, the crowd has been amazing,” Larson said. “It means a lot to me to have these guys come out here. The crowd got us going. We were together at the first 50 but I had a strong turn.”

Atkinson was second in the B final in 2:18.33 followed by Clara Smiddy third in 2:19.44.

In other championship finals:

Women’s 200-meter butterfly: 2012 Olympian Camille Adams, 21, of Texas A&M led from start to finish to win in 2:09.45. Katinka Hosszu was second in 2:10.24. St. Andrew’s Swimming’s and University of Texas-bound Tasija Karosas made finals and finished seventh in 2:17.23. “This race I love to race, it’s my baby race,” Adams said. “I like to come on in the last half.”

Men’s 200-meter butterfly: Tyler Clary, 24, of Club Wolverine led wire-to-wire to win his third event of the meet in 1:58.10 ahead of Bolles 17-year-old Joseph Schooling in 1:58.83. Clary also won the 200 backstroke and 400 IM. “My fly has been feeling pretty good lately, this is something I have been training more than anything on,” Clary said. “It’s going to be tough to narrow down my events this summer.”

Men’s 100-meter breaststroke: Mike Alexandrov, 28, of Trojan Swim Club, swimming in Lane 2, went out quickly to win in a blistering 1:00.63. “I did expect that time, I rested a week and came out and did a better job than I did in Orlando,” Alexandrov said. “I definitely want to be on the world championship team.”

Women 100-meter backstroke: Missy Franklin, 17, fought off challengers and future Cal Berkeley teammates to win in 1:00.15 ahead of Rachel Bootsma, 1:00.54 and Liz Pelton 1:00.84. “I knew I had to be out there, Rachel has awesome first half speed,” Franklin said. “Then the plan was to bring it home with whatever I had left.” Clara Smiddy, 17, of AK Sharks won the B final in 1:02.41.

Men 100-meter backstroke: Reigning Olympic champion and newlywed Matt Grevers broke open a close four-man race to win his first event as a married man in 54.26. He won by 2/100ths of a second ahead of David Plummer in 54.28. “The key to winning that race was being 6-8,” Grevers smiled. “I saw them the whole way. It was fun. Every time I swim and win I gain confidence. This has been incredible swimming in front of my home crowd.”

Women 200-meter individual medley: Ironwoman Katinka Hosszu, who competed in nine events over three days, won in 2:12.68. Franklin was fourth in 2:16.29. “It has been pretty tough mentally particularly with so many events,” Hosszu said. “This will help me at the bigger meets like worlds.

Men’s 200-meter individual medley: South African Darian Townsend, 28, of Tucson Ford Dealers outraced Ryan Lochte to win in 2:01.04. Townsend reeled Lochte in on the freestyle.

Women 800-meter freestyle: Reigning Olympic champion Katie Ledecky, 16, took it out early for a body length lead on the field to win in 8:20.64. She finished with a half a pool length and fastest time in the world this year. Chloe Sutton was second in 8:36.81.

Men 1500-meter freestyle: Club Wolverine’s Michael Klueh, the early leader, won with a 15-meter margin in 15:28.57. “It’s pretty hard swimming by yourself, you have to push yourself a lot,” Klueh said. “You can’t count on someone always being next to you.”

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO’s Atkinson Swims Third Fastest Time In The World At Mesa Grand Prix

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 12, 2013

After swimming Friday morning prelims at the Arena Mesa Grand Prix, Alia Atkinson of South Florida Aquatic Club turned heads.

The three-time Jamaican Olympian swam the third fastest time in the world this year in the 50-meter breaststroke in 30.91 and qualified in the event for this summer’s World Championships in Barcelona.

Only two swimmers have been faster, Ruta Meilutyte of Lithuania in 30.57 and Moniek Nijhuis of the Netherlands in 30.83.
The world championship “A” qualifying mark is 32 seconds.

Atkinson swam the 50-meter freestyle prelim to warm up for her time trial.

On Saturday, the third and final day of the national-caliber meet at the Skyline Aquatic Center, Atkinson will swim the 100-meter breaststroke (seeded third in 1:06.79) and 200-meter individual medley (seeded ninth in 2:14.75).

In the 100 breaststroke, Atkinson will swim against fellow Olympians and top seeds Jessica Hardy and Breeja Larson of Texas A&M, where Atkinson graduated from.

In the race of the night on Friday, Katie Ledecky turned it on in the final lap to edge Missy Franklin in the 200-meter freestyle by 3/100ths of a second, 1:56.93-1:56.96. Naples’ Erika Erndl was third in 2:00.12.

It was just one day after Ledecky won the 800-meter freestyle gold medal.

Franklin led after the first 100, 56.79-57.45.

“I just was putting everything I had left into that last 50,” Ledecky said after the race “This gives me a lot of confidence.”

In another close race in the B final of the 200-meter freestyle, Chloe Sutton edged Elizabeth Pelton 2:01.60-2:01.68.

Franklin came back to win the 200-meter backstroke, leading from start to finish, in 2:09.35, her second fastest time this season. Clara Smiddy of AK Sharks was third in 2:13.33.

“We knew this was going to be a tough double so this was really good preparation because this is the schedule for worlds,” Franklin said. “This is my favorite race. I love racing it.”

Franklin was also second in the B consolation of the 50-meter freestyle in 26.09.

In other Friday night championships:

Ricky Berens, with a great last turn, won the 200-meter freestyle against a stacked field that included Ryan Lochte and Darian Townsend. Berens won in 1:48.93. Lochte was sixth in 1:51.26.

“Going into that last wall I saw the guys and I just went as fast as I could off that wall,” Berens said. “This meet is all about the racing.”

Tyler Clary won the 400-meter individual medley in 4:24.90 and 200-meter backstroke in 1:58.13 ahead of Bolles’ 17-year-old Ryan Murphy in 1:59.28. Lochte was fifth in 2:03.07. Sam Smiddy of AK Sharks was third in the 400 IM in 4:26.86.

“I knew I needed a good finish because Ryan has great turns,” Clary said.

Hungarian Katinka Hosszu won the 400-meter individual medley in 4:40.01.

With a great start off the blocks, three-time Olympian Natalie Coughlin swam a lifetime-best to win the 50-meter freestyle in 24.90.

“That’s the first PR I have had in really a long time, I am pretty excited about it.” Coughlin said. “I have been working a lot on my speed. Anytime you can go under 25 it’s pretty awesome.”

Californian Olympic gold medalist Nathan Adrian surged in the final 20 meters to win the 50-meter freestyle in 21.72, third fastest time of the year and finishing ahead of top seed Anthony Ervin.

“It was a good race, I am glad to come here and throw up a couple decent times,” Adrian said. “Maintaining my stroke was the key. Even in 21 seconds I get pretty tired. I want to try and go some best times this summer.”

Mesa is the fourth stop on the Arena Grand Prix Series and first time the meet has been held in Arizona since 1997.

Prelims are noon and finals 8 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time).

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO’s Atkinson Opens Mesa Grand Prix With Fifth Place

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 11, 2013

SOFLO’s Alia Atkinson, fourth fastest morning qualifier, finished fifth in the 200-meter breaststroke Thursday night of the Arena Mesa Grand Prix at the Skyline Aquatic Center.

Atkinson, who went 2:32.15 in the morning, was faster at night in 2:31.31. Her best time is 2:28.77.

Hometown favorite Breeja Larson, with a loud crowd behind her, won the breaststroke event with a great final 50 meters and finished in 2:28.03. Caitlin Leverenz was second in 2:29.

Larson, born and raised in Mesa, was coming off her second straight 100-yard breaststroke title at the NCAA championships.

It was the first of four events for Atkinson, a three-time Jamaican Olympian.

On Friday, Atkinson will swim the 50-meter freestyle (seeded 11th in 25.90) and Saturday the 100-meter breaststroke (seeded third in 1:06.79) and 200-meter individual medley (seeded ninth in 2:14.75).

The 100 breaststroke will be an interesting matchup for Atkinson against Olympians and top seeds Jessica Hardy and Larson of Texas A&M, where Atkinson graduated from.

Also on opening night, Olympian Missy Franklin won the 100-meter freestyle.

Franklin won in a season-best 54.27 followed by Hungarian Katinka Hosszu in 54.60 and Natalie Coughlin, the top morning qualifier, in 54.61. Franklin qualified third in 55.04 and in the final split 26.36.

Coughlin was making her first meet appearance in the U.S. as a 30-year-old.

In other championship finals:

Teenage Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky won the 400-meter freestyle in 4:05.21, second fastest time in the world this year behind Camille Muffat’s time. She also won the B final in the 100 freestyle in a best time 56.00.

Virginia’s Matt McLean, an Olympic gold medalist, won the 400-meter freestyle in 3:51.95. Michael Klueh was second in 3:52.20.

B.J. Johnson of Palo Alto won the men’s 200-meter breaststroke in 2:14.51 closely followed by Alex Mihail in 2:14.56.

Nathan Adrian won the 100-meter freestyle in 48.42, third fastest time in the world this year, followed by Ricky Berens in 49.06 and Darian Townsend in 49.73. Ryan Lochte won the B final in 50.98.

Cal’s Marcin Tarczynski won the 100-meter butterfly in 52.83 ahead of Tom Shields in 52.99.

Louisville’s Kelsi Worrell upset the field to initially win the 100-meter butterfly in 59.48 but was disqualified for a 15-meter underwater violation and Olympic gold medalist Claire Donahue, who frequently trains at SOFLO, was awarded the win in 59.58 in her first major meet back since surgery.

Hosszu, an Olympian, USC alum and reigning FINA World Cup champion, has the most ambitious schedule of the meet, entered in nine events over three days.

The field is loaded mainly because of the venue’s closeness to the west coast and the top training sites in California.

It is the fourth stop on the Arena Grand Prix Series and first time the meet has been held in Arizona since 1997.

Universal Sports Network will broadcast the swim meet live on Friday from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Thursday’s broadcast was delayed because of technical difficulties.

Prelims are noon and finals 8 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time).

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO’s Atkinson Begins Mesa Grand Prix On Thursday

Written by Sharon Robb

April 10, 2013

South Florida Aquatic Club Alia Atkinson’s build-up to this summer’s World Championships continues on Thursday, the opening day of the USA Swimming Mesa Grand Prix.

The three-time Jamaican Olympic will open the meet in the 200-meter breaststroke, the first of four events she is entered in at Skyline Aquatic Center.

Atkinson, 24, is seeded sixth in the 200-meter breaststroke and will compete against one of the stronger fields she has raced this season.

Top seed is Laura Sogar followed by Caitlin Leverenz, Breeja Larson, Hilda Luthersdottir and Kaitlin Freeman.

Olympic breaststroker Rebecca Soni has taken the year off and is not competing.

On Friday Atkinson will swim the 50-meter freestyle (seeded 11th in 25.90); on Saturday she will compete in the 100-meter breaststroke (seeded third in 1:06.79) and 200-meter individual medley (seeded ninth in 2:14.75).

The 100 breaststroke will be an interesting matchup for Atkinson against Olympians and top seeds Jessica Hardy and Breeja Larson of Texas A&M, where Atkinson graduated from.

Larson, born and raised in Mesa, Ariz. will be the hometown favorite. She is coming off her second straight 100-yard title at the NCAA championships. It was Atkinson, however, who finished ahead of her at the 2012 London Olympics, just missing a medal in fourth place.

Other Olympians entered are Ryan Lochte, Elizabeth Beisel, Natalie Coughlin, Claire Donahue, Missy Franklin, Katie Ledecky, Chloe Sutton, Dana Vollmer, Ricky Berens, Nathan Adrian, Anthony Ervin, Conor Dwyer and Tyler Clary.

Olympian Matt Grevers, who recently wed Annie Chandler this past weekend in San Antonio, is also entered in the meet.

Hungarian Olympian Katinka Hosszu, a USC alum, has an ambitious schedule entered in nine events over three days.

The field is loaded mainly because of the venue’s closeness to the west coast and top training sites and colleges in California.

It is the fourth stop on the Arena Grand Prix Series and first time the meet has been held in Arizona since 1997.

Universal Sports Network will broadcast the swim meet live on Thursday and Friday from 8 to 9:30 p.m.

Prelims are noon and finals 8 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time).

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO’s Jessica Rodriguez Wins Event For Florida Gold Coast All-Star Team

Written by Sharon Robb

April 9, 2013

South Florida Aquatic Club’s Jessica Rodriguez came home an All-Star champion.

Rodriguez was one of the few members of the Florida Gold Coast team that captured an individual event at the All-Star Dual Meet against Florida Swimming this past weekend at Indian River State College in Fort Pierce.

Rodriguez, 14, won the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:25.15. Rodriguez was seeded first in her best time of 2:23.44.

Rodriguez was also fifth in the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:09.57, seventh in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:14.08 and eighth in the 200-yard backstroke in 2:13.27.

Rodriguez was a member of the fourth place 200-yard medley relay that finished in 1:53.11.

Delanie Perez was third in the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:12.57, third in the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:12.57 and fourth in the 50-yard breaststroke in 33.61.

Kyana Castro anchored the FGC All-Stars’ winning 200-yard freestyle relay that finished third in 1:56.17. Castro was a member of the third place 200-yard medley relay that finished in 2:15.35.

Castro was also fifth in the 200-yard freestyle in 2:21.07 and fifth in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:38.84.

DiSalvo was third in the 100-yard individual medley in 1:12.16 and fifth in the 100-yard backstroke in 1:12.84. DiSalvo was also a member of the 200 free relay.

In the boys’ races, Michael Arias was third in the 200-yard freestyle in 2:10.07; fourth in the 100-yard butterfly in 1:09.01; fourth in the 100-yard freestyle in 1:02.53; fifth in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:35.84; and sixth in the 50-yard freestyle in 29.10.

Arias was a member of the third place 200-yard freestyle relay that finished in 1:56.10 and anchored the fourth place 200-yard medley relay (2:16.06).

Juan Lucas was both fifth in the 100-yard backstroke in 56.90 and 200-yard backstroke in 2:03.30. Lucas and Sebastian Vargas swam legs of the third place 200-yard freestyle relay (1:34.73).

Jonathan Strod was fifth in the 200-yard freestyle in 1:51.22 and sixth in the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:06.15.

Despite Friday night’s practice session being cancelled because of the weather, the FGC All-Stars closed the gap against Florida Swimming which defended its titles in the combined, girls and boys team standings.

Florida Swimming won the combined team title 771-501; girls title, 399-237; and boys title, 372-264.

Rodriguez was among a record twenty two SOFLO swimmers among the best-of-the-best of Florida Gold Coast’s age group swimmers.

Joining Rodriguez, Perez, DiSalvo and Castro at the All-Star meet were Kelley Heron, Samuel Quintero, Brandon Moran, Alex Monti, John Paul Handal, Nicolas Rossi, Rafael Rodriguez, Michelle Marinheiro, Joseph Lee, CJ Kopecki, Gustavo Valery, Alfredo Mesa, Vanessa Mesa, Katherine DeBarros and Bryant Segui.

SOFLO age group coach Travis Lockie made his debut on the FGC All-Star coaching staff.

The meet encouraged camaraderie and sportsmanship and was a good stepping stone to the junior national and national teams for SOFLO swimmers, currently enjoying their best year in the club’s history.

TEAM TOTALS

COMBINED: 1. Florida Swimming 771, 2. Florida Gold Coast 501; GIRLS: 1. Florida Swimming 399, 2. Florida Gold Coast 237; BOYS: 1. Florida Swimming 372, 2. Florida Gold Coast 264.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

GIRLS

200-yard backstroke:

11-12, 1. Kaitlyn Cronin, FL 1:01.09; 17. Vanessa Mesa 1:13.01; 13-14, 1. Ashley Boddiford, FL 2:07.34, 8. Jessica Rodriguez 2:13.27, 9. Kelley Heron 2:13.92.

100-yard backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Rhiannon Driscoll, FL 1:06.97; 5. Isabella DiSalvo 1:12.84, 19. Michelle Marinheiro 1:21.26.

100-yard freestyle:

13-14, 1. Marta Ciesla, FGC 52.39; 14. Kelley Heron 56.07.

200-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Mikayla Puckett, FL 2:12.96; 5. Kyana Castro 2:21.07, 7. Michelle Marinheiro 2:23.29; 11-12, 1. Jillain Santiago, FL 1:59.88; 8. Hannah Virgin 2:05.52, 13. Delanie Perez 2:08.85, 16. Katherine De Barros 2:11.84, 21. Vanessa Mesa 2:23.19.

500-yard freestyle:

11-12, 1. Stephanie Holmes, FL 5:18.65; 14. Katherine DeBarros 5:46.75; 13-14, 1. Emma Layton, FL 5:01.47; 8. Kelley Heron 5:14.45.

1,650-yard freestyle:

13-14, 1. Emma Layton, FL 17:20.26.

50-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Michaela Avedisian, FGC 35.78; 9. Bella Di Salvo 38.85; 11-12, 1. Andrea Santander, FGC 32.39; 4. Delanie Perez 33.61.

200-yard breaststroke:

13-14, 1. Jessica Rodriguez, FGC 2:25.15.

50-yard butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Morgan Shinault, FL 30.33; 13. Kyana Castro 32.65, 24. Michelle Marinheiro 37.10; 11-12, 1. Talia Bates, FL 27.16; 28. Vanessa Mesa 32.59; 13-14, 1. Jessica Nava, FGC 58.08; 14. Jessica Rodriguez 1:02.87.

100-yard butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Lain Shahboz, FL 1:08.10; 8. Kyana Castro 1:15.09; 11-12, 1. Alice Gau, FL 1:01.02; 13. Delanie Perez 1:05.47,25. Vanessa Mesa 1:16.41.

200-yard butterfly:

13-14, 1. Alena Kraus, FL 2:10.29.

200-yard freestyle relay:

10-and-under, 1. FL 1:53.71; 3. FGC 1:56.17 (Madeleine Peraza, Ana Kondratovitch, Isabella DiSalvo, Kyana Castro), 8. FGC 2:06.21 (Michaela Avedisian, Sophie Kubida, Michelle Marinheiro, Mattie Barfield); 11-12, 1. FL 1:40.15; 6. FGC 1:49.04 (Andrea Moya, Hannah Virgin, Thea McKenna, Mary Smutney), 7. FGC 1:50.72 (Vanessa Mesa, Hailey Jerew, Valeria Villa, Eriana Temperino), 8. FGC 1:56.01 (Gabriella Beltrano, Acadia Rubin, Stephanie Rodriguez, Mia Marquez); 13-14, 1. FL 1:37.20, 4. FGC 1:42.14 (Cybele Jung, Jessica Nava, Alessandra Baldari, Catharine Cooper), 7. FGC 1:45.62 (Shayne Sipowski, Audrey Mason, Marissa Brannan, Bailey Warren), 8. FGC 1:46.45 (Kelley Heron, Julia Talamo, Jessica Rodriguez, Syndey Groth).

50-yard backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Rhiannon Driscoll, FL 31.00; 9. Isabella Di Salvo 34.80, 19. Michelle Marinheiro 38.33; 11-12, 1. Kaitlyn Cronin, FL 28.10; 19. Katherine DeBarros 33.15.

100-yard backstroke:

13-14, 1. Ashley Boddiford, FL 1:00.00; 12. Kelley Heron 1:02.74, 13. Jessica Rodriguez 1:02.96.

100-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Gwynne English, FL 1:00.68; 9. Kyana Castro 1:03.79, 20. Michelle Marinheiro 1:09.33; 11-12, 1. Elizabeth Richardson, FL 54.77; 33. Vanessa Mesa 1:01.71.

200-yard freestyle:

13-14, 1. Peyton Palsha, FL 1:54.27.

100-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Grace Khunduang, FL 1:17.59; 8. Isabella Di Salvo 1:25.29; 11-12, 1. Caroline Rossi, FL 1:09.94; 3. Delanie Perez 1:12.57, 18. Katherine De Barros 1:19.24; 13-14, 1. Alexandra Smutney, FL 1:08.74; 5. Jessica Rodriguez 1:09.57, 10. Kelley Heron 1:12.31.

200-yard individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Lain Shaboz 2:31.18; 5. Kyana Castro 2:38.84; 11-12, 1. Isabel Traba, FL 2:19.65; 13. Katherine De Barros 2:26.88; 13-14, 1. Rose Smiddy, FGC 2:09.29; 7. Jessica Rodriguez 2:14.08.

100-yard individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Rhiannon Driscoll, FL 1:08.32; 3. Isabella Di Salvo 1:12.16, 21. Michelle Marinheiro 1:20.53; 11-12, 1. Andrea Santander, FGC 1:02.68, 10. Delanie Perez 1:06.29, 21. Katherine De Barros 1:10.06.

400-yard individual medley:

13-14, 1. Alina Faunce, FL 4:37.20.

50-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Claudia Acosta, FGC 27.90; 10. Isabella DiSalvo 29.43, 17. Kyana Castro 30.20; 11-12, 1. Talia Bates, FL 24.83; 29. Vanessa Mesa 27.70; 13-14, 1. Ciesla Marta, FGC 24.05; 21. Kelley Heron 26.32.

200-yard medley relay:

10-and-under, 1. FL 2:05.85, 3. FGC 2:15.35 (Jocelyn Ruiz, Lucia Miller, Kyana Castro, Paige Lane), 6. FGC 2:18.61 (Amanda Kopas, Isabella Taylor, Heidi Smithwick, Isabella DiSalvo); 11-12, 1. FL 1:51.39, 6. FGC 2:00.14 (Halie Murphy, Delanie Perez, Alexandra Meszaros, Crystal Navellier); 13-14, 1. FGC 1:50.89 (Rose Smiddy, Allison Kopas, Jessica Nava, Marta Ciesla), 4. FGC 1:53.11 (Francesca Choy, Jessica Rodriguez, Isabella Pittinger, Catharine Cooper), 6. FGC 1:53.83 (Megan Schimansky, Sarah Auld, Alexa Rivera, Alessandra Baldari), 8. FGC 2:00.41 (Kelley Heron, Victoria Miyamoto, Cloe Bedard-Khalid, Audrey Mason).

BOYS

200-yard backstroke:

11-12, 1. Lucas Kravchenko, FL 57.89; 16. Samuel Quintero 1:08.22, 17. Rafael Rodriguez 1:08.66, 18. Gabriel Segui 1:09.25; 13-14, 1. Joseph Perez, FGC 2:00.03; 5. Juan Lucas 2:03.30, 12. Alfredo Mesa 2:07.95.

100-yard backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Andres Wong, FGC 1:05.37; 10. Michael Arias 1:14.09, 12. Jie Hoon Lee 1:14.75, 13. John Paul Handal 1:15.10.

100-yard freestyle:

13-14, 1. Adrian Moya, FGC 49.65; 10. Sebastian Vargas 51.54, 15. Alfredo Mesa 51.86, 18. Juan Lucas 52.26.

500-yard freestyle:

11-12, 1. Isaac Jacobs, FL 4:58.88; 8. Rafael Rodriguez 5:24.77; 13-14, 1. Eric Gemes, FL 4:42.58; 7. CJ Kopecki 5:00.14, 13. Sebastian Vargas 5:05.07, 14. Jonathan Strod 5:05.08, 16. Alfredo Mesa 5:12.23.

1,650-yard freestyle:

13-14, 1. Rafael Davila, FL 16:10.62.

50-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Jace Crawford, FL 37.56; 11. Nicolas Rossi 41.04; 11-12, 1. Matthew Limbacher, FL 29.08; 10. Brandon Moran 34.69.

200-yard breaststroke:

13-14, 1. Joseph Perez, FGC 2:09.89.

50-yard butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Jace Crawford, FL 29.58; 11. Jie Houn Lee 33.40, 14. John Paul Handal 34.83; 11-12, 1. Patrick Amistoso, FL 26.39; 18. Gabriel Segui 29.81, 27. Brandon Moran 32.42.

100-yard butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Andres Wong, FGC 1:06.97; 4. Michael Arias 1:09.01, 8. Jie Hoon Lee 1:14.54, 10. John Paul Handal 1:16.24, 11-12, 1. Patrick Amistoso, FL 58.67, 15. Gabriel Segui 1:07.77; 13-14, 1. Nicholas Hackett, FL 54.43; 8. Sebastian Vargas 56.89, 11. Jonathan Strod 57.36.

200-yard butterfly:

13-14, 1. Alejandro Carriazo, FGC 2:00.64; 6. CJ Kopecki 2:06.52, 9. Sebastian Vargas 2:07.85, 11. Jonathan Strod 2:09.74.

200-yard freestyle relay:

10-and-under, 1. FL 1:52.29; 3. FGC 1:56.10 (Reese Branzell, Connor Marks, Alexander Meyer, Michael Arias), 5. FGC 2:01.94 (Ethan Roach, Nicolas Rossi, Gianna Betancor, Michael Fernandez), 6. FGC 2:03.89 (John Paul Handal, Luis Cortez, Henry Faria, Jie Hoon Lee); 11-12, 1. FL 1:38.49; 2. FGC 1:39.25 (Fernando Rodriguez, Adrian Auilar, Drake Gil, Alexio Musleh), 7. FGC 1:48.63 (Gabriel Segui, Aaron Rodriguez, Rafael Rodriguez, Shane Schulte), 8. FGC 1:54.52 (David Montana, Luis Bucaro, Samuel Quintero, Joshua Babi); 13-14, 1. FGC 1:31.19 (Adriano Martinez, Adrian Moya, Maximilia Garcia-Del Pozo, Alejandro Carriazo), 3. FGC 1:34.73 (Sebastian Vargas, Juan Lucas, Francisco Real, Ervin Marin), 7. FGC 1:36.58 (Alfredo Mesa, Jonathan Strod, Raphael Mora, Noah Zylberberg).

50-yard backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Andres Wong, FGC 31.27; 10. Jie Hoon Lee 35.20; 11-12, 1. Lucas Kravchenko, FL 26.08; 18. Samuel Quintero 32.61.

100-yard backstroke:

13-14, 1. Joseph Perez, FGC 55.67; 5. Juan Lucas 56.90, 16. Alfredo Mesa 1:00.71.

100-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Andres Wong, FGC 58.54; 4. Michael Arias 1:02.53, 8. Nicolas Rossi 1:03.61, 14. John Paul Handal 1:06.38; 11-12, 1. Lucas Kravchenko, FL 51.56; 12. Rafael Rodriguez 56.99, 27. Gabriel Segui 1:02.82.

200-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Andres Wong, FGC 2:06.93; 3. Michael Arias 2:10.07, 9. Nicolas Rossi 2:21.25; 11-12, 1. Lucas Kravchenko, FL 1:52.41; 7. Rafael Rodriguez 2:00.32; 13-14, 1. Eric Gemes, FL 1:48.89; 5. Jonathan Strod 1:51.22, 14. Juan Lucas 1:53.55, 20. CJ Kopecki 1:55.24, 25. Alfredo Mesa 1:56.81, 29. Sebastian Vargas 2:00.63.

100-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Wesley Hyde, FL 1:21.37; 8. Jie Hoon Lee 1:29.97, 13. John Paul Handal 1:31.23; 11-12, 1. Matthew Limbacher, FL 1:05.48; 11. Brandon Moran 1:15.57, 15. Samuel Quintero 1:18.21, 18. Gabriel Segui 1:19.74; 13-14, 1. Joseph Perez, FGC 1:01.58; 6. Jonathan Strod 1:06.15.

100-yard individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Jace Crawford, FL 1:10.48; 8. Jie Hoon Lee 1:15.31, 9. Nicolas Rossi 1:15.47; 11-12, 1. Lucas Kravchenko, FL 58.96; 11. Rafael Rodriguez 1:05.99, 28. Samuel Quintero 1:10.11, 28. Brandon Moran 1:10.11.

200-yard individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Andres Wong, FGC 2:25.63; 5. Michael Arias 2:35.84, 7. John Paul Handal 2:41.24, 10. Nicolas Rossi 2:45.08; 11-12, 1. Isaac Jacobs, FL 2:08.38; 14. Brandon Moran 2:28.81, 19. Gabriel Segui 2:30.34; 13-14, 1. Joseph Perez, FGC 1:57.74; 9. Juan Lucas 2:07.75, 15. CJ Kopecki 2:09.43.

400-yard individual medley:

13-14, 1. Eric Geunes, FL 4:21.33; 7. CJ Kopecki 4:33.92.

50-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Reese Branzell, FGC 28.03; 6. Michael Arias 29.10, 17. Nicolas Rossi 30.61; 11-12, 1. Lucas Kravchenko, FL 23.61; 13-14, 1. Michael Kennedy, FL 22.50; 8. Sebastian Vargas 23.76, 13. Juan Lucas 24.02, 18. Alfredo Mesa 24.56.

200-yard medley relay:

10-and-under, 1. FL 2:09.20; 4. FGC 2:16.06 (Connor Marks, Matthew Posso, Henry Faria, Michael Arias), 5. FGC 2:16.67 (Jie Hoon Lee, Tesla Radulovic, Joshua Zuchowski, Alexander Meyer), 6. FGC 2:21.29 (Michael Fernandez, Luis Cortex, Gianni Betancur, Nicolas Rossi); 11-12, 1. FL 1:46.90; 3. FGC 1:56.75 (Adrian Aguilar, Juan Arvelo, Alexio Musleh, Keegan Rose); 6. FGC 2:02.01 (John Torres, Brandon Moran, Carlos Vasquez, Eric Matheus), 8. FGC 2:05.13 (Samuel Quintero, Eli Horgan, Tuan Ho, Nicholas Vale); 13-14, 1. FGC 1:41.63, 5. FGC 1:47.39 (Anton Gueneralov, Roberto Martorell, Sebastian Vargas, Maximum Garcia Del Pozo), 7. FGC 1:50.18 (Joao Vitos Pereira, Brandon Vives, Francisco real, CJ Kopecki).

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

Mateus, Porto, Capote, Piazza, Larin Lead SOFLO At Swim Miami 2013

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 7, 2013

South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers took a day off from the pool to compete in the Swim Miami 2013 presented by Nike open water event.

And it paid off.

SOFLO was among top Florida Gold teams with top performances from their age group, elite and masters swimmers.

SOFLO’s Roger Capote braved the longest event of the day, finishing third overall and second in his age group in the 10K (6.2-miles) event in 2 hours, 50 minutes and 1 second.

Kevin Porto and SOFLO age group coach Megan Garland were the team’s top finishers in the 5K (3.1 miles).

Porto was 11th overall and won his 13-14 age group in 1:15:13. Garland was 14th overall among women in 1:24:37 and second in the 25-29 age group.

SOFLO masters swimmer Michael Piazza won the 45-49 age group in the 5K in 1:24:02 and Miles Malmborg was fifth in the 50-54 age group in 1:40:59.

In the always competitive mile race, Leonardo Mateus of SOFLO won the 11-12 age group title in 28:26. SOFLO teammate Juan Osorio was second in 29:51. Mateus was also 11th overall in the entire men’s field.

In the girls 11-12, Elise Larin won in 32:25 and SOFLO teammate Alexandra Crespo was third in 32:50.

Race proceeds benefitted the H2Os Foundation (Helping Others Swim).

SWIM MIAMI

10K RESULTS

MEN: 1.Ronald Santos, Miami 2:30:53, 2. William Leonard, Canada 2:44:05; 3. Roger Capote, SOFLO 2:50:01.

WOMEN: 1. Jana Mangimelli, Miami 2:41:17, 2. Ginger Tompkins, Fort Myers 3:03:43, 3. Ann Von Spiegelfel, Tampa 3:09:52.

AGE GROUPS: 17-18, 2. Roger Capote, SOFLO 2:50:01.

5K RESULTS

MEN: 1. Blake Woodrow, Fort Myers 1:08:55, 2. William Pisani, West Palm Beach 1:08:57, 3. Rodrigo Caballero, Pompano Beach 1:12:16; SOFLO: 11. Kevin Porto 1:15:13, 21. Michael Piazza 1:24:02, 32. Teddy Sandoval 1:30:53, 42. Miles Malmborg 1:40:59,

WOMEN: 1. Luane Rowe, Oakland Park 1:09:30, 2. Emily Noeske, Oldsmar 1:13:14, 3. Carolyn Lee, West Palm Beach, West Palm Beach 1:17:15; SOFLO: 14.Megan Garland 1:24:37.

AGE GROUP: 13-14, 1. Kevin Porto, SOFLO 1:15:13; 15-16, 7. Teddy Sandoval, SOFLO 1:30:53; 25-29, 2. Megan Garland, SOFLO 1:24:37; 45-49, 1. Michael Piazza, SOFLO 1:24:02; 50-54, 5. Miles Malmborg 1:40:59.

MILE RESULTS

MEN: 1. Joey Pedraza, Davie 21:41, 2. Ramses Rodriguez, Port St. Lucie 25:02, 3. Ryan Capote 25:23; SOFLO: 11. Leonardo Mateus 28:26, 19. Juan Osorio 29:52.

WOMEN: 1. Erin Black, Davie 25:10, 2. Alex Zatylny, Fort Lauderdale 26:36, 3. Emilienne Allen, West Palm Beach 28:35; SOFLO: 11. Andrea Melendez 30:37; 22. Elise Larin 32:25; 26. Alexandra Crespo 32:50; 69. Clarissa Melendez 39:08.

AGE GROUP: 11-12, 1. Elise Larin 32:25, 3. Alexandra Crespo 32:50; 11-12, 1. Leonardo Mateus 28:26; 13-14, 2. Juan Osorio 29:51, 15-16, 6. Andrea Melendez 30:37, 12. Clarissa Melendez 39:08; 15-16, 1. Ryan Capote 25:23.

800-METERS

MEN: 1. Joey Pedraza, Davie 8:47.38, 2. Jonathan Key, Davie 10:15.74, 3. Darren Rubenchik, Davie 10:16.51.

WOMEN: 1. Sara Witkowski, Fort Lauderdale 11:53.56, 2. Stephanie Shober, Fort Lauderdale 11:54.01, 3. Kelly Abner, Pompano Beach 12:18.49.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

Florida State Fires Swim Coach Neil Harper

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB
April 5, 2013

Neil Harper, who coaches South Florida Aquatic Club’s Tiffany Oliver and Alex Rodriguez and recently recruited Florida Gold Coast swimmer Jemal LeGrand of Davie, will not be returning to Florida State next season.

FSU athletic director Randy Spetman said Friday a national search for a new coach has begun.

“The decision to make a change in our swimming program was very difficult,” Spetman said in a statement released on Friday. “We believe that our program can be more successful and at this time needs to go in a different direction.”

Harper was at FSU for fourteen years. The Seminoles finished 23rd and 31st nationally in the men’s and women’s championships and were fourth at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships.

Kuczynski Finishes Fourth At World Trials

Caroline Kuczynski missed making this summer’s World Aquatic Championships in Barcelona, Spain.

Kuczynski, 22, of Pointe-Claire Swim Club after swimming back-to-back lifetime-bests in the 50-meter butterfly (27.33 and27.44) two days earlier, finished fourth in the 100-yard butterfly in 59.70 Friday night at the World Championship Trials in Victoria, B.C.

Kuczynski, who trains with the South Florida Aquatic Club when home, had the third fastest time in morning prelims in 59.69.

“At least you can’t tell if I’m crying or if it’s my pink eye infections,” Kuczynski tweeted shortly after her race.

Noemie Thomas had the fastest qualifying time in 58.89, under the FINA standard, and just off the national record of 57.97 of Katerine Savard.

Savard, the second fastest qualifier in 59.13, won the event in 58.06. Thomas finished second in the final in 58.31.

Ryan Cochrane, 24, won the 400-meter freestyle in 3:47.08.

Armstrong Out Of Masters Meet

Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong was forced to withdraw from the Masters South Central Zone Championships in Texas after FINA voiced its objection to his participation.

Armstrong, banned for life from sanctioned Olympic sport competition because of his performance-enhancing drug use during his pro cycling career, had entered three distance events at the University of Texas meet. He had been cleared by U.S. Masters swimming officials to compete.

Armstrong, 41, was entered in the 500, 1,000 and 1,650-yard freestyle events.

Since USMS falls under the FINA umbrella as a sanctioning body, it must follow the World Anti-Doping Code and bar Armstrong from the meet.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com
http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO Has Big Weekend At All-Stars Dual Meet, Swim Miami

WRITTEN BY SHARON ROBB

April 4, 2013

South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers are in store for a busy weekend.

A record twenty two swimmers will be among the best-of-the-best of Florida Gold Coast’s age group swimmers when they compete in this weekend’s All-Star dual meet at Indian River State College in Fort Pierce.

The Florida Gold Coast All-Stars team will compete against defending champion Florida Swimming on Saturday and Sunday in three timed final sessions.

SOFLO All-Star age group coach Travis Lockie will be joined by swimmers Kelley Heron, Juan Lucas, Michael Arias, Delanie Perez, Samuel Quintero, Brandon Moran, Jessica Rodriguez, Alex Monti, Kyana Castro, John Paul Handal, Jonathan Strod, Nicolas Rossi, Rafael Rodriguez, Michelle Marinheiro, Isabella DiSalvo, Joseph Lee, CJ Kopecki, Gustavo Valery, Alfredo Mesa, Vanessa Mesa, Katherine DeBarros and Bryant Segui.

The meet, which encourages camaraderie and sportsmanship, is a good stepping stone to the junior national and national teams.

The events are timed finals with sessions at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. on Sunday.

Florida Gold Coast All-Stars are the underdogs. Florida Swimming dominates the meet annually.

The age group divisions featured in the 25-yard short course meet are 10-and-under, 11-12 and 13-14. The FGC team qualified off the Junior Olympics Championships.

FGC All-Star swimmers will get their uniforms and meet teammates and coaches during a meeting and warm-up session on Friday night. FGC is expected to dominate the relays, always a strongpoint.

Several FGC awards will be presented after the meet including the Carol Englehart Spirit Award for overall leadership and sportsmanship. Each age group assistant will also give a plaque to the swimmers who make the greatest impact on their age group team.

Florida Swim Network will live stream the All-Stars meet on both days beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

SWIM MIAMI

South Florida Aquatic Club is sending seventeen swimmers to the annual Swim Miami, presented by Nike, on Saturday at the Miami Yacht Club on Watson Island.

The open water event features 800 meters, Miami Mile, 5K and 10K races.

Roger Capote will compete in the 10K.

Swimming the 5K are Lilli Calero, Megan Garland, Miles Malmborg, Michael McFerron, Stephanie Mlujeak, Michael Piazza, Kevin Porto, Ricardo Roche and Teddy Sandoval.

The Miami Mile swimmers are Ryan Capote, Alexandra Crespo, Esteban Diaz-Velasco, Elise Larin, Leonardo Mateus, Juan Osorio and Sebastian Sevilla.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com