January 2016 – South Florida Aquatic Club's Blog

SOFLO Swimmers Rock On Day Two Of Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open

By Sharon Robb

January 30, 2016—It was another good day for South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers on Day Two of the Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open Saturday at Academic Village Pool.

Several swimmers were double winners.

Elise Larin won the 13-14 200-yard breaststroke in 2:40.46 and 50-yard breaststroke in 33.33.

Katrina Del Vecchio tied for first in the 11-12 100-yard butterfly with a best time of 1:06.16, with Margaret Miao of AquaKids Sharks.

Del Vecchio also won 50-yard breaststroke in a best time 33.34 and 500-yard freestyle in 5:31.69, another best time with a time drop of 8:13.

Ervin Marin won the 15-and-over 200-yard breaststroke in 2:17.52 and was also second in the 200 yard IM in 2:01.88.

Tyler Bland won the 13-14 50-yard breaststroke in a best time of 30.92

Leonardo Mateus won the 13-14 200-yard individual medley in 2:08.74.

Nicolas Rossi continued his good meet by winning the 11-12 500-yard freestyle in 5:13.30

Alejandro Mateus won the 10-and-under 500-yard freestyle in a best time of 5:58.85, a drop of 5.90.

In two of the more exciting races:

In the boys’ 13-and-over 200-yard medley relay, SOFLO’s “B” relay of Kevin Porto, Ricardo Roche, CJ Kopecki and anchor leg Juan Diaz out-touched SOFLO’s “A” relay of Esteban Diaz-Velasco, Ervin Marin, Ryan Capote and Bruno Berti, by 2/100ths of a second, 1:46.63-1:46.65.

In the boys’ 15-and-over 200-yard breaststroke, Marin and Miguel Cancel of Gulliver Swim Club turned in the swims of the night with Marin out-touching Cancel, 2:17.52-2:18.00.

With more than 800 swimmers in the field, it is the largest meet South Florida Aquatic Club, Comets and Booster Club have hosted in the team’s 16-year history.

The three-day meet concludes on Sunday with two sessions in the morning and afternoon noon.

SATURDAY RESULTS

GIRLS

200-yard medley relay:

12-and-under, 1. SOFLO “A” 2:00.22 (Jena Legaspi, Molly Golding, Kayla Cunningham, Katrina Del Vecchio), 2. Hialeah 2:01.53, 3. Gulliver 2:02.59; SOFLO: 8. ‘B’ 2:19.85, 10. “C” 2:24.97; 13-and-over, 1. AquaKids Sharks 1:56.13, 2. SOFLO “A” 1:57.14 (Isabella Di Salvo, Jessica Rodriguez, Kathleen Golding, Emiliana Pelaez), 3. Boca Raton 1:59.26; SOFLO: 5. “C”, 2:04.17, 6. “D” 2:06.61, 7. “B” 2:10.08, 8. “E” 2:11.94.

200-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Isabella Acosta, Gulliver 3:02.22, 2. Melissa Gonzalez, Blue Marlins 3:03.67, 3. Sophie Lamelas, Gulliver 3;12.93; 11-12, 1. Margaret Miao, AquaKids Sharks 2:34.48, 2. Sophie Granite, Gulliver 2:44.47, 3. 3. Valeria Strohmeier, Gulliver 2:45.25; 13-14, 1. Elise Larin, SOFLO 2:40.46, 2. Gina Fimiano, PST 2:41.20, 3. Melanie Jimenez, Blue Marlins 2:41.94; SOFLO: 8. Daniela Curbelo 2:53.03; 15-and-over, 1. Kelly Fertel, Gulliver 2:21.07, 2. Kathleen Golding, SOFLO 2:27.86, 3. Rose Smiddy, Unattached 2:27.89; SOFLO: 7. Emiliana Pelaez 2:36.45.

100-yard backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Isabella Acosta, Gulliver 1:15.88, 2. Sophie Caracciolo, FLA 1:17.26, 3. Maya Sorunmu, SwimFast 1:17.61; 11-12, 1. Ana Kondratovitch, Hialeah 1:04.54, 2. Margaret Miao, AquaKids Sharks 1:06.14, 3. Chloe Hernandez, Gulliver 1:08.25; 13-14, 1. Jocelyn Ruiz, Blue Marlins 1:03.21, 2. Sarah Abril, Gulliver 1:04.66, 3. Maddy Schain, AquaKids Sharks 1:05.27; SOFLO: 6. Isabella Di Salvo 1:06.69, 10. Annita Huang 1:07.81; 15-and-over, 1. Kelly Fertel, Gulliver 1:00.83, 2. Mary Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 1:01.02, 3. Kathleen Golding, SOFLO 1:01.66; SOFLO: 6. Jessica Rodriguez 1:03.20.

50-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Michelle Fernandez, Hialeah 36.53, 2. Sophia Caracciolo, FLA 39.80, 3. Aria Torretta, Gulliver 40.17; 11-12, 1. Katrina Del Vecchio, SOFLO 33.34, best time, 2. Lily Iglesias, Miami Swimming 35.23. 3, Ana Kondratovitch, Hialeah 35.45; SOFLO: 8. Lily Sines 37.90, best time, 10. Valeria Garcia 38.40, best time; 13-14, 1. Elise Larin, SOFLO 33.33, 2. Gina Fimiano, PST 34.24, 3. Isabella Jurado, Unattached 34.70; SOFLO: 7. Daniela Curbelo 37.82, best time; 15-and-over, 1. Fatimah Westbrook, Pompano 31.57, 2. Hailey Jerew, AquaKids Sharks 32.04, 3. Emiliana Pelaez, SOFLO 32.47; SOFLO: 5. Jessica Rodriguez 34.17.

100-yard butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Michelle Fernandez, Hialeah 1:12.45, 2. Maddie Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 1:14.74, 3. Isabella Acosta, Gulliver 1:14.99; SOFLO: 10. Kaitlyn Barrios 1:29.09; 11-12, 1. tie, Katrina Del Vecchio, SOFLO, 1:06.16, best time and Margaret Miao, AquaKids Sharks 1:06.16, 3. Becca Montero, AquaKids Sharks 1:06.37; SOFLO: 5. Kayla Cunningham 1:06.59, best time, 10. Molly Golding 1:09.22; 13-14, 1. Jocelyn Ruiz, Blue Marlins 1:01.05, 2. Sidney Starman, unattached 1:03.38, 3. Kyana Castro, SOFLO 1:04.06; SOFLO: 9. Isabella Di Salvo 1:05.98; 15-and-over, 1. Mary Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 59.63, 2. Kelly Harrington, BRST 1:00.13, 3. Brooke Ellis, Gulliver 1:00.48; SOFLO: 4. Kathleen Golding 1:00.51.

50-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Eliza Chandler, Miami Swimming 29.96, 2. Maddie Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 30.20, 3. Paola Gonzalez, Unattached 31.89; SOFLO: 10. Luna Delgado 33.90, best time; 11-12, 1. Lily Iglesias, Miami Swimming 26.41, 2. Chloe Hernandez, Gulliver 26.91, 3. Caitlyn Coe, Metro 27.71; SOFLO: 9. Molly Golding 28.59; 13-14, 1. Iliza Aguilar, FLA 26.18, 2. Paige Lane, SOFLO 26.20, 3. Jacqueline Gonoretzky, BRST 26.68; SOFLO: 10. Jacqueline Lugo 27.33; 15-and-over, 1. Hailey Jerew, AquaKids Sharks 24.70, 2. Fatimah Westbrook, Pompano 25.12, 3. Kelly Harrington, BRST 25.15.

200-yard individual medley:

13-14, 1. Sarah Abril, Gulliver 2:20.62, 2. Olivia Hernandez, Gulliver 2:25.23, 3. Janet DiAlessandro, AquaKids Sharks 2:25.29; SOFLO: 4. Kyana Castro 2:25.99, 6. Jacqueline Lugo 2:27.36, 7. Annita Huang 2:27.39, 10. Elise Larin 2:29.52; 15-and-over, 1. Kelly Fertel, Gulliver 2:05.94, 2. Rose Smiddy, Unattached 2:09.27, 3. Brooke Ellis, Gulliver 2:13.45.

500-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Melissa Gonzalez, Blue Marlins 6:17.79, 2. Maddie Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 6:19.78, 3. Paola Gonzalez, Unattached 6:44.07; SOFLO: 7. Kaitlyn Barrios 7:12.50, 8. Fiorella Di Salvo 7:12.76, best time, 9. Leah Pando 7:37.22; 11-12, 1. Katrina Del Vecchio, SOFLO 5:31.69, best time, 2. Ana Kondratovich, SC 5:32.64, 3. Margaret Miao, AquaKids Sharks 5:34.32; SOFLO: 6. Sarah Acevedo 5:54.7,2 best time, 10. Lily Sines 6:00.14, best time; 13-14, 1. Iliza Aguilar,FLA 5:13.82, 2. Sidney Starman Unattached 5:19.03, 3. Sarah Abril, Gulliver 5:21.67; SOFLO: 6. Kyana Castro 5:27.42, 8. Michelle Marinheiro 5:29.00, best time, 9. Piage Lane 5:30.02, best time, 10. Marianna Serrao 5:30.22; 15-and-over, 1. Kelly Fertel, Gulliver 5:04.92, 2. Namilla Sanchez, Gulliver 5:09.15, 3. Alicia Mancilla, Gulliver 5:09.21.

BOYS

200-yard medley relay:

12-and-under, 1. Hialeah 1:57.27, 2. Gulliver 2:03.37, 3. SOFLO “A” 2:05.43 (Sebastian Lares, Javier Roman, Zackary Harris, Nicolas Rossi); SOFLO: 4. “B” 2:12.30, 5. “C” 2:16.39, 6. “D” 2:19.20, 8. “E” 2:28.96; 13-and-over, 1. SOFLO “B” 1:46.63 (Kevin Porto, Ricardo Roche, CJ Kopecki, Juan Diaz), 2. SOFLO “A” 1:46.65 (Esteban Diaz-Velasco, Ervin Marin, Ryan Capote, Bruno Berti), 3. SOFLO “C” 1:47.43 (Leonardo Mateus, Tyler Gibson, Juan Serna, Max Asnis); SOFLO: 6. “D” 1:56.67, 7. “E” 1:59.71.

200-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Dylan Smiley, SGST 3:05.00, 2. Alejandro Mateus, SOFLO 3:05.85, 3. Ivan Grass, Gulliver 3:33.01; 11-12, 1. Javier Roman, SOFLO 2:36.31, 2. Anthony Martinez, Blue Marlins 2:38.39, 3. Emiliano Garcia, FLA 2:39.78; 13-14, 1. Alfredo Vieira Wolfermann, Miami Swimming 2:26.92, 2. Tyler Bland, SOFLO 2:30.08, 3. Gabriel Segui, Hialeah 2:32.74; SOFLO: 7. Leonardo Mateus 2:34.73, 10. Joseph Lee 2:37.55; 15-and-over, 1. Ervin Marin, SOFLO 2:17.52, 2. Miguel Cancel, Gulliver 2:18.00, 3. Marcelo Lauzurique, Gulliver 2:19.25; SOFLO: 9. Ricardo Roche 2:25.00.

100-yard backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Kaii Winkler, FLA 1:07.55, 2. Alejandro Mateus, SOFLO 1:12.67, 3. Christian Tijero, SOFLO 1:13.82, best time; SOFLO: 5. Alessandro Pereira 1:17.56, 7. Jacob Navarro 1:19.83, best time, 8. Aldo Zepeda 1:19.88; 11-12, 1. Dominic Bono, AquaKids Sharks 1:03.41, 2. Emiliano Garcia, FLA 1:03.69, 3. Miguel Sierra, unattached 1:03.88; SOFLO: 4. Sebastian Lares 1:04.36, best time; 13-14, 1. John Torres, Unattached 55.62, 2. Aaron Rodriguez, Hialeah 57.63, 3. Reid Banciella, Miami Swimming 58.23; 15-and-over, 1. Nick Carter, Gulliver 51.95, 2. Alejandro Carriazo, Metro 54.53, 3. George Lubian, Unattached 56.21; SOFLO: 10. CJ Kopecki 1:01.50.

50-yard breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Kaii Winkler, FLA 36.98, 2. George Gonzalez, Unattached 38.84, 3. Alessandro Pereira, SOFLO 41.07; 11-12, 1. Victor Valdes, Hialeah 31.81, 2. Javier Roman, SOFLO 34.23, best time, 3. Agustin Rodriguez, Hialeah 34.43; SOFLO: 6. Nicolas Rossi 35.61, best time, 8. Mark Andre De Gracia 38.19; 10. Alex Golding 38.55; 13-14, 1. Tyler Bland, SOFLO 30.92, best time, 2. Aaron Rodriguez, Hialeah 31.69, 3. Tom Liraz, YSF 31.92; SOFLO: 8. Tomas Pelaez 33.25, best time, 9. Sebastian Sevilla 34.13, best time; 15-and-over, 1. Adrian Moya, Metro 29.64, 2. Alessandro Marchesani, MCDA 29.95, 3. Leonardo Manqrique, PST 30.69; SOFLO: 4. Tyler Gibson 30.96.

100-yard butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Kaii Winkler, FLA 1:05.35, 2. Alejandro Mateus, SoFLO 1:11.44, 3. Christian Tijero, SOFLO 1:14.85, best time; SOFLO: 4. Jacob Navarro 1:15.51, best time, 5. Alessandro Pereira 1:20.21, best time; 11-12, 1. Miguel Sierra, Unattached 1:02.25, 2. Dominic Bono, AquaKids Sharks 1:03.34, 3. Sebastian Lares, SOFLO 1:04.28, best time; SOFLO: 7. Ian Chalmers 1:09.08, 10. Zackary Harris 1:09.92; 13-14, 1. John Torres, Unattached 55.58, 2. Darren Laing, SWIFT 55.96, 3. Luke Lezotte, Unattached 57.24; SOFLO: 8. Leonardo Mateus 59.39, best time, 9. Juan Serra 59.51, 10. Joseph Lee 59.64; 15-and-over, 1. Alejandro Carriazo, Metro 52.39, 2. Miguel Cancel, Gulliver 52.66, 3. Nick Carter, Gulliver 52.90; SOFLO: 5. Ervin Marin 54.96, 9. CJ Kopecki 55.45, 10. Max Asnis 55.71.

50-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Dylan Smiley, SGST 28.61, 2. Christian Tijero, SOFLO 30.17, best time, 3. George Gonzalez, Unattached 31.21; SOFLO: 5. Alessandro Pereira 31.30, 6. Jacob Navarro 31.75, best time, 9. Lucas Porven 33.23, best time, 10. Fernando Barreto 33.43, best time; 11-12, 1. Matthew Tarafa, Hialeah 25.21, 2. Emiliano Garcia, FLA 26.00, 3. Agustin Rodriguez, Hialeah 26.24; SOFLO: 4. Nicolas Rossi 26.34; 13-14, 1. Luke Lezte, Unattached 23.07, 2. Juan Serra SOFLO 23.25, 3. Aaron Rodriguez, Hialeah 23.51; 15-and-over, 1. Michael Saco, Miami Swimming 21.55, 2. Nick Carter, Gulliver 21.82, 3. Ryan Capote, SOFLO 23.09; SOFLO: 6. Ricardo Roche 23.98, best time, 7. Bruno Berti 24.01, 9. Esteban Diaz-Velasco 24.13.

200-yard individual medley:

13-14, 1. Leonardo Mateus, SOFLO 2:08.74, 2. Nico Carbone, Unattached 2:13.12, 3. Tom Liraz, YSF 2:13.43; SOFLO: 4. Joseph Lee 2:14.76; 15-and-over, 1. Miguel Cancel, Gulliver 1:58.86, 2. Ervin Marin, SOFLO 2:01.88, 3. Luke Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 2:03.45; SOFLO: 6. Ricardo Roche 2:05.64.

500-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Alejandro Mateus, SOFLO 5:58.85, best time; 2. Christian Tijero, SOFLO 6:02.54, 3. Henry Ajo, Blue Marlins 6:23.88; SOFLO: 5. Aldo Zepeda 6:44.16, 6. Lucas Porven 6:52.63; 11-12, 1. Nicolas Rossi, SOFLO 5;13.30, 2. Dominic Bono, AquaKids Sharks 5:22.83, 3. Emiliano Garcia, FLA 5:23.64; 13-14, 1. John Torres, Unattached 4:52.40, 2. Andres Wong, Metro 4:57.38, 3. Leonardo Mateus, SOFLO 5:03.78; SOFLO: 10. Joseph Lee 5:15.98.

IF YOU GO

What: Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open

When: Sunday, sessions 8:30 a.m., 2 p.m.

Where: Academic Village Pool, 17191, Sheridan Street, Pembroke Pines

Admission: $3 per session, heat sheets $3 per session. For information, call 954-538-3721.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

SOFLO Swimmers Shine On Day One Of Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open

By Sharon Robb

January 29, 2016—On a chilly night, Nicolas Rossi was a double winner to lead South Florida Aquatic Club on opening day of the Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open Friday at Academic Village Pool.

Rossi, 12, swept the distance events. Rossi won the 200-yard freestyle in 1:59.95 and 1,000-yard freestyle in 10:37.91. Rossi was seeded first in both events.

Rossi was also third in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:20.62.

SOFLO’s other individual winner was Kathleen Golding, top-seeded in the 1,000-yard freestyle. The 15-year-old won in a best time 10:23.47. Her previous best was 11:34.45, dropping 1.49.

SOFLO swimmers posted eighteen best times in the opening session including an impressive time drop from 10-year-old Christian Tijero, second in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:37.60 improving his previous best by 29.76.

With more than 800 swimmers in the field, it is the largest meet South Florida Aquatic Club, Comets and Booster Club have hosted in the team’s 16-year history.

The three-day meet concludes on Sunday with two sessions in the morning and afternoon noon.

FRIDAY RESULTS

GIRLS

200-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Michelle Fernandez, Hialeah 2:15.96; 2. Isabella Acosta, Gulliver 2:20.48, 3. Paola Gonzalez, Unattached 2:31.21; SOFLO: 7. Leah Pando 2:35.91, best time; 11-12, 1. Margaret Miao, AquaKids 2:04.00, 2. Ana Kondratovich, Hialeah 2:04.95, 3. Molly Golding, SOFLO 2:09.36.

200-yard individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Michelle Fernandez, Hialeah 2:34.28, 2. Isabella Acosta, Gulliver 2:40.22, 3. Melissa Gonzalez, Blue Marlins 2:44.01; SOFLO: 8. Leah Pando 2:59.43, best time, 9. Kaitlyn Barrios 3:00.80; 11-12, 1. Margaret Miao, AquaKids 2:20.30, 2. Molly Golding, SOFLO 2:23.07, 3. Ana Kondratovich, Hialeah 2:25.58; SOFLO: 8. Lily Sines 2:37.07, best time, 10. Jena Legaspi 2:37.25, best time.

1,000-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Bianca Nieto, City Miami 15:41.29, 2. Charlotte Olmo, City Miami 16:51.84; 11-12, 1. Anelis Roque, Metro 11:14.06, 2. Kayla Cunningham, SOFLO 11:15.07, best time, 3. Isabella Chambers, PST 11:38.75; SOFLO: 5. Lily Sines 12:21.25, best time; 13-14, 1. Sidney Starman, Unattached 10:49.13, 2. Iliza Aguiar, FLA 10:59.88, 3. Taylor Politi, FLA 11:03.62; SOFLO: 4. Michelle Marinheiro 11:08.47, best time, 6. Paige Lane 11:18.71, best time; 15-and-over, 1. Kathleen Golding, SOFLO 10:23.47, best time, 2. Cloe Bedard-Khalid, MAC 10:39.24, 3. Mary Smutny, AquaKids Sharks 10:45.17; SOFLO: 8. Emiliana Pelaez 11:22.43.

BOYS

200-yard freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Kaii Winkler, FLA 2:08.51, 2. Alejandro Mateus, SOFLO 2:16.35, 3. Christian Tijero, SOLO 2:17.88 best time; SOFLO: 5. Alessandro Pereria 2:28.41, best time; 8. Aldo Zepeda 2:37.09, 9. Lucas Porven 2:39.96, best time; 11-12, 1. Nicolas Rossi, SOFLO 1:59.95, 2. Emiliano Garcia, FLA 2:00.14, 3. Matthew Tarafa, Hialeah 2:00.31; SOFLO: 6. Javier Roman 2:06.39, best time.

200-yard individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Alejandro Mateus, SOFLO 2:35.84, 2. Christian Tijero, SOFLO 2:37.60, best time, 3. George Gonzalez, Unattached 2:44.21; SOFLO: 4. Alessandro Pereira 2:44.65, 6. Aldo Zepeda 2:59.02; 11-12, 1. Sebastian Lares, SOFLO 2:17.93, best time, 2. Victor Valdes, Hialeah 2:18.96, 3. Nicolas Rossi, SOFLO 2:20.62; SOFLO: 9. Zackary Harris 2:31.92.

1,000-yard freestyle:

11-12, 1. Nicolas Rossi, SOFLO 10:37.91, 2. Emiliano Garcia, FLA 11:12.08, 3. Logan Gonzalez, SOFLO 12:59.46; 13-14, 1. Andres Vargas, Metro 9:56.98, 2. John Torres, Unattached 10:00.16, 3. Andres Wong, Metro 10:06.77; SOFLO: 5. Leonardo Mateus 10:18.48, 8. Tomas Pelaez 10:37.39, best time, 9. Joseph Lee 10:38.17, best time; 15-and-over, 1. Alex Arrieta, Metro 9:35.01, 2. Aitor Fungairino, Metro 9:35.04, 3. Adrian Aguilar, Metro 9:44.37; SOFLO: 4. Max Asnis 9:56.15.

IF YOU GO

What: Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open

When: Sunday, sessions 8:30 a.m., 2 p.m.

Where: Academic Village Pool, 17191, Sheridan Street, Pembroke Pines

Admission: $3 per session, heat sheets $3 per session. For information, call 954-538-3721.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

SOFLO Hosts Record Field This Weekend At Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open

By Sharon Robb

January 28, 2016—A record field of more than 800 swimmers will compete in the SOFLO Open at Academic Village Pool.

It is the largest meet South Florida Aquatic Club, Comets and Booster Club have hosted in the team’s 16-year history.

The three-day meet gets under way Friday with one session of 12-and-under 200 freestyle and 200 individual medley events and 12-and-under and 13-and-over 1,000 freestyle events.

Two sessions are scheduled each day on Saturday and Sunday with the older swimmers competing in the morning session and younger swimmers competing in the afternoon.

Host SOFLO has the largest contingent with 120 swimmers (61 boys, 59 girls) competing in 792 individual and eight relay events.

The girls team includes: Alana Acevedo, 14; Sarah Acevedo, 12; Madison Adkins, 9; Daniela Barreto, 12; Kaitlyn Barrios, 10; Gabriel Campanioni, 9; Valentina Carrion, 13; Kyana Castro, 13; Mariann Catalasan, 9; Alexis Christensen, 10; Alexandra Crespo, 15; Kayla Cunningham, 12; Kerry Cunningham, 10; Daniela Curbelo, 13; Katherine DeBarros, 15; Abigail Dececco, 10; Katrina Del Vecchio, 12; Luna Delgado, 10; Isabella Di Salvo, 13; Fiorella Di Salvo, 13; Mia Escudero, 11; Celeste Estrada, 10; Valeria Garcia, 12; Kathleen Golding, 15; Molly Golding, 12; Kelley Heron, 16; Annita Huang, 14; Paola Huerta, 14; Kathia Jaramillo, 10; Madison Johnson, 14; Paige Lane, 13; Elise Larin, 14; Jena Legaspi, 11; Maria Legaspi, 9; Rebekah Ling, 13; Jacqueline Lugo, 13; Anastasia Lutz, 9; Michelle Marinheiro, 13; Molly Masson, 11; Stephanie Mlujeak, 17; Abigail Natino, 8; Judith-Alison Natino, 10; Abby Oyetunji, 16; Leah Pando, 9; Emiliana Pelaez, 17; Delanie Perez, 15; Giada Porven, 7; Sara Quintero, 12; Jessica Rodriguez, 17; Mary Sawyer, 9; Annie Schulze, 9; Marianna Serrao, 14; Natalia Sibug, 9; Lily Sines, 12; Kailey Smith, 11; Carly Swanson, 18; Emma Twombly, 11; Sarah Vazquez, 8; Nicole Vignali, 9; and Kellie Wilcox, 15.

The boys team features: Ryan Alfonso, 13; Max Asnis, 16; Sam Asnis, 17; Fernando Barreto, 9; Bruno Berti, 16; Brennan Binder, 12; Tyler Bland, 14; Ryan Capote, 17; Ian Chalmers, 12; Mark Andre De Gracia, 12; Matthew Delvalle, 17; Juan Diaz, 16; Esteban Diaz-Velasco, 16; Kyle Dorn, 9; Odin Farkas, 12; Gabriel Ferdinand, 13; Lucas Gandarillas, 13; Roberto Garrido, 14; Tyler Gibson, 16; Alex Golding, 11; Logan Gonzalez, 11; John Paul Handal, 13; Zackary Harris, 11; Noah Hew, 11; Danniell Hughes, 12; Wyatt Jennessee, 16; Benjamin Kim, 8; Matthew Kim, 11; CJ Kopecki, 16; Sebastian Lares, 11; Joseph Lee, 13; Luke Lezotte, 14; Liam Lynch, 10; Ervin Marin, 16; Alejandro Mateus, 10; Leonardo Mateus, 14; Matthew Menocal, 16; Nicolas Munoz, 13; Joseph Natino, 6; Jacob Navarro, 10; Sebastian Navarro, 11; Tomas Pelaez, 14; Alessandro Pereira, 9; Kevin Porto, 16; Lucas Porven, 10; Samuel Quintero, 15; Ricardo Roche, 16; Enrique Rodriguez, 11; Javier Roman, 12; Nicolas Rossi, 12; Steven Sawyer, 10; Juan Serna, 14; Sebastian Sevilla, 14; Owen Sines, 9; Owen Smith, 9; Jiovanni Tapia, 13; Christian Tijero, 10; Christian Vasquez, 12; Marcos Vazquez, 13; and Aldo Zepeda, 10.

Among SOFLO’s top seeds are:

Kathleen Golding, 1,000-yard freestyle, 10:24.96.

Kelley Heron, 100-yard backstroke, 57.09.

Katrina Del Vecchio, 50-yard breaststroke, 33.59; 50-yard backstroke, 29.98.

Molly Golding, 100-yard individual medley, 1:07.91.

Kayla Cunningham, 1,000-yard freestyle 11:34.45.

Nicolas Rossi, 200-yard freestyle, 1:55.99; 500-yard freestyle, 5:06.76; 1,000-yard freestyle, 11:00.84.

In addition to most of the Florida Gold Coast teams competing, SWIFT will add an international flavor. The Bahamian team, coached by Andy Loveitt, is sending seven swimmers. They are Olivia Blue, 12, Katelyn Cabral, 12, Jasmine Gibson, 16, Darren Laing, 14, Shimon Lopez, 14, Tenniya Martin, 14, and Kris Smith, 15. Cabral is seeded first in the 12-and-under 100-yard butterfly in 1:03.06.

IF YOU GO

What: Florida Gold Coast SOFLO Open

When: Friday, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, sessions 8:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.; Sunday, sessions 8:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Where: Academic Village Pool, 17191, Sheridan Street, Pembroke Pines

Admission: $3 per session, heat sheets $3 per session. For information, call 954-538-3721.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

SOFLO’s Alia Atkinson Finishes Second On Final Day Of Austin Arena Pro Swim Series

By Sharon Robb

January 17, 2016—Alia Atkinson of South Florida Aquatic Club finished second in her signature event on the third and final day of the Arena Pro Swim Series Sunday at University of Texas Lee & Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin.

The three-time Jamaican Olympian, despite being broken down from heavy training, finished second in the 100-meter breaststroke in 1:07.47.

Atkinson, 27, was first at the turn and was leading by 5/100ths of a second before being overtaken by Katie Meili in 1:06.75.

Atkinson was the top seed going into the race after swimming 1:07.38 in morning prelims.

“Every meet and every race is a learning experience,” Meili said.

“It’s great we have so many amazing breaststrokers here. I am lucky to have that competition all the time.”

2012 U.S. Olympian Claire Donahue, was second in the “B” final of the 200-meter butterfly in 2:14.28.

Teenager Kathleen Golding, 15, turned in another good swim in the 200-meter individual medley which she has a U.S. Olympic Trial cut time in. Golding finished 38th in 2:21.84 in morning prelims.

In other championship finals:

Women’s 200-meter butterfly: Cammile Adams of Texas led from wire-to-wire to win in 2:08.21. “I just wanted to come out and put in a good effort into it so I am happy with that,” she said. “We are definitely putting a lot of pressure on ourselves at this meet. I need work on my start and getting out faster in the first 100.”

Men’s 200-meter butterfly: Without Michael Phelps in the field, the race was wide open. Singapore’s Quah Zheng Wen came from behind to win in. The 19-year-old is trained by former Bolles coach Sergio Lopez, now national team director for Singapore.

Men’s 100-meter breaststroke: Andrew Wilson, 22, of Texas won a close four-man race in the final five meters in 1:00.42. “I just tried to be an animal at the wall.”

Women’s 100-meter backstroke: Hungarian Katinka Hosszu, the third seed, held off a charging Missy Franklin, who came back from fourth place, after a poor start and dolphin kick, in 59.91. Franklin finished in 1:00.03.

Men’s 100-meter backstroke: 6-foot-8 Matt Grevers out-reached Bolles alum Ryan Murphy to win in 53.35. Murphy was second in 53.46. “We are always pushing each other, we are making each other better and faster as individuals,” he said.

Women’s 200-meter individual medley: Hosszu, 16 minutes after winning the 100 backstroke, took a two-body length lead early in the race to win her second event of the night in 2:10.69. “I am really excited, I feel like I am ahead of where I was last year at this time,” she said. “I just tried to slow my breathing down and clear my head after the 100 back. It’s more mental than anything else.”

Men’s 200-meter individual medley: Michael Phelps, 30, turned it on in the last five meters to win a close race against rival Ryan Lochte. Both were dead even for most of the exciting race. Phelps accelerated into the wall to win in 1:58.00.

“Ryan and I have had a lot of great swims with each other,” Phelps said. “I knew we were going to try and battle it out. I knew it would come down to the touch. I am very pleased with that. I am picking up the small things at meets like this like turns and underwaters. I am happy again. It’s a pretty incredible feeling. Right now I am loving life. I am enjoying it a lot more.”

Women’s 800-meter freestyle: Ashley Twichell, 26, of Triangle Aquatics won in 8:41.23 in a close race against Olivia Anderson, 16, of Etobicoke in 8:41.71.

Men’s 1500-meter freestyle: Tunisian Ous Mellouli, 31, swimming unattached, won convincingly in 15:19.94, just off his seed time of 15:18.02. Tobia Robinson, 19, of Great Britain was second in 15:22.23.

Austin was the second stop in the seven-meet series. The series offers $350,000 in prize money. Each meet winner earns $1000, runners-up $600 and third place $200. A $10,000 bonus will be awarded to the overall male and female series winners. The next series is the March 3-5 in Orlando at the YMCA Aquatic Center.

SUNDAY RESULTS

WOMEN

200-meter butterfly: 1. Cammile Adams, SwimMAC 2:08.21, 2. Audrey Lacroix, HPC-Ontario 2:10.14; SOFLO: 10. Claire Donahue 2:14.28.

100-meter breaststroke: 1. Katie Meili, SwimMAC 1:06.75, 2. Alia Atkinson, SOFLO 1;07.47, 3. Molly Hannis, Tennessee Aquatics 1:07.50; SOFLO: 55. Lisa Blackburn 1:14.11.

100-meter backstroke: 1. Katinka Hosszu, Hungary 59.91, 2. Missy Franklin, Colorado Stars 1:00.03, 3. Kathleen Baker, California 1:00.04; SOFLO: 23. Carolina Colorado 1:03.47.

200-meter individual medley: 1. Katinka Hosszu, Hungary 2:10.69, 2. Melanie Margalis, St. Petersburg 2:12.67, 3. Sarah Henry, Aggie Swim Club 2:12.77; SOFLO: 38. Kathleen Golding 2:21.84, 55. Carolina Colorado 2:23.55, 87. Lisa Blackburn 2:31.31.

800-meter freestyle: 1. Katie Ledecky, Nation’s Capital 8:06.68, 2. Becca Mann, North Baltimore 8:24.49, 3. Lotte Friis, North Baltimore 8:27.23.

MEN

200-meter butterfly: 1. Quah Zheng Wen, Singapore 1:58.07, 2. Simon Sjodin, Sweden 1:58.27, 3. Andrew Seliskar, Unattached 1:58.47.

100-meter breaststroke: 1. Andrew Wilson, Longhorn Aquatics 1:00.42, 2. Kevin Cordes, Singapore 1:00.53, 3. Sam Tierney, Missouri 1:00.63; SOFLO: 50. Kile Aukerman 1:06.44.

100-meter backstroke: 1. Matt Grevers, Tucson Ford Dealership 53.35, 2. Ryan Murphy, Unattached 53.46, 3. David Plummer, New York Athletic Club 53.50.

200-meter individual medley: 1. Michael Phelps, North Baltimore 1:58.00, 2. Ryan Lochte, SwimMAC 1:58.43, 3. Josh Prenot, Unattached 1:59.94.; SOFLO: 54. Kile Aukerman 2:11.41.

1500-meter freestyle: 1. Ous Mellouili, Unattached 15:19.94, 2. Tobia Robinson, Great Britain 15:22.23, 3. Anton Ipsen, NCS 15:17.51.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

SOFLO Heads Into Final Day Of Austin Arena Pro Swim Series

By Sharon Robb

January 16, 2016—South Florida Aquatic Club will wind up its racing on the third and final day of the Arena Pro Swim Series Sunday at University of Texas Lee & Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin.

Three-time Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson will swim the 100-meter breaststroke, her signature event, and 200-meter individual medley.

Atkinson, 27, was SOFLO’s highest finisher, placing 28th overall in the 200-meter freestyle in 2:02.54, fourth in the “D” final.

Kile Aukerman, 22, will also compete in the men’s 100-meter breaststroke and 200-meter individual medley. Aukerman scratched from the 400 individual medley.

Bermuda national champion Lisa Blackburn is entered in the 100-meter breaststroke and 200-meter individual medley.

Two-time Colombian Carolina Colorado will race the 100-meter backstroke and 200-meter individual medley.

2012 U.S. Olympian Claire Donahue will wind up with the 200-meter butterfly.

Kathleen Golding will swim the 200-meter individual medley which she has a U.S. Olympic Trial cut time in.

South Florida Aquatic Club also has three officials working the meet including starter Hector Acevedo, chief judges Allan Golding and Steve Swanson. Even more impressive is that Acevedo and Swanson are there working the meet even though their children are not competing.

In other championship finals:

Hungarian Katinka Hosszu, 26, won the 400-meter individual medley in 4:36.27 ahead of Becca Mann, 18, in 4:39.03.

Ryan Lochte, 31, of Daytona Beach and SwimMAC won the 400-meter individual medley in 4:12.66, eighth fastest time in the world. “It hurt, the 400 IM is never easy,” Lochte said. “I haven’t swum it in a long time so it was good to get it under my belt. I just wanted to get up on the blocks for the racing.”

Reigning world champion Katie Ledecky, 18, of Nation’s Capital won the 200-meter freestyle in a best time 1:54.43, missing the record by 3/100ths of a second. “I just wanted to put together a good swim all-around,” Ledecky said. “I have been able to focus on the 200 races this year and I think it’s paying off.”

Stanford’s Maya DiRado won the 200-meter backstroke against a stacked field. “I couldn’t see anybody being in Lane 7. I just tried to keep my rate up and swim home. It was nice to have a 200 backstroke win with Katinka and Missy in the race. This is encouraging and motivating to be in a race like that and come out with a win.”

Bolles alum Ryan Murphy, 20, swimming unattached, won the 200-meter backstroke in 1:55.99. “My fitness is really good after coming off altitude training. I am just trying to nail down a race strategy at this point and see what works best for me. Tonight hurt more than the morning.”

Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrum, coming off the 200 freestyle, led from the start to win the 50-meter freestyle by a half-body length in 24.17. “It felt very good all the way,” she said. “My start was very good but I was still surprised at my time.”

Californian Nathan Adrian, 27, won the 50-meter freestyle in 21.85, the only swimmer to crack 22 seconds.

Prelims are 9 a.m. and finals 6 p.m. Central Standard Time.

The meet is being televised on same-day delay on Universal HD Sunday from 9:30-11 p.m. EST. NBC Sports Live Extra will stream the finals. A live webcast of both the prelims and finals will be at the usaswimming.org website.

Austin is the second stop in the seven-meet series. The series offers $350,000 in prize money. Each meet winner earns $1000, runners-up $600 and third place $200. A $10,000 bonus will be awarded to the overall male and female series winners. Ledecky and Conor Dwyer lead the series after the first meet.

SATURDAY RESULTS

WOMEN

200-meter freestyle: 1. Katie Ledecky, Nation’s Capital 1:54.43, 2. Sarah Sjostrum, Sweden 1:56.14, 3. Missy Franklin, Colorado Stars 1:57.49; SOFLO: 28. Alia Atkinson 2:02.54.

200-meter backstroke: 1. Maya DiRado, Stanford 2:08.19, 2. Katinla Hosszu, Hungary 2:08.63, 4. Missy Franklin, Colorado Stars 2:09.21; SOFLO: 37. Carolina Colorado 2:18.62.

50-meter freestyle: 1. Sarah Sjostrum, Sweden 24.17, 2. Madison Kennedy, SwimMAC 24.72, 3. Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace, SwimMAC 24.84; SOFLO: 67. Claire Donahue 27.03, 77. Carolina Colorado 27.33.

400-meter individual medley: 1. Katinka Hosszu, Hungary 4:36.27, 2. Becca Mann, North Baltimore 4:39.03, 3. Sarah Henry, Aggie Swim Club 4:40.92; SOFLO: 40. Kathleen Golding 5:01.06.

MEN

200-meter freestyle: 1. Jeremy Stravius, France 1:47.56, 2. Townley Haas, Texas 1:48.35, 3. Jordan Pothain, France 1:48.62.

200-meter backstroke: 1. Ryan Murphy, Unattached 1:55.99, 2. Arkady Vyatchanin, NY Athletic Club 1:57.51, 3. Jacob Pebley, Unattached 1:58.52.

50-meter freestyle: 1. Nathan Adrian, Cal Aquatics 21.85, 2. Bruno Fratus, Brazil 22.07, 3. Jimmy Feigen, NY Athletic Club 22.27.

400-meter individual medley: 1. Ryan Lochte, SwimMAC 4:12.66, 2. Chase Kalisz, North Baltimore 4:14.64, 3. Josh Prenot, Unattached 4:15.07.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

Golding Swims Best Time; Atkinson, Donahue Make Finals On Day One Of Arena Pro Swim Series

By Sharon Robb

January 15, 2016—Kathleen Golding, the youngest member of South Florida Aquatic Club’s contingent, led the team Friday at the Arena Pro Swim Series at University of Texas Lee & Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin.

Golding, 15, a freshman at Cooper City High School, swam a best time in the 100-meter freestyle in 58.43, bettering her previous best of 59.49.

She also went 4:26.97 in the 400-meter freestyle, just off her best time of 4:26.30.

Golding has the 200 and 400 individual medley events left to swim.

Four of SOFLO’s ProFlo group competed on opening day, with two of its Olympians making finals.

Three-time Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson, 27, was seventh in the 200-meter breaststroke final in 2:29.77, slower than her morning swim of 2:29.18 that earned her the No. 6 seed. She was also 73rd in the 100-meter butterfly in 1:03.67.

Atkinson has four events remaining: the 100 breaststroke; 50 and 200 freestyle; and 200 individual medley.

2012 U.S. Olympian Claire Donahue, 27, was seventh in the 100-meter butterfly in 59.44. She was seeded seventh after going 59.89 in prelims. Donahue will also compete in the 200 butterfly and 50 freestyle.

Two-time Colombian Carolina Colorado was 39th in the 100-meter butterfly in 1:02.05.

Colorado is also swimming the 100 and 200 backstroke, 50 freestyle and 200 individual medley.

Kile Aukerman was 50th in the 200-meter breaststroke in 2:23.82, just off his best time. He had four events remaining: 100 breaststroke, 200 and 400 individual medley and 50 freestyle.

Bermuda national champion Lisa Blackburn, who scratched from the 200 breaststroke, is scheduled to swim the 100 breaststroke and 200 individual medley.

In other championship finals:

Sarah Sjostrom, 22, of Sweden won the 100-meter freestyle in 53.12, the first of two U.S. Open records for the night and outsprinting Katie Ledecky, 18, of Nation’s capital in 53.75. Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu was fourth in 54.37. Sjostrom also won the 100-meter butterfly in 56.38 followed by Dana Vollmer in 57.61 and Noemie Thomas (58.38).

Californian Nathan Adrian topped a loaded men’s field including top-seeded Frenchman Jeremy Stravius to win the 100-meter freestyle in 48.91. Most of the field (Jimmy Feigen, Santo Condorelli, Ryan Lochte, Michael Phelps, Matt Grevers, Michael Chadwick) could end up being the U.S. Olympic Trials final lineup.

Laura Sogar of Bluefish won the 200-meter breaststroke in 2:24.69.

Josh Prenot, 22, swimming unattached, came up with a big win in the 200-meter breaststroke in 2:10.26.

Michael Phelps poured it on in the last 25 meters to win the 100-meter butterfly in 51.94 against a stacked field that included rival Ryan Lochte of SwimMAC, fifth in 52.73.

Teenager Katie Ledecky, 18, of Nation’s Capital, on world record pace during her swim, won the 400-meter freestyle in a pool record 3:59.54, fifth fastest time ever.

In a close race, Frenchman Jordan Pothain, 21, won the men’s 400-meter freestyle in 3:50.06, just ahead of Michael McBroom, 24, in 3:50.17.

The three-day meet resumes Saturday with prelims at 9 a.m. and finals 6 p.m. Central Standard Time.

The meet will be televised on same-day delay on Universal HD Saturday and Sunday from 9:30-11 p.m. EST. NBC Sports Live Extra will stream the Jan. 16-17 finals. A live webcast of both the prelims and finals will be at the usaswimming.org website.

FRIDAY RESULTS

WOMEN

100-meter freestyle: 1. Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden 53.12, 2. Katie Ledecky, Nation’s Capital 53.75, 3. Abby Weitzeil, Canyons Aquatic 54.00; SOFLO: 91. Kathleen Golding, 58.43, best time.

200-meter breaststroke: 1. Laura Sogar, Bluefish 2:24.69, 2. Molly Hannis, Tennessee Aquatics 2:26.73, 3. Anna Belousova, Nation’s capital 2:26.76; SOFLO: 7. Alia Atkinson 2:29.77.

100-meter butterfly: 1. Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden 56.38, 2. Dana Vollmer, Cal Aquatics 57.61, 3. Noemie Thomas, California 58.38; SOFLO: 7. Claire Donahue 59.44.

400-meter freestyle: 1. Katie Ledecky, Nation’s Capital 3:59.54, 2. Leah Smith, Unattached 4:04.74, 3. Becca Mann, North Baltimore 4:07.09; SOFLO: 66. Kathleen Golding 4:26.97.

MEN

100-meter freestyle: 1. Nathan Adrian, Cal Aquatics 48.91, 2. Jeremy Stravius, France 48.96, 3. Jimmy Feigen, NY Athletic Club 49.20.

200-meter breaststroke: 1. Josh Prenot, unattached 2:10.26, 2. Nic Fink, Athens Bulldogs 2:10.51, 3. Kevin Cordes, Unattached 2:10.63; SOFLO: 50. Kile Aukerman 2:23.82.

100-meter butterfly: 1. Michael Phelps, North Baltimore 51.94, 2. Tom Shields, Cal Aquatics 52.39, 3. Tim Phillips, SwimMAC 52.61.

400-meter freestyle: 1. Jordan Pothain, France 3:50.06, 2. Michael McBroom, Woodlands 3:50.17, 3. Madsen Glaesner, Trojan Swim Club 3:50.81.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

SOFLO Swimmers Compete In Gulliver Senior Invitational This Weekend

By Sharon Robb

January 14, 2016—A small, but talented contingent from South Florida Aquatic Club will compete Saturday in the Florida Gold Coast Gulliver Senior Long Course Invitational.

Eleven swimmers, including pros, national team members and age groupers, will get in some racing against several top swimmers from around the state.

SOFLO’s six women include Kelley Heron, 16, Catalina Mendieta, 26, Ksen Golovkina, 26, Abby Oyetunji, 16, Jessica Rodriguez, 17, and Alina Schulhofer, 20.

SOFLO’s five-man contingent features Ryan Capote, 17, Juan Diaz, 16, CJ Kopecki, 16, Ervin Marin, 16, and Alejandro Zambrano, 21.

In the opening session on Saturday, Heron is seeded first in the 100-meter backstroke in 1:06.39 followed by teammate Mendieta, 26, in 1:06.97. Heron is competing in five events, the most of any SOFLO swimmers.

Golovkina, 26, is seeded third in the 50-meter freestyle in 26.89.

In the second session on Saturday, Golovkina is seeded first in the 100-meter breaststroke in 1:11.31 ahead of Rodriguez, 17, in 1:13.05.

Schulhofer, 20, is seeded second in the 200-meter freestyle in 2:05.73. Mendieta is seeded fourth in the 100-meter butterfly in 1:04.14.

Among top teams competing are host Gulliver, Azura and Sarasota. The results will be posted on Meet Mobile.

IF YOU GO

What: Gulliver Long Course Senior Invitational

When: Saturday-Sunday

Schedule: Saturday, Session One, 8:30 a.m.; Session Two, 2:30 p.m.; Sunday, Session Three, 10 a.m.

Where: Gulliver Prep Aquatic Center, 6575 N. Kendall Drive (SW 88th St.), Miami

Admission: $2 per session, heat sheet $3 per session. For information call 305-666-7937, ext. 1465.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

Austin Arena Pro Swim Series Begins Olympic Countdown

By Sharon Robb

January 13, 2016—South Florida Aquatic Club’s top swimmers will start off the New Year at the Arena Pro Swim Series at University of Texas’ Lee & Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin.

SOFLO will have six swimmers competing at the three-day meet that begins on Friday. The field features 600 swimmers including 70 members of the USA Swimming national team.

The ProFlo group is headed by three-time Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson, two-time Colombian Olympian Carolina Colorado and 2012 U.S. Olympic gold medalist Claire Donahue.

The star-studded trio will be joined by Bermuda national record holder Lisa Blackburn, post-grad Kile Aukerman and teenager Kathleen Golding, a member of SOFLO’s national group.

Atkinson and Colombian national record holder Jorge Murillo, who is not competing, have already qualified for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in August. Newest ProFlo member and world champion Megan Romano is staying home to train.

Atkinson is entered in six events: 100 and 200 breaststroke; 50 and 200 freestyle, 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley.

Colorado is swimming the 100 and 200 backstroke, 50 freestyle, 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley.

Donahue will compete in the 100 and 200 butterfly and 50 freestyle.

Aukerman is swimming five events: 100 and 200 breaststroke, 200 and 400 individual medley and 50 freestyle.

Blackburn will swim three events in the 100 and 200 breaststroke and 200 individual medley.

Golding, a freshman at Cooper City High School, is entered in four events: 200 and 400 individual medley and 100 and 400 freestyle.

The field is star-studded headed by Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, Missy Franklin and Ryan Lochte.

Former Bolles coach Sergio Lopez, now national head coach of the Singapore national team, has entered a contingent including Americans Kevin Cordes and Rex Tullius, who are training with Lopez. The 12-swimmer contingent recently wrapped up training camp in Jacksonville. Singapore’s Olympic Trials are in March.

Hungary’s “Iron Lady” Katinka Hosszu is also among the elite field.

Prelims are 9 a.m. and finals 6 p.m. Central Standard Time.

Austin is the second stop in the seven-meet series. The series takes on added importance with U.S. swimmers trying to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials and international swimmers trying to make their time standards for various countries.

The series offers $350,000 in prize money. Each meet winner earns $1000, runners-up $600 and third place $200. A $10,000 bonus will be awarded to the overall male and female series winners. Ledecky and Conor Dwyer lead the series after the first meet.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

U.S. Olympic Hopeful Megan Romano Joins South Florida Aquatic Club’s ProFlo Group

By Sharon Robb

January 8, 2016—With her competitive fires burning once again, Florida-born Megan Romano is more than ready to challenge for a spot on the 2016 U.S. Olympic team.

Romano, who turns 25 on Feb. 2, has joined South Florida Aquatic Club’s ProFlo Group.

The University of Georgia alum has joined 2013 U.S. worlds teammate Claire Donahue, three-time Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson and several other talented pro swimmers training for trials or the Aug. 5-21 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero.

Romano arrived in South Florida this past week. She has already done five workouts and one dryland and said she is loving every minute of it.

“I am really excited to be here and training outside,” said Romano, who had been training in Athens, Ga. and before that Austin, Tex.

“I grew up in Florida and I love being outdoors. I love the girls and the guys. It’s such a great group of people. They are my age and we are all training for the same goal. And, this is such a beautiful area down here.”

Romano was born in Tampa and grew up in St. Petersburg. She has been winning medals since she was 6 years old. She graduated from St. Petersburg Northeast High School, where she was a state champion and trained with St. Petersburg Aquatics. At 6-foot-1, she gave up basketball and volleyball to focus on swimming.

Her swimming resume is impressive. She has been part of an American record relay; set American, U.S. Open, NCAA and Georgia records in the 200 freestyle; broken American short course records; won gold medals at world championships and swam a tremendous anchor leg to bring the U.S. from behind to win the 4×100 relay at the 2013 World Championships.

Romano is training for her third Olympic Trials. She qualified in 2008 and 2012. She just missed making a relay for the 2012 London Olympics by one place finishing seventh in the 200-meter freestyle.

Three weeks after the 2012 U.S. Trials at the U.S. Open in Indianapolis, Romano won the 100-meter freestyle in a meet record 53.92, 200-meter backstroke in 2:09.08 and 200-meter freestyle in another meet record of 1:57.54. With those swims she would have made the Olympic team in all three events and won the 100 freestyle at Trials.

“I guess timing is everything in swimming,” said Romano, whose mantra is “everything happens for a reason.”

It took Romano some time to get over the disappointment.

“Obviously, I was really bummed after the Trials,” Romano said. “I am not going to lie. The last couple of years have been hard. I was ready to do other things.”

Romano returned to training but admittedly felt like she wasn’t fully focused and was just going through the motions. It was also hard her first year out of college being the only post-grad on the Athens Bulldogs.

“I just felt I wasn’t swimming to my ability,” Romano said. “I was still doing it but I wasn’t pushing myself. When I got here I wasn’t in as bad shape as I thought I would be and that’s exciting, even though they did kick my butt and those last two sets really tested my ability.”

Romano said had she made the 2012 team she would not be swimming today.

Donahue and Romano have been good friends since the 2013 World Championships. When she heard Donahue and her coach joined SOFLO, she called and asked “would you mind if I came down and joined you guys.”

“I recently got a fire under me and I want to give it another shot,” Romano said. “I really want to make the team. I have goals I want to accomplish. I am having fun with it again. I am going to give it everything I have. I already feel way more better in the water than I have in a long time.

“My goal now is to make the team,” Romano said. “I am not going to get too specific with my goals. I want to make the team and medal in whatever it is.”

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

SOFLO SWIMMER OF THE YEAR: Kathleen Golding

By Sharon Robb

January 1, 2016—Talent, work ethic, goal-oriented and determined.

Those are the words that first come to mind when talking about Kathleen Golding, 15, of South Florida Aquatic Club.

Golding, a gymnast-turned swimmer, enjoyed her finest season in club and impressive debut in high school swimming during 2015.

The highlight of the year was making her first U.S. Olympic trials cut at age 14.

Golding earned her Trials cut in the 200-meter individual medley in a lifetime-best 2:18.67 at the USA Swimming Futures Championships and a trip to the June 26-July 3 trials in Omaha, Neb.

There were other impressive accomplishments throughout the year:

She won two events and broke a meet record at the Broward County Athletic Association Swimming Championships. She won the 200-yard individual medley in 2:06.86 and 100-yard butterfly in 56.80, breaking a nine-year-old old meet record.

Golding won the high school State 4A title in the 200-yard individual medley in 2:00.40 and was third in the 100-yard butterfly in 55.18. The Cooper City High School freshman was one of the youngest to win a state title and the first state swim champion in 19 years at Cooper City.

At the Speedo East Winter Junior National Championships, Golding swam back-to-back best times. She broke 51 seconds for the first time during morning prelims of the 100-yard freestyle in 50.48 and came back at night to lower it again in 50.25. She also swam a best time in the 200-yard freestyle in 1:49.64, the first time she cracked 1:50.

Golding earned All-County first team honors in the 200-yard individual medley and 100-yard butterfly. She was also a TYR Swimmer of the Month in August.

She won six events at the All-Star Dual Meet at Indian River State College as a member of the Florida Gold Coast All-Star team.

Golding is just getting started. She hopes to make at least one more Trials cut before the deadline.

“I am excited about the future,” Golding said.

Golding has been training at SOFLO since her family moved to South Florida when she was 13. She has been improving, setting and reaching her goals ever since.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com