April 2017 – South Florida Aquatic Club's Blog

SOFLO’s Porven Siblings, Christensen, Smith Win During Firecracker 400s On Day One Of Sunrise Meet

By Sharon Robb

April 29, 2017—South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers won four individual titles, had one second and two thirds in the Firecracker 400s Friday night at the Sunrise Aquatic Center.

The opening night action was part of the three-day IM Ready Challenge.

Brother and sister Lucas and Giada Porven won their events and both turned in time drops.

Porven, 9, won the 400-meter freestyle in a best tie 5:44.79 with an impressive time drop of 21.72. Her previous time was 6:06.51.

Lucas Porven, 11, also won the 400-meter freestyle in a best time 5:23.17 with a time drop of 11.17. His previous best was 5:34.34.

Giada Porven, 9 and under, 400 free, first 5:44.79, time drop

Alexis Christensen, 11, won the 400-meter freestyle in 5:27.73.

Owen Smith, 10, won the 400-meter freestyle in 5:55.62.

Nathanial Garrick, 12, was second in the 400-meter freestyle in 5:16.65.

Leah Pando, 11, was third in the 400-meter freestyle in a best time 5:37.51, a time drop of 3.06.

Anastasia Lutz, 10, was third in the 400-meter freestyle in 6:03.14.

Up-and-coming swimmers compete around the nation in the IMR Challenge in timed finals.

The USA Swimming-sanctioned meet is a fun, motivational meet to help young swimmers reach the next level in their swimming careers.

The IM (Ready) Challenge allows swimmers to see how they compare to other swimmers around the nation in their age group. Swimmers must compete in all the events required for their age group to establish a score.

Once a swimmer competes in each IMR Challenge event at least once in an official meet, swimmers and parents can check their rankings on USA Swimming’s website.

FRIDAY RESULTS

GIRLS

400-meter freestyle:

9-and-under, 1. Giada Porven, SOFLO 5:44.79, time drop; 10-year-olds, 1. Cecilia Mirones, SUN 5:42.80; SOFLO: 3. Anastasia Lutz 6:03.14; 11-year-olds, 1. Alexis Christensen, SOFLO 5:27.73; SOFLO: 3. Leah Pando 5:37.51, time drop; 12-year-olds, 1. Anabela Shearer, SUN 5:06.50; SOFLO: 11. Kailey Smith 5:43.46, time drop; 13-year-old, 1. Adriana Goodwin, Azura 4:53.47; 14-year-olds, 1. Gaby Chambers, PST 4:54.63; 15-year-olds, 1. Solana Capalbo, Azura 4:44.99; 16-year-olds, 1. Zoe Abovitz, Azura 5:02.57; 17-and-over, 1. Megan Schimansky, CSSC 4:44.15.

400-meter individual medley:

10-year-olds, 1. Sara Levin, SF 6:47.28; 11-year-olds, 1. Maya Sorunmu, SF 6:28.04; 12-year-olds, 1. Nakai Chinogwenya, SF 6:09.16; 13-year-olds, 1. Giulianna Garcia, CSSC 5:30.35; 14-year-olds, 1. Gina Fimiano, PST 6:00.11; 15-year-olds, 1. Solana Capalbo, Azura 5:27.45; 16-year-olds, 1. Ally Drucker, PST 6:38.70; 17-and-over, 1. Megan Schimansky, CSSC 5:35.57.

BOYS

400-meter freestyle:

9-and-under, 1. Ares Rilo, SUN 5:56.64; 10-year-olds, 1. Owen Smith, SOFLO 5:55.62; 11-year-olds, 1. Lucas Porven, SOFLO 5:23.17, time drop; 12-year-olds, 1. Joshua Justin, PST 5:10.83, SOFLO: 2. Nathaniel Garrick 5:16.65; 13-year-olds, 1. Brian Gonzalez, CSSC 4:34.70; 14-year-olds, 1. Jason Bonasera, CSSC 4:46.61; 15-year-olds, 1. Cristian Tortola, Azura 4:23.54; 16-year-olds, 1. Jose Diaz, Azura 4:32.31; 17-and-over, 1. Franco Lupoli, Azura 4:02.64.

400-meter individual medley:

12-year-olds, 1. Julian Villarta, SF 6:30.44; 13-year-olds, 1. Brian Gonzalez, CSSC 5:21.13; 14-year-olds, 1. Connor Marks, CSSC 5:26.57; 15-year-olds, 1. Brandon Moran, Azura 4:57.71; 16-year-olds, 1. Gianni Savino, CSSC 5:40.69; 17-and-over, 1. Julian Enrique Iturbe, Azura 4:51.61.

IF YOU GO

What: Firecracker 400s & IM Ready (LCM) Pentathlon Challenge.

When: Friday-Sunday.

Schedule: Friday, Session I, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, Session II, 9 a.m.; Sunday, Session III, 9 a.m.

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

Of note: Admission and heat sheets are $3 each per session. Ribbons were awarded at Friday Night Firecracker 400s for top three places in each age group. T-shirts will be given to the top three scorers in each age group for the IMR Pentathlon Challenge. For more information call the swim office at 954-747-4635.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http:///www.swim4soflo.com

Busy Weekend Ahead For SOFLO Swimmers At Two Meets In Broward and Dade

By Sharon Robb

April 27, 2017—South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers and coaches will be busy this weekend at Florida Gold Coast meets in Sunrise and Miami.

SOFLO is sending swimmers to both the MACM Invitational at Tamiami Aquatic Center and IM Ready Challenge at Sunrise Aquatic Center. Both meets are Friday through Sunday.

The MACM Invitational, hosted by the Metro Aquatic Club of Miami, will be timed finals.

SOFLO has entered 26 swimmers in 145 individual events at the MAC meet.

SOFLO swimmers are: Fabiana Avendano, 13; Sophia Bedoya, 14; Maya Coffey, 15; Javier Colmenares, 10; Juan Colmenares, 13; Daniela Curbelo, 14; Mark Andre De Gracia, 13; Katrina Del Vecchio, 14; Isabella Di Salvo, 14; Fiorella Di Salvo, 9; Mia Escudero, 12; Kalin Hubbard, 13; Paige Lane, 14; Sebastian Lares, 12; Jie Hoon Lee, 14; Jena Legaspi, 13; Lance Lesage, 14; Kylie McIntosh, 14; Yannai Michael, 13; Michelle Ordonez, 14; Gabriel Quiros, 15; Nicolas Rossi, 14; Natasha Testa, 18; Emma Twombly, 13; Christian Vasquez, 13; and Sarah Vasquez, 9.

At the Sunrise Civic Center on Friday night, the Firecracker 400s will be held at 5:30 p.m. The girls and boys open 400-meter freestyle and 400-meter individual medley events will be held.

On Saturday, the IMR Challenge begins at 9 a.m. and features the 12-and-under 50-meter butterfly, 50-meter breaststroke and 50-meter backstroke and 13-and-over 100-meter butterfly, 100-meter breaststroke and 100-meter backstroke.

On Sunday, the IMR Challenge begins at 9 a.m. and continues with the 10-and-under 100-meter freestyle, 11-and-over 200-meter freestyle and open 200-meter individual medley.

All events are timed finals.

Twenty-three SOFLO swimmers entered in 72 individual events are: Sebastien Bourjolly, 13; Alexis Christensen, 11; Pilar Duranti, 9; Nathaniel Garrick, 12; Luca Hincapie, 10; Jonathan Lozano, 9; Anastasia Lutz, 10; Abigail-Marie Natino, 10; Joseph-Blake Natino, 8; Judith-Alison Natino, 11; Diego Nazario-Vazquez, 11; Leah Pando, 11; Mitchell Pecci, 13; Giada Porven, 9; Lucas Porven, 11; Anvitaa Pottigari, 10; Saanvi Pottigari, 12; Maximiliano Salguero, 12; Annie Schulze, 10; Kailey Smith, 12; Owen Smith, 10; Samantha Solis, 12; and Juan Vallmitjana, 8.

Up-and-coming swimmers compete in the IMR Challenge.

The USA Swimming-sanctioned meet is a fun, motivational meet to help young swimmers reach the next level in their swimming careers.

Once a swimmer competes in each IMR Challenge event at least once in an official meet, swimmers and parents can check their rankings on USA Swimming’s website.

IF YOU GO

What: Firecracker 400s & IM Ready (LCM) Pentathlon Challenge.

When: Friday-Sunday.

Schedule: Friday, Session I, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, Session II, 9 a.m.; Sunday, Session III, 9 a.m.

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

Of note: Admission and heat sheets are $3 each per session. Ribbons will be awarded at Friday Night Firecracker 400s for top three places in each age group. T-shirts will be given to the top three scorers in each age group for the IMR Pentathlon Challenge. For more information call the swim office at 954-747-4635.

IF YOU GO

What: MACM Invitational.

When: Friday-Sunday

Schedule: Friday, Session I, 5 p.m.; Session II, 6 p.m.; Saturday, Session III, 8:30 a.m.; Session IV, 1 p.m.; Sunday, Session V, 9 a.m.

Where: Tamiami Aquatic Center, 11201 SW 24th Street, Miami.

Of note: All events are timed finals. Admission is $5 per session. Heat sheets are free on Meet Mobile. For more information, call the swim office at 786-255-4695.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http:///www.swim4soflo.com

TYR FEBRUARY SWIMMER OF THE MONTH: Alexis Christensen

By Sharon Robb

April 23, 2017—Alexis Christensen gave up mixed martial arts for swimming and she’s so happy she did.

“I used to do mixed martial arts, but I didn’t like it,” she said. “I didn’t like touching a bunch of sweaty boys.”

Christensen, who also did gymnastics, dance and karate, was in an advanced class with high school boys. Her father and brother are also involved in mixed martial arts.

“I did wrestling some times and part of the time I did boxing. I did it for about two years and I got to a stripe green belt but I wanted to do something else.”

Christensen decided to try swimming and signed up with South Florida Aquatic Club eighteen months ago. She knew how to swim underwater and went snorkeling with her family but learned her first freestyle stroke from Coach Carlos. She started at Level 4 in lessons and moved from pre-team to team.

She is currently working with Coach Luis and the Asteroids and making remarkable progress.

“I am a lot happier in swimming,” she said. “I really like it. I love being in the water. I found it peaceful and enjoyable.”

Christensen, 11, a fifth grader at Hawks Bluff Elementary School, is a straight A student who loves to read and write.

In the last three months her progress in the pool has been remarkable.

In the February Panther Invite at Pine Crest, she was ninth in the 500-yard freestyle in 6:21.98; 12th in the 200-yard freestyle in 2:22.22. She swam the 50-yard freestyle in 31.48 and 50-yard backstroke in 36.81.

In the Area 3 Developmental Championships in March, Christensen had some impressive time drops. She was second in the 500-yard freestyle in a best time 6:07.61, bettering her previous best of 6:21.98; third in the 200-yard freestyle in a best time 2:16.77, bettering her 2:22.22 previous best; fourth in the 200-yard backstroke in a best time 2:44.91, lowering her previous best of 2:54.32; and, sixth in the 100-yard backstroke in a best time 1:15.92, dropping from 1:19.06. She also led off SOFLO’s third place 200-yard medley relay that finished third.

At Saturday’s Florida Gold Coast Jupiter Invitational, Christensen had two nice time drops before the meet was cancelled on Sunday because of inclement weather. In the 100-meter backstroke she finished in 1:28.89, a time drop of 14.44 seconds and in the 50-meter freestyle she finished in 34.53, dropping 6.46 seconds. She was also tenth in the 200-meter freestyle in 2:37.84.

“I love the freestyle and backstroke and long distance swims,” Christensen said. “It’s nice and relaxing.

“My goals are to keep dropping times and improving my technique. I would like to move up to the Bronze Group by the time I turn 13.”

Christensen loves her “second family” at SOFLO.

“I love my friends, they encourage me to do better every single day,” she said. “Coach Luis is is wonderful. I think he cares a lot about his swimmers and he is so funny.”

Christensen would like to swim in high school and college. Her long range goal is to swim in the Olympics.

“When I am in the pool, one thing I love about swimming is that I think about nothing else but swimming,” Christensen said. “It’s so peaceful in the water. It gives me peace of mind.

“When I see swimmers in front of me it makes me want to go faster to try and catch them.”

Christensen trains six days a week like most of her teammates. Her 7-year-old brother Preston is taking swim lessons at SOFLO in addition to mixed martial arts.

“I would like him to enjoy swimming as much as I do with my team,” she said.

“I am having fun at the meets. I really enjoyed getting into a few finals. It was cool to see my name on the board. I was a little intimidated by some of the other girls. They were really big. I am 5-2.”

School ends in June for Christensen, who is looking forward to summer training while keeping up her reading.

“I love to read, I am a book worm,” said Christensen, who is currently reading Serafina and the Twisted Staff by Robert Beatty, a former No. 1 New York Times best seller. “I read all the time at practice and swim meets.”

Each TYR Swimmer of the Month receives a free TYR backpack.

SOFLO sponsor TYR is a USA manufacturer of recreational and competitive swimwear, caps, goggles, triathlon gear and accessories and one of the nation’s top companies.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO Swimmers Shine On Day Two Of FGC Jupiter Invitational

By Sharon Robb

April 22, 2017—South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers turned in several outstanding swims on Day Two of the Florida Gold Coast Jupiter Long Course Invitational Saturday at the North County Aquatic Complex.

Ten-year-old Alessandro Pereira was a triple winner among SOFLO boys.

Pereira was first in the 10-and-under 100-meter butterfly, 1:17.39, with a time drop of 1.72 seconds; 200-meter individual medley in 2:49.16; and 100-meter backstroke in 1:23.02. Pereira has three events remaining on Sunday.

Victoria Torres, 12, was a double winner for SOFLO girls. She was first in the 11-12 50-meter breaststroke in 39.18 and 200-meter breaststroke in 3:14.70.

Javier Colmenares, 10, won the 10-and-under 50-meter breaststroke in 43.82 with a 3.40 time drop.

Colmenares was also second in the 200-meter freestyle, 2:36.15, with a 2.21 time drop; second in the 50-meter freestyle, 34.44; and second in the 200-meter individual medley, 2:53.89, with a 7.42 time drop.

Enrique Rodriguez, 12, won the 11-12 200-meter individual medley in 2:38.15 with an impressive time drop of 14.51 seconds.

Rodriguez was also second in the 200-meter freestyle, 2:18.80, with a 6.32 time drop; second in the 100-meter backstroke, 1:16.79, with a 2.34 time drop; and third in the 50-meter freestyle, 29.53, with a 1.64 time drop.

Other SOFLO top three finishers were:

Mia Escudero, second, 50-meter breaststroke, 41.98; second, 200-meter individual medley, 2:54.48, time drop.

Logan Gonzalez, second, 50-meter breaststroke, 39.08, time drop.

Alejandro Mateus, third, 100-meter butterfly, 1:13.19, time drop; third, 100-meter backstroke, 1:17.20.

Leonardo Mateus, second, 200-meter individual medley, 2:23.93.

Samuel Bullen, third, 200-meter breaststroke, 3:21.84

The three-day meet, which concludes today with two more sessions, is being hosted by the Jupiter Dragon Swim Team.

South Florida Aquatic Club has 34 swimmers entered in 213 individual events.

South Florida Aquatic Club heads the field that features several Palm Beach County teams including East Coast Aquatics, Martin County, Lake Lytal Lightning, North Palm Beach, Treasure Coast Aquatics and Wahoos of Wellington.

All events are timed finals.

SATURDAY RESULTS

GIRLS

200-meter freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Emma Herrera, JDST 2:33.75; SOFLO TOP 15: 7. Giada Porven 2:45.14, time drop, 13. Natalia Sibug 2:58.10, time drop, 14. Anastasia Lutz 2:59.75; 11-12, 1. Faith Mutschler, WOW 2:20.25; SOFLO TOP 15: 10. Alexis Christenson 2:37.84, 14. Kaitlyn Barrios 2:40.58; 13-14, 1. Heidi Smithwick, JDST 2:18.01; 15-and-over, 1. Nicole Gomez, NPB 2:08.09.

100-meter butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Emma Herrera, JDST 1:23.82; 11-12, 1. Faith Mutschler, WOW 1:14.14; SOFLO TOP 15: 8. Mia Escudero 1:24.64, time drop, 13. Celeste Estrada 1:44.29; 13-14, 1. Daniela Salcedo, LLL 1:16.61; 15-and-over, 1. Alessandra Baldari, NPB 1:04.90.

50-meter breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Alyssa Bozzuto, JDST 43.50; SOFLO TOP 15: 5. Natalia Sibug 47.55, time drop; 11-12, 1. Victoria Torres, SOFLO 39.18; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Mia Escudero 41.98, 8. Kaitlyn Barrios 44.66, time drop, 16. Mariann Catalasan 46.83; 13-14, 1. Heidi Smithwick, JDST 36.25; 15-and-over, 1. Madison Lichtig, NPB 37.59.

50-meter freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Kiki Munna, FAST 33.15; SOFLO TOP 15: 4. Anastasia Lutz 34.09, time drop, 12, Natalia Sibug 36.75, time drop; 11-12, 1. Charlotte Levet, NPB 30.47; SOFLO TOP 15: 11. Victoria Torres 32.55, 16. Mia Escudero 33.55, time drop; 13-14, 1. Kiara Caamano, NPB 28.58; 15-and-over, 1. Jennifer Secrest, NPB 27.83.

200-meter individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Alyssa Bozzuto, JDST 3:01.63; SOFLO TOP 15: 5. Giada Porven 3:13.39, time drop; 11-12, 1. Faith Mutschler, WOW 2:41.25; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Mia Escudero 2:54.48, time drop, 7. Lea Pando 3:02.20, time drop; 13-14, 1. Daniela Salcedo, LLL 2:48.56; 15-and-over, 1. Sara Pastrana, Unattached 2:28.02.

100-meter backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Alyssa Bozzuto, JDST 1:29.66; SOFLO TOP 15: 4. Natalia Sibug 1:33.41, time drop, 6. Anastasia Lutz 1:35.25, time drop; 11-12, 1. Madline Shields, TCSC 1:15.89; SOFLO TOP 15: 10. Leah Pando 1:25.20, time drop, 15. Kaitlyn Barrios 1:27.22, time drop; 13-14, 1. Mackenzie Gale, JDST 1:17.77; 15-and-over, 1. Jennifer Secrest, NPB 1:08.74.

200-meter breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Victoria Torres, SOFLO 3:14.70; SOFLO TOP 15: 4. Leah Pando 3:25.47, time drop, 9. Mariann Catalasan 3:32.46, time drop, 14. Kailey Smith 3:50.31; 13-14, 1. Heidi Smithwick, JDST 2:55.93; 15-and-over, 1. Dahlia Delgado, JDST 2:58.10.

BOYS

200-meter freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Lucas Bailey, ECAC 2:36.02; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Javier Colmenares 2:36.15, time drop, 9. Owen Smith 2:56.80, time drop; 11-12, 1. Mitchell Ledford, TCSC 2:18.24; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Enrique Rodriguez 2:18.80, time drop, 6. Christian Tijero 2:27.73, time drop, 11. Lucas Porven 2:38.36, time drop; 13-14, 1. Pace Edwards, FAST 2:09.55; 15-and-over, 1. Wyatt Boswell, WOW 2:04.71; SOFLO: 4. Leonardo Mateus 2:09.42.

100-meter butterfly:

10-and-under, 1. Alessandro Pereira, SOFLO 1:17.39, time drop; 11-12, 1. Mitchell Ledford, TCSC 1:10.36; SOFLO TOP 15: 3. Alejandro Mateus 1:13.19, time drop, 8. Lucas Porven 1:24.36; 13-14, 1. Celeb Petranchuk, JDST 1:02.69; 15-and-over, 1. Kyle DiMatteo, LLL 1:00.95; SOFLO: 10. Leonardo Mateus 1:06.32.

50-meter breaststroke:

10-and-under, 1. Javier Colmenares, SOFLO 43.82; SOFLO TOP 15: 4. Luca Hincapie 50.38, 8. Benjamin Kim 52.39, time drop; 11-12, 1. Steven Curtis, JDST 38.00; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Logan Gonzalez 39.08, time drop, 5. Samuel Bullen 41.39, time drop, 7. Alejandro Mateus 43.09, time drop, 12. Christian Tijero 44.87, time drop, 13. Matthew Kim 44.88, time drop; 13-14, 1. Josh Zuchowski, FAST 34.20; 15-and-over, 1. Bryce Butler, TOR 32.54.

50-meter freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Lucas Bailey, ECAC 32.08; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Javier Colmenares 34.44, 9. Owen Smith 36.94, time drop, 12. Luca Hincapie 38.38; 11-12, 1. Steven Curtis, JDST 29.11; SOFLO TOP 15: 3. Enrique Rodriguez 29.53, time drop, 5. Alejandro Mateus 30.38, time drop, 10. Moises Rodriguez 31.56, 11. Logan Gonzalez 31.70, time drop, 14. Yanjun Wang 32.14, time drop; 13-14, 1. Tre ‘V Monroe, NPB 27.11; 15-and-over, 1. Kyle DiMatteo, LLL 25.31.

200-meter individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Alessandro Pereira, SOFLO 2:49.16; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Javier Colmenares 2:53.89, time drop, 6. Owen Smith 3:16.66, time drop, 11. Benjamin Kim 3:31.79, time drop; 11-12, 1. Enrique Rodriguez, SOFLO 2:38.15, time drop; SOFLO TOP 15: 6. Christian Tijero 2:49.99, time drop, 7. Lucas Porven 2:59.23, time drop, 8. Moises Rodriguez 2:59.40; 13-14, 1. Tre ‘V Monroe, NPB 2:31.41; 15-and-over, 1. Ethan McCloud, TCSC 2:22.30; SOFLO: 2. Leonardo Mateus 2:23.93.

100-meter backstroke:

10-and-under, 1. Alessandro Pereira, SOFLO 1:23.02; SOFLO TOP 15: 4. Owen Smith 1:34.14, 7. Luca Hincapie 1:36.81, 10. Benjamin Kim 1:40.20, time drop; 11-12, 1. Hudson Bishop, ECAC 1:14.57; SOFLO TOP 15: 2. Enrique Rodriguez 1:16.79, time drop, 3. Alejandro Mateus 1:17.20, 4. Logan Gonzalez 1:17.94, time drop, 5. Moises Rodriguez 1:19.63, 7. Matthew Kim 1:22.87, time drop, 10. Yanjun Wang 1:29.91, time drop, 14. Samuel Bullen 1:33.44, time drop; 13-14, 1. Nicolas Gallego, WOW 1:11.08; 15-and-over, 1. Kyle DiMatteo, LLL 1:03.20; SOFLO: 5. Leonardo Mateus 1:07.94.

200-meter breaststroke:

11-12, 1. Nicholas Jackman, TCSC 3:04.86; SOFLO TOP 15: 3. Samuel Bullen 3:21.84, 4. Matthew Kim 3:25.30; 13-14, 1. Bora Hurst, Unattached 2:41.18; 15-and-over, 1. Ethan McCloud, TCSC 2:40.05.

IF YOU GO

What: Florida Gold Coast Invitational

When: Sunday

Schedule: Sunday, Session IV, 8:30 a.m. and Session V, 10 minutes after the previous session.

Where: North County Aquatic Complex, 861 Toney Penna Drive, Jupiter.

Of Note: Jupiter Dragon Swim Team is the host team. All events are timed finals. Admission and heat sheets are $3 per session. For more information call the team office at 561-339-9959.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

Baldari Double Winner On Opening Day Of FGC Jupiter Invitational; SOFLO Begins Swimming On Saturday

By Sharon Robb

April 21, 2017—Alessandra Baldari of North Palm Beach Swim Team was a double winner to highlight opening day action in the Florida Gold Coast Jupiter Invitational Friday at North County Aquatic Complex.

Baldari, 17, won the 15-and-over 400-meter individual medley in 5:10.12 and 400-meter freestyle in 4:36.93.

Baldari was one of five North Palm Beach Swim Team swimmers to win their age group races.

The three-day meet, hosted by the Jupiter Dragon Swim Team, continues Saturday with two sessions.

South Florida Aquatic Club, with 34 swimmers entered in 213 individual events, begins competing in the morning session.

SOFLO’s Mia Escudero, 12, is seeded first in the 12-and-under 50-meter breaststroke in 41.52.

Alejandro Mateus, 11, is seeded first in the 12-and-under 100-meter backstroke in 1:16.85.

Leonardo Mateus, 15, is seeded first in the 800-meter freestyle in 8:58.06.

The remaining SOFLO swimmers entered are:

Kaitlyn Barrios, 11; Shayna Blitz, 12; Samuel Bullen, 12; Mariann Catalasan, 11; Alexis Christenson, 11; Javier Colmenares, 10; Juan Colmenares, 13; Celeste Estrada, 11; Logan Gonzalez, 12; Luca Hincapie, 10; Benjamin Kim, 9; Matthew Kim, 12; Anastasia Lutz, 10; Judith-Alison Natino, 11; Leah Pando, 11; Alessandro Pereira, 10; Giada Porven, 9; Lucas Porven, 11; Enrique Rodriguez, 12; Moises Rodriguez, 12; Mary Sawyer, 10; Steven Sawyer, 11; Gavin Sheyda, 11; Sebastian Shy, 12; Natalia Sibug, 10; Kailey Smith, 12; Owen Smith, 10; Christian Tijero, 11; Victoria Torres, 12; Sarah Vasquez, 9; and Yanjun Wang, 12.

All events are timed finals.

FRIDAY RESULTS

GIRLS

400-meter individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Kaitlyn DeMaria, NPB 6:58.79; 11-12, 1. Morgan Cogle, JDST 6:12.42; 13-14, 1. Chiara Bell, NPB 6:08.55; 15-and-over, 1. Alessandra Baldari, NPB 5:10.12.

400-meter freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Emma Herrera, JDST 5:22.32; 11-12, 1. Faith Mutschler, WOW 4:53.47; 13-14, 1. Kiara Caamano, NPB 4:47.29; 15-and-over, 1. Alessandra Baldari, NPB 4:36.93.

BOYS

400-meter individual medley:

10-and-under, 1. Kacy Grant, TOR 7:58.57; 11-12, 1. Mason Taylor, JDST 5:53.86; 13-14, 1. Caleb Petranchuk, JDST 5:13.81; 15-and-over, 1. Noah Proctor, MC 5:05.49.

400-meter freestyle:

10-and-under, 1. Max Strohecker, NPB 5:34.88; 11-12, 1. Hudson Bischop, ECAC 5:04.99; 13-14, 1. Pace Edwards, FAST 4:30.77; 15-and-over, 1. Wyatt Boswell, WOW 4:28.63.

IF YOU GO

What: Florida Gold Coast Invitational

When: Saturday-Sunday

Schedule: Saturday, Session II, 8:30 a.m. and Session III, 1 p.m.; Sunday, Session IV, 8:30 a.m. and Session V, 10 minutes after the previous session.

Where: North County Aquatic Complex, 861 Toney Penna Drive, Jupiter.

Of Note: Jupiter Dragon Swim Team is the host team. All events are timed finals. Admission is $3 per session and heat sheets are $3 per session. For more information call the team office at 561-339-9959.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO Heads Field For Florida Gold Coast Invitational In Jupiter

By Sharon Robb

April 20, 2017—South Florida Aquatic Club heads the field for the Florida Gold Coast Invitational that begins Friday at North County Aquatic Complex in Jupiter.

The three-day meet, hosted by the Jupiter Dragon Swim Team, begins Friday with the opening session at 5:30 p.m. Warm-ups are 4:30 p.m.

SOFLO has 34 swimmers entered in 213 individual events.

SOFLO’s Mia Escudero, 12, is seeded first in the 12-and-under 50-meter breaststroke in 41.52.

Alejandro Mateus, 11, is seeded first in the 12-and-under 100-meter backstroke in 1:16.85.

Leonardo Mateus, 15, is seeded first in the 800-meter freestyle in 8:58.06.

The remaining SOFLO swimmers entered and looking to swim fast are:

Kaitlyn Barrios, 11; Shayna Blitz, 12; Samuel Bullen, 12; Mariann Catalasan, 11; Alexis Christensen, 11; Javier Colmenares, 10; Juan Colmenares, 13; Celeste Estrada, 11; Logan Gonzalez, 12; Luca Hincapie, 10; Benjamin Kim, 9; Matthew Kim, 12; Anastasia Lutz, 10; Judith-Alison Natino, 11; Leah Pando, 11; Alessandro Pereira, 10; Giada Porven, 9; Lucas Porven, 11; Enrique Rodriguez, 12; Moises Rodriguez, 12; Mary Sawyer, 10; Steven Sawyer, 11; Gavin Sheyda, 11; Sebastian Shy, 12; Natalia Sibug, 10; Kailey Smith, 12; Owen Smith, 10; Christian Tijero, 11; Victoria Torres, 12; Sarah Vasquez, 9; and Yanjun Wang, 12.

Opening night events are the 400-meter individual medley and 400-meter freestyle.

All events are timed finals. No team scores will be kept.

IF YOU GO

What: Florida Gold Coast Invitational

When: Friday-Sunday

Schedule: Friday, Session I, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, Session II, 8:30 a.m. and Session III, 1 p.m.; Sunday, Session IV, 8:30 a.m. and Session V, 10 minutes after the previous session is completed.

Where: North County Aquatic Complex, 861 Toney Penna Drive, Jupiter.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO Ends With Nice Finish On Final Day Of Mesa Arena Pro Swim Series

By Sharon Robb

April 16, 2017—South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers finished a successful road trip on the third and final day of the Arena Pro Swim Series Saturday at Skyline Aquatic Center in Mesa, Arizona.

Max Asnis was SOFLO’s top finisher qualifying for the “D” final in the 200-meter butterfly. In morning prelims he was 27th in 2:09.49 and finished second in the “D” final in 2:08.69.

Kathleen Golding was 38th in the 200-meter individual medley in 2:25.76 and 50th in the 100-meter breaststroke in 1:17.89.

Kelley Heron was second in the 100-meter backstroke in 1:07.20.

Rafael Rodriguez was 11th in the 1500-meter freestyle in 16:50.74 in the slower heat and finished 19th overall.

Ricardo Roche was 14th in the 1500-meter freestyle in the slower heat in 17:11.20 and finished ranked 22nd overall.

The fun road trip was successful for the SOFLO swimmers who return to training this week. The Mesa trip featured dryland and pool training, hiking, bonding and sightseeing not to mention some great racing despite not being shaved or tapered.

In Saturday night’s finals:

Women 200-meter butterfly: Kelsi Worrell of the Louisville Cardinals won in 2:09.04. Mary Smutny of AquaKids Sharks was fifth in 2:14.04.

Men 200-meter butterfly: Chase Kalisz of North Baltimore Aquatic Club won in 1:55.82 ahead of Tom Shields in 1:59.09.

Women’s 100-meter breaststroke: Katie Meili of New York Athletic Club won in 1:06.37.

Men’s 100-meter breaststroke: Kevin Cordes, swimming unattached, won in 1:00.78.

Women’s 100-meter backstroke: Ali Deloof of Club Wolverine won in 59.43.

Men’s 100-meter backstroke: Matt Grevers of Tucson Ford won in 54.15 and swung back at folks who were suggesting he should retire from the sport. He fell short of qualifying for his third Olympics in 2016 but has chosen to continue his competitive swimming career. Grevers said that being in the water “was my happy place.” He is also enjoying being a father for the first time. His daughter Skylar was born on Nov. 9.

Women’s 200-meter individual medley: Madisyn Cox, swimming unattached out-touched Melanie Margalis of St. Petersburg, 2:11.14-2:11.20.

Men’s 200-meter individual medley: Chase Kalisz of North Baltimore Aquatic Club won in 1:57.71 to complete an impressive double with two best times on the final night.

Women’s 800-meter freestyle: It wasn’t even close as Olympic gold medalist and world record holder Katie Ledecky won in a world-leading 8:15.44. Leah Smith was a distant second in 8:27.55.

Men’s 1500-meter freestyle: Azura’s Marcelo Acosta of the University of Florida won the distance event in 15:24.19. Acosta pulled away from the field in the back half of the race and won by six seconds.

The third stop of the pro meet series featured 500 swimmers including Olympic, national and collegiate champions. Prize money was awarded. First place received $500, second place $300 and third place $100. The next stop is May 4-7 at Georgia Tech’s McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta.

Daiya Seto and Josh Prenot are tied with 32 points for the lead in the men’s series. Melanie Margalis of St. Petersburg is on top of the women’s series with 28 points.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

Heron, Golding Lead SOFLO On Day Two Of Mesa Arena Pro Swim Series

By Sharon Robb

April 15, 2017—It was the South Florida Aquatic Club girls’ turn on Day Two of the Arena Pro Swim Series Friday at Skyline Aquatic Center in Mesa, Arizona.

Kelley Heron and Kathleen Golding turned in some solid swims against a strong field of Olympians, national and collegiate swimmers.

Heron won the “D” final in the 200-meter backstroke in 2:23.33. Her splits were 34.62, 35.50, 36.44, 36.77. In prelims, she went 2:23.33. Her splits were 34.62, 35.50, 36.44, and 36.77. Both times were best unshaved, non-rested times.

Golding, was third in the “C” final of the 400-meter individual medley in 4:59.18. She dropped six seconds from her prelims where she finished in 5:05.86. She was also 40th in the 50-meter freestyle in 27.13.

Other SOFLO finishers:

Max Asnis, 200-meter freestyle, 51st, 2:00.45.

Luke Lezotte, 50-meter freestyle, 41st, 24.35.

Ricardo Roche, 400-meter individual medley, 40th, 5:00.44.

In Friday night’s finals:

Women’s 400-meter individual medley: In one of the most exciting races of the night, CanadianMary-Sophie Harvey won in 4:38.05 just ahead of Katie Ledecky in 4:38.16.

Men’s 400-meter individual medley: Olympic silver medalist Chase Kalisz of North Baltimore Aquatic Club pulled away from the field to win in 4:11.01. Josh Prenot of Cal was second in 4:17.72.

Women’s 200-meter freestyle: Katie Ledecky won in 1:56.31, nearly 2 minutes ahead of Leah Smith in 1:58.47 after completing an impressive double with the 400 IM. It was also the fourth fastest time this year in the world rankings.

Men’s 200-meter freestyle: American Heritage alum Dylan Carter of Trinidad and Tobago won in 1:48.45 ahead of Joao de Lucca of Louisville in 1:49.51.

Women’s 50-meter freestyle: Simone Manuel won in 24.66 ahead of Madison Kennedy in 24.99.

Also in the sprint event, Olympian Dana Vollmer finished 55th in 27.59. Vollmer swam the race six months pregnant. She also announced by wearing a green TYR tech suit that her second child will be a boy. Vollmer competed with her doctor’s permission.

“I don’t think I’ve ever done a 50 where I took four or five breaths,” Vollmer said. “A 50 felt long for the first time in my life. Time didn’t matter, place didn’t matter. I loved being here.”

Men’s 50-meter freestyle: Finland’s Ari-Pekka Liukkonen knocked off Olympic champion Nathan Adrian in the sprint event, 21.94-22.25.

Women’s 200-meter backstroke: Eva Merrell of Aquazots won by nearly half a second in 2:11.63.

Men’s 200-meter backstroke: Olympian Jacob Pebley won in 1:55.56 ahead of Arkady Vyatchanin in 1:58.61.

The third and final day events on Saturday are: 200-meter butterfly, 100-meter breaststroke, 100-meter backstroke, 200-meter individual medley, women’s 800-meter freestyle and men’s 1500-meter freestyle.

The third stop of the pro meet series features 500 swimmers including Olympic, national and collegiate champions. Prize money is being awarded. First place will earn $500, second place $300 and third place $100.

Prelims are 9 a.m. and finals at 5 p.m. MST. The meet, both prelims and finals, will be live streamed at usaswimming.org.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO Boys Shine On Day One Of Mesa Arena Pro Swim Series

By Sharon Robb

April 13, 2017—Luke Lezotte, Max Asnis and Rafael Rodriguez led South Florida Aquatic Club on opening day of the Arena Pro Swim Series on Thursday at Skyline Aquatic Center in Mesa, Arizona.

Lezotte swam a best time in the 100-meter freestyle in 55.16, lowering his previous best of 56.28. His splits were 25.45 and 29.71.

“It was great to swim a best time, I had fun,” Lezotte said. “I felt pretty good. I definitely think being at a big meet played a big part in dropping that second.

“I felt pretty good, definitely better than normal. It was definitely my underwater dolphin kick that helped me swim faster.”

Lezotte, who competed in the USA Swimming Junior Nationals, said the Mesa meet is the biggest meet he has competed in since he gets the chance to swim against the nation’s best.

“I am happy to be here to watch them and learn from them,” Lezotte said. “I definitely think it will benefit.”

Lezotte has one event left, the 50-meter freestyle on Friday.

Rodriguez turned in a solid swim in the 400-meter freestyle with his first “D” final appearance to finish 29th in 4:14.66. He swam faster in the morning. Ricardo Roche finished the 400-meter freestyle in 4:21.01.

Asnis swam well in the 100-meter butterfly in 59.48. His splits were 28.40 and 31.08.

In early tuneup races, Kathleen Golding swam the 100-meter freestyle in 59.32 and 100-meter butterfly in 1:04.52.

Kelley Heron swam 1:01.41 in the 100-meter freestyle.

SOFLO girls will get their chance to shine in Day Two action in Friday.

In Thursday night’s finals:

Women’s 100-meter freestyle: Olympic champion Simone Manuel, racing in her first long course meet since the 2016 Rio Olympics, won in 53.66, seventh fastest time in the world this year. Manuel was coming off her American record performance at the NCAA Championships.

Men’s 100-meter freestyle: Nathan Adrian won in 48.18 ahead of Joao De Lucca in 49.67.

Women’s 200-meter breaststroke: Katie Meili won in 2:25.67 ahead of St. Petersburg’s Melanie Margalis in 2:25.71.

Men’s 200-meter breaststroke: Olympian Josh Prenot won in 2:10.47, nearly a second ahead of top seed Chase Kalisz.

Women’s 100-meter butterfly: First-year pro Kelsi Worrell won in 58.60.

Men’s 100-meter butterfly: The top seven in finals all went under 54 seconds with Tom Shields winning in 52.42.

Women’s 400-meter freestyle: Olympic gold medalist and world record holder Katie Ledecky, coming off her freshman season at Stanford, won in a world-leading time of 4:01.01.

Men’s 400-meter freestyle: Louisville freshman Marcelo Acosta of El Salvador and Azura won in 3:53.38.

Friday’s events are: 200-meter butterfly, 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter backstroke, 200-meter breaststroke and 400-meter freestyle.

In the 50-meter freestyle, Olympian and expectant mother Dana Vollmer will compete while she is 26 weeks pregnant. The 29-year-old is due to give birth to her second child in July. “I thought it would be fun,” she said.

The meet features 500 swimmers including Olympic, national and collegiate champions. Prize money is being awarded. First place will earn $500, second place $300 and third place $100.

Prelims are 9 a.m. and finals at 5 p.m. MST. The meet, both prelims and finals, will be live streamed at usaswimming.org.

Sharon Robb can be reached at sha11cats@aol.com

http://www.swim4soflo.com

SOFLO’s Super Six Ready For Arena Pro Swim Series Meet At Mesa That Begins Thursday

By Sharon Robb
April 11, 2017—South Florida Aquatic Club will be well-represented at the Arena Pro Swim Series At Mesa that begins Thursday at Skyline Aquatic Center in Arizona.

SOFLO has six swimmers competing in the three-day, long course meters meet.
2016 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier Kathleen Golding heads the contingent.

Golding is entered in six events: 100-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly, 400-meter individual medley, 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter breaststroke and 200-meter individual medley.

Joining Golding are:

Max Asnis, 100-meter butterfly bonus, 200-meter freestyle and 200-meter butterfly.

Kelley Heron, 100-meter freestyle bonus, 200-meter backstroke bonus and 100-meter backstroke.

Luke Lezotte, 100-meter freestyle bonus and 50-meter freestyle.

Ricardo Roche, 400-meter freestyle bonus, 400-meter individual medley and 1,500-meter freestyle.

Rafael Rodriguez, 400-meter freestyle bonus, 400-meter individual bonus and 1,500-meter freestyle.

Day One events feature the 100-meter freestyle, 200-meter breaststroke, 100-meter butterfly and 400-meter freestyle.

The meet features 500 swimmers including Olympic, national and collegiate champions.
With the 2017 World Championships in Hungary right around the corner, and the rest of the world in the midst of hosting world trials meets, U.S. swimmers are looking to get in some good racing. The field is heavily American since most foreign countries are in the midst of world trials.

Olympic gold medalist and world record holder Katie Ledecky, coming off an outstanding freshman year at Stanford, has entered six events including the 200- and 400-meter individual medleys and 100-yard freestyle.

Ledecky was recently named the Honda Sport Award winner for swimming and diving announced by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards. Ledecky will be joined by Stanford teammate Simone Manuel.

College swimmers are competing just three weeks after swimming short course at NCAAs.

Other veteran swimmers entered are Anthony Ervin, Nathan Adrian, Cullen Jones, Josh Schneider, Conor Dwyer, Matt Grevers, Tom Shields, Madison Kennedy, Amanda Weir and former SOFLO swimmer Claire Donahue.

Prize money will be awarded. First place will earn $500, second place $300 and third place $100. Japan’s Daiya Seto and St. Petersburg’s Melanie Margalis are the leaders in the series. Seto will not be competing in Mesa but Margolis has entered five events.

Prelims are 9 a.m. and finals at 5 p.m. MST. The meet, both prelims and finals, will be live streamed at usaswimming.org.

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