HIGH SCHOOL PREVIEW: BCAA Swimming And Diving Season Opens Wednesday

By Sharon Robb
FORT LAUDERDALE, August 30, 2021–After competing in separate fall and winter seasons in 2020-21, public and private high schools will return to a normal fall season.

While a handful of private schools competed last week, the Broward County Athletic Association season gets under way Wednesday at various pools throughout the county.

The BCAA features 29 public schools, two private schools and two charter schools.

Pine Crest returns as the county’s top swimming power. Last season the Panthers competed only in district, region and state meets after holding time trials for qualifying times.

The Panthers are two-time defending state 2A girls champion and return a strong nucleus of swimmers to challenge Bolles for the 1A title. Because of re-classification, Pine Crest returns to Class 1A status. Among returnees are Julia Podkoscielny, Hanna Elks Smith, Sara Lin, Esther Lin, Lara Jones, Riley Botting, Isabella Chambers and Lauren Balfour.

The Panthers boys’ team is coming off a state runner-up finish and return a more experienced team with five seniors and two juniors. Five-time state champion diver and senior Kevin Mendez will make his final appearance in high school diving.

Public high school swimmers had an abbreviated season and no state meets but did compete in the Broward-Palm Beach Dual County Championships. Cooper City was the top Broward finisher, runner-up in the girls and third among the boys teams.

Cooper City, the top-ranked BCAA girls and boys teams last season, will share the favorites role with Cypress Bay, Fort Lauderdale and Douglas.

Pembroke Pines Charter, coached by SOFLO age group coach Rose Lockie, opens the season on Wednesday hosting Nova and Stranahan at Academic Village Pool at 7 p.m.

South Florida Aquatic Club will be well-represented on high school teams in Broward and Miami-Dade.

Swimmers to watch are Mallory Schleicher, Alex Golding and Sally Golding of Cooper City; Javier Colmenares and Alejandro Mateus of Everglades; Enrique Rodriguez, a junior at Somerset; Juan Mora, a senior at Doral Academy; Elena Dinehart, Miami-Dade Girls Swimmer of the Year Olivia Dinehart and Maddy Smutny of Cutler Bay; junior Nathaniel Garrick of Archbishop McCarthy; and senior Sara Quintero of Sagemont.

COVID safety precautions will continue to be observed with masks and social distancing.

KEY DATES
Sept. 1, Wednesday, BCAA Season Opens
Sept. 11, Florida Christian Schools Swimming & Diving Championships, Westminster Academy
Sept. 18, 30th Florida Catholic Championships, Orlando; Plapp Invitational at Bolles
Sept. 25, 57th Woodson Invitational, Pine Crest
Oct. 16, BCAA Championships, Plantation Aquatic Complex
Oct. 18-23, 1A-2A District Meets
Oct. 25-30, 3A-4A District Meets
Oct. 25-30, 1A-2A Region Meets
Nov. 1-6, 3A-4A Regions Meets
Nov. 5, State 2A Meet, Stuart
Nov. 6, State 1A Meet, Stuart
Nov. 12, State 4A Meet, Stuart
Nov. 13, State 3A Meet, Stuart

2020 TOP PRIVATE SCHOOL TIMES
GIRLS
200-yard Medley Relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:44.00, AA-A (Julia Podkoscielny, Riley Botting, Esther Lin, Hanna Smith).
200-yard Freestyle: 1. Haley Cisewski, Pine Crest 1:52.95.
200-yard Individual Medley: 1. Julia Podkoscielny, Pine Crest 1:59.00, AA-A.
50-yard Freestyle: 1. Erika Pelaez, South Florida Heat 22.52.
1-meter springboard diving: 1. Kaitlyn Ross, St. Thomas Aquinas 478.15.
100-yard Butterfly: 1. Julianne McCranie, St. Thomas Aquinas 57.03.
100-yard Freestyle: 1. Erika Pelaez, South Florida Heat 49.47, AA-A.
500-yard Freestyle: 1. Riley Botting, Pine Crest 4:53.95, AA-C.
200-yard Freestyle Relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:35.60, AA-C (Julia Podkoscielny, Isabella Chambers, Riley Botting, Hanna Smith).
100-yard Backstroke: 1. Julia Podkoscielny, Pine Crest 53.75, AA-A.
100-yard Breaststroke: 1. Riley Botting, Pine Crest 1:04.61.
400-yard Freestyle Relay: 1. South Florida Heat 3:33.84 (Erika Pelaez, Michaela Sierra, Mia Patton, Faith Suther).

2020 GIRLS TEAM POLL

1. Pine Crest, 2. St. Thomas Aquinas, 3. South Florida Heat, 4. Calvary Christian, 5. Cardinal Gibbons, American Heritage Plantation.

BOYS
200-yard Medley Relay: 1. St. Thomas Aquinas 1:38.65 (Lance Lesage, Jonas Santos, Jack Faulkner, David Garzon).
200-yard Freestyle: 1. Benjamin Gomez del Campo, American Heritage Plantation 1:49.79.
200-yard Individual Medley: 1. Nikita Efimov, South Florida Heat 1:57.26.
50-yard Freestyle: 1. Joshua Hanks, Pine Crest 20.61, AA-C.
1-meter springboard diving: 1. Kevin Mendez, Pine Crest 579.50.
100-yard butterfly: 1. Dario Martin, South Florida Heat 51.31.
100-yard Freestyle: 1. Joshua Hanks, Pine Crest 47.68.
500-yard Freestyle: 1. Enrique Rodriguez, Somerset 4:49.34.
200-yard Freestyle Relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:28.02 (Joshua Hanks, Luc Ferrara, Erick Zepeda, Victor Lago).
100-yard Backstroke: 1. Lance Lesage, St. Thomas Aquinas 48.80.
100-yard Breaststroke: 1. Joshua Hanks, Pine Crest 55.53, AA-A.
400-yard Freestyle Relay: 1. Pine Crest 3:15.76 (Joshua Hanks, Victor Lago, Luc Ferrara, Roman Ferrara).

2020 BOYS FINAL TEAM POLL

1. Pine Crest, 2. American Heritage Plantation, 3. St. Thomas Aquinas, 4. Somerset, 5. South Florida Heat.

2021 TOP BCAA SCHOOL TIMES
GIRLS
200-yard medley relay: 1. Cypress Bay 1:55.38.
200-yard freestyle: 1. Mallory Schleicher, Cooper City 1:54.85.
200-yard individual medley: 1. Sally Golding, Cooper City 2:13.03.
50-yard freestyle: 1. Tawannah McLemore, FTL 25.17.
One-meter diving: 1. Catherine Kilroy, Fort Lauderdale 236.90.
100-yard butterfly: 1. Riley McCormick, CSC 58.77.
100-yard freestyle: 1. Paige Lane, Cypress Bay 55.78.
500-yard freestyle: 1. Mallory Schleicher, Cooper City 5:04.58.
200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Douglas 1:22.98.
100-yard backstroke: 1. LeeAnn Ranalli, CC 1:00.69.
100-yard breaststroke: 1. Brianna Hernandez, South Broward 1:07.76.
400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Cooper City 3:45.59.
2021 FINAL GIRLS TEAM POLL

1. Cooper City, 2. Douglas, 3. Fort Lauderdale, 4. Pompano Beach, 5. Pembroke Pines Charter.

BOYS
200-yard medley relay: 1. Everglades 1:39.29.
200-yard freestyle: 1. Jason Bonasera, Coral Glades 1:48.17.
200-yard individual medley: 1. Patrick Doyle, Coral Glades 1:54.71.
50-yard freestyle: 1. Michael Cline, Cooper City 21.65.
Diving: 1. Tyler Flowers, Cooper City 271.05.
100-yard butterfly: 1. Renato Herran, Plantation 51.76.
100-yard freestyle: 1. Jason Bonasera, Coral Glades 48.23.
500-yard freestyle: 1. Brian Gonzalez, Coral Glades 4:51.58.
200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Pompano Beach 1:31.76.
100-yard backstroke: 1. Patrick Doyle, Coral Glades 52.15.
100-yard breaststroke: 1. Aiden Kohanyi, Western 59.70.
400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Cooper City 3:17.59.

2021 FINAL BOYS TEAM POLL

1. Cooper City, 2. Fort Lauderdale, 3. Pompano Beach, 4. Everglades, 5. Coral Glades, Pembroke Pines Charter.

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

SOFLO’s Alia Atkinson Returns For ISL London Roar’s Season-Opener This Week; Dylan Carter Will Make Roar Debut

By Sharon Robb
NAPLES, Italy, August 29, 2021—South Florida Aquatic Club’s Alia Atkinson returns to the competition pool after a brief break.

Akinson, 32, will compete in her first International Swimming League meet of the season for the London Roar this week. It’s her second season with the Roar.

It will be her first competition since making her fifth appearance for Jamaica at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Trinidad & Tobago two-time Olympian Dylan Carter, a Plantation American Heritage alum, is one of Atkinson’s new London Roar teammates. He is a world championship bronze medalist in the 50-meter butterfly. In Tokyo, he competed in the 50 and 100 freestyle, 100 backstroke and 100 butterfly.

Late in the 2020 ISL season in the Budapest, Hungary bubble with a playoff berth on the line, Carter put on show in the regular-season finale, going 50.11 in the 100 (short course meter) backstroke to help the LA Current take a 1-2 finish. Known more as a flyer and freestyler, Carter continued to surge in backstroke, going 23.28, 23.93 and 24.99 in the 50 back skin race to complete a 1-2 sweep for LA.

Carter set Trinidad & Tobago records in the 100 back (49.91), 100 free (46.56) and 100 fly (50.70) during the ISL season, leaving him with seven national records in short course meters and nine more in long course meters.

The London Roar will swim Energy Standard, Iron and New York Breakers Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m. (2 p.m. EST).

“I’m so excited to be a part of the ISL season three and to be a part of the London Roar,” she said. “Look out for us, we are going to do exciting things.”

The third season of the International Swimming League opened this past week (Thursday-Friday and Saturday-Sunday) with four teams (Energy Standard, Toronto Titans, DC Trident and Aqua Centurions).

The regular season matches will all be held at the Piscina Felice Scandone in Naples to maintain a “bubble” of sorts and avoid excessive travel because of the ongoing pandemic. The semifinals and finals will be held in Eindhoven.

Atkinson marked her competitive return with the Roar last year after months of inactivity because of the pandemic. Previously with Hungary’s Team Iron in the ISL’s inaugural season in 2019, her 2020 season with the Roar had strong performances, highlighted by her 100-meter breaststroke win in the semi-finals in a time of 1:02:66 minutes, the eighth-fastest time in the short course format. She currently shares the world record (1:02:36 minutes) with Lithuania’s Ruta Meilutyte and has seven of the 10 fastest times in the event.

London Roar made the finals of the first two seasons of the ISL, losing to Energy Standard of France in 2019 and the Cali Condors of the United States last year.

“Let’s hope it’s third time lucky,” said London Roar General Manager Rob Woodhouse of Australia. “We were very close to winning the title in year one. Last year we really had a little depleted team because the Australian swimmers were not able to make it because of COVID-19 and quarantine reasons. Having some of those Australians will add to our depth.

“For us, we are gaming to win the competition in our third season. So that’s our hope and I guess that is our expectation as well.”

Caeleb Dressel, Lilly King, Ryan Murphy, Katinka Hosszu, Sarah Sjostrom, Chad Le Clos, Emily Seebohm, Ana Cunha, Federica Pellegrini, Chase Kalisz and Vladimir Morozov head a star-studded lineup for the ISL racing for big-time prize purses and bonuses. Defending champion is the Cali Condors and favored to repeat.

Early ISL action this past week has already produced a world short course record by Coleman Stewart of the Cali Condors in the 100 backstroke in 48.33.

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

SOFLO Swimmers Off To A Good Start At SOFLO/TYR Back To School Developmental Meet

By Sharon Robb
PEMBROKE PINES, August 28, 2021–South Florida Aquatic Club swimmers took center stage Saturday at the fall season-opening SOFLO/TYR Back To School Developmental Meet at Academic Village Pool.

SOFLO teammates brought out the best in each other during the two sessions for 8-and-under and 9-and-over swimmers.

Close to 80 percent of SOFLO swimmers turned in at least one lifetime-best during the meet.

Among some the most impressive time drops were:

Sean Tee, 8, 7.01 drop in the 25-yard breaststroke, 26.33.

Santiago Zuluaga, 6, 7.04 drop in the 25-yard freestyle, 24.20.

Valentina Remmele, 9, 11.29 drop in the 50-yard butterfly, 47.09.

Amber Connor, 9, 27.24 drop in the 50-yard butterfly, 48.38; 22.24 drop in the 50-yard backstroke, 43.91.

Catalina Restrepo, 12, 12.83 drop in the 50-yard butterfly, 46.68; 9.28 drop in the 50-yard backstroke, 46.71.

Matt McVeigh, 11, 8.91 drop in the 50-yard butterfly, 30.98.

Aleksander Chaussky, 13, 11.05 drop in the 50-yard butterfly, 31.94.

Victor Valdiviezo, 14, 7.87 drop in the 50-yard butterfly, 33.49.

Aiden Delgado, 11, 8.15 drop in the 50-yard backstroke, 38.71.

Antonio Rico, 10, 11.29 drop in the 50-yard breaststroke, 52.62.

SwimFast’s Theanna DeMaria swept all four 8-and-under 25-yard events in the girls’ competition. SOFLO’s Ellie Phan, 6, one of the youngest swimmers in the meet, was runnerup in all four events.

SOFLO won three of the four boys’ 8-and-under events. Leonardo Zuluaga, 8, won the 25-yard freestyle and 25-yard breaststroke. Gabriel Ferrer, 8, won the 25-yard butterfly.

Host SOFLO had the largest contingent with 82 swimmers (56 boys and 26 girls) in 267 individual events and three relay events with 18 relay teams for the one-day meet.

In addition to SOFLO, Metro Aquatics and SwimFast also competed.

SESSION ONE RESULTS
GIRLS
25-yard butterfly: 8-and-under, 1. Theanna DeMaria, SF 19.69, 2. Ellie Phan, SOFLO 22.28, time drop 2.90, 3. Stefanie Botteri, SOFLO 30.10.

25-yard backstroke: 1. Theanna DeMaria, SF 19.48, 2. Ellie Phan, SOFLO 23.01, time drop 2.23, 3. Melanie Meneses, MAC 24.74; SOFLO: 4. Stefania Botteri 27.89.

25-yard breaststroke: 1. Theanna DeMaria, SF 23.39, 2. Ellie Phan, SOFLO 26.75, time drop 4.58, 3. Melanie Meneses, MAC 26.77.

25-yard freestyle: 1. Theanna DeMaria, SF 17.00, 2. Ellie Phan, SOFLO 19.66, time drop 4.23, 3. Melanie Meneses, MAC 20.63; SOFLO: 4. Stefanie Botteri 23.72.

100-yard freestyle relay: No relays.

BOYS
25-yard butterfly: 1. Gabriel Ferrer, SOFLO 19.96, time drop 3.94, 2. Fernando Echeverria, MAC 22.69, 3. Benjamin Fernandez, MAC 23.25; SOFLO: 4. Santiago Zuluaga 29.40, time drop 4.18.

25-yard backstroke: 1. Benjamin Fernandez, MAC 21.14, 2. Gabriel Ferrer, SOFLO 21.94, time drop 5.92, 3. Leonardo Zuluaga, SOFLO 21.94, time drop 2.00; SOFLO: 4. Ian Ibarra 23.67, 6. Santiago Zuluaga 24.55, time drop 1.76, 7. Sean Tee 25.40.

25-yard breaststroke: 1. Leonardo Zuluaga, SOFLO 22.78, time drop 2.15, 2. Gabriel Ferrer, SOFLO 24.33, 3. Benjamin Fernandez, MAC 26.21; SOFLO: 4. Sean Tee 26.33, time drop 7.01, 5. Santiano Zuluaga 28.47, time drop 3.54.

25-yard freestyle: 1. Leonardo Zuluaga, SOFLO 17.28, time drop 5.38, 2. Gabriel Ferrer, SOFLO 17.41, 3. Benjamin Fernandez, MAC 17.44; SOFLO: 5. Sean Tee 21.34, time drop 2.89, 6. Ian Ibarra 22.88, 7. Santiago Zuluaga 24.20, time drop 7.04.

100-yard freestyle relay: 1. SOFLO 1:20.56.

SESSION TWO RESULTS
GIRLS
100-yard freestyle relay:
9-18, 1. SOFLO E 1:01.14 (Valentina Remmele, Sophia Avila, Abigail-Marie Natino, Judith-Alison Natino), 2. SOFLO A 1:07.60, 3. SOFLO B 1:08.11, 4. SOFLO C 1:08.28. 5. SOFLO D 1:08.76.

50-yard butterfly:
9-10, 1. Gabriella Ordonez, SOFLO 38.60, time drop 4.08 2. Joanna Valdiviezo, SOFLO 43.07, time drop 1.81, 3. Olivia Rodriguez, SF 45.51, time drop 1.96; SOFLO: 4. Valentina Remmele 47.09, time drop 11.29, 5. Amber Connor 48.38 , time drop 27.24.
11-12, 1. Caitlyn Britto, SF 34.82, 2. Shantal Teran, SF 38.48, 3. Marlena Groves, SOFLO 40.39, time drop 5.72; SOFLO: 5. Catalina Restrepo 46.68, time drop 12.83, 6. Danielle Brancati 50.48, time drop 0.94, 7. Shadai Rodriguez 59.43.
13-14, 1. Adriana Lozano, SF 32.93, 2. Abigail-Marie Natino, SOFLO 38.50, 3. Jiana Connor, SOFLO 46.78; SOFLO: 4. Lucia Bonifaz 55.37.
15-18, 1. Judith-Alison Natino, SOFLO 31.72.

50-yard backstroke:
9-10, 1. Olivia Rodriguez, SF 41.55, 2. Gabriella Ordonez, SOFLO 42.82, 3. Amber Connor, SOFLO 43.91, time drop 22.24; SOFLO: 4. Gabriela Ekht 47.93, time drop 0.86, 5. Valentina Remmele 48.18, 6. Audrey De Leon 55.40.
11-12, 1. Mikhel Martin, SOFLO 34.23, time drop 4.50, 2. Shantal Teran, SF 37.61, 3. Marlena Groves, SOFLO 37.73, time drop 3.00; SOFLO: 5. Danielle Brancati 40.14, time drop 1.63, 7. Catalina Restrepo 46.71, time drop 9.28, 8. Shandai Rodriguez 52.89.
13-14, 1. Maddie Rodriguez, SF 35.57, 2. Darly Young, SF 36.49, 3. Juline Paas, SOFLO 38.23, time drop 1.60; SOFLO: 4. Sophia Avila 38.55, time drop 0.02, 5. Haley Garcia 41.13, time drop 2.03, 6. Madison Palmer 45.82, 8. Lucia Bonifaz 51.01.
15-18, 1. Judith-Alison Natino, SOFLO 35.82, time drop 1.18.

50-yard breaststroke:
9-10, 1. Joanna Valdiviezo, SOFLO 47.10, time drop 5.24, 2. Sofia Duranti, SOFLO 49.03, 3. Amber Connor, SOFLO 50.20, time drop 6.24.
11-12, 1. Mikhel Martin, SOFLO 42.33, time drop 3.07, 2. Caitlyn Britto, SF 42.91, 3. Avery Wright, SF 45.08; SOFLO: 6. Catalina Restrepo 49.89, time drop 0.43.
13-14, 1. Kayla Diaz, SF 40.60, 2. Haley Garcia, SOFLO 41.80, time drop 0.47, 3. Adriana Lozano, SF 41.97; SOFLO: 4. Abigail-Marie Natino 43.18, time drop 0.68, 5. Juline Paas 44.01, time drop 2.48, 8. Sophia Avila 46.72, time drop 1.25, 9. Madison Palmer 50.72, 11. Lucia Bonifaz 57.96; 15-18, 1. Dominique Balli, SOFLO 45.86.

50-yard freestyle:
9-10, 1. Gabriella Ordonez, SOFLO 35.26, time drop 1.42, 2. Joanna Valdiviezo, SOFLO 35.34, time drop 2.13, 3. Olivia Rodriguez, SF 38.76; SOFLO: 4. Sofia Duranti 40.40, 5. Valentina Remmele 40.52, time drop 1.45, 6. Gabriela Ekht 42.97, time drop 1.77, 7. Audrey De Leon 47.56, 8. Sara Trejos 47.68.
11-12, 1. Caitlyn Britto, SF 31.45, 2. Shantal Teran, SF 33.69, 3. Marlena Groves, SOFLO 34.58, time drop 3.13; SOFLO: 5. Catalina Restrepo, SOFLO 37.77; 7. Daniella Brancati 39.38, 8. Shadai Rodriguez 45.83.
13-14, 1. Adriana Lozano, SF 29.06, 2. Sophia Avila, SOFLO 31.82, 3. Juline Paas, SPF:P 31.84, time drop 1:30; SOFLO: 4. Abigail-Marie Natino 32.40, 6. Haley Garcia 33.65, time drop 0.46, 7. Jiana Connor 35.13, 10. Lucia Bonifaz 40.82, 11. Lacey Puntervold 45.60.
15-18, 1. Judith-Alison Natino, SOFLO 29.15, 2. Dominique Balli, SOFLO 36.38, time drop 0.24.

100-yard individual medley:
9-10, 1. Gabriella Ordonez, SOFLO 1:29.13, time drop 6.31, 2. Joanna Valdiviezo, SOFLO 1:29.34, time drop 5.74, 3. Olivia Rodriguez, SF 1:34.03; SOFLO:4. Sofia Duranti 1:39.34, time drop 3.21, 5. Amber Connor 1:40.27, time drop 2.81, 6. Valentina Remmele 1:44.85, time drop 2.58, 7. Gabriela Ekht 1:49.62, time drop 6.07, 8. Audrey De Leon 1:58.92, time drop 3.82.
11-12, 1. Caitlyn Britto, SF 1:17.63, 2. Marlena Groves, SOFLO 1:25.34, time drop 5.03, 3. Giuliana DeMaria, SF 1:29.17; SOFLO: 4. Daniella Brancato 1:36.76, time drop 2.04.
13-14, 1. Natalia Ladha, SF 1:12.27, 2. Sophia Avila, SOFLO 1:22.13, time drop 0.10, 3. Abigail-Marie Natino, SOFLO 1:22.30; SOFLO: 5. Jiana Connor 1:34.90.

BOYS
100-yard freestyle relay: 9-18, 1. SOFLO A 57.01 (Andres Gonzalez, Sebastian Jackson, Kyle Wehn, Dylan McVeigh), 2. SOFLO B 1:00.19, 3. SOFLO F 1:00.50, 4. SOFLO C 1:01.14, 5. SOFLO H 1:02.90, 6. SOFLO D 1:03.53, 7. SOFLO G 1:03.67, 8. SOFLO J 1:05.10, 9. SOFLO L 1:05.25, 10. SOFLO I 1:08.42, 11. SOFLO E 1:10.59.

50-yard butterfly:
9-10, 1. Matthew Ortiz, SOFLO 40.43, time drop 3.83, 2. Toma Petkov, SOFLO 41.85, time drop 6.08, 3. Rafael Naranjo, SOFLO 43.03, time drop 2.39; SOFLO: 6. Terrence Cheung 57.20, 7. Nicolas Restrepo 1:03.18, 8. Jackson Puntervold 1:03.18.
11-12, 1. Joseph-Blake Nationo, SOFLO 34.39, 2. Sebastian Fernandez, MAC 37.61, 3. Nicky Diaz, SF 40.84; SOFLO: 5. Adrian Sowma 42.30, time drop 0.96, 7. Kyle Wehn 43.70, time drop 2.08, 8. Matthew Casanova 54.37.
13-14, 1. Matt McVeigh, SOFLO 30.98, time drop 8.91, 2. Aleksander Chaussky, SOFLO 31.94, time drop 11.05, 3. Diego Reveron, SOFLO 32.41; SOFLO: 4. Victor Valdiviezo 33.49, time drop 7.87, 6. David Trejos 37.52, 9. Gustavo De Oliveira 43.78, time drop 5.12, 10. Christian Collado 44.49, 11. Bryan Gonzalez 51.65, 12. John Wagner 59.39.
15-18, 1. Jose Doneyre, SOFLO 33.06, time drop 5.66, 2. Mati Eiletz Bottaro, SOFLO 36.55, time drop 4.24.

50-yard backstroke:
9-10, 1. Antonio Rico, SOFLO 39.42, time drop 3.68, 2. David Gonzalez, SOFLO 42.46, time drop 0.69, 3. Ethan Phan, SOFLO 42.58; SOFLO: 4. Alessandro Suarez Cabrera 42.84, time drop 3.33, 6. Matthew Ortiez 45.24, 7. SAmuel Rico 46.92, 9. Michael Barber 47.69, 11. Nicolas Restreppo 51.58, 13. Terrence Cheung 54.59, 14. Matthew Marrero 56.35, 15. Jackson Puntervold 56.77.
11-12, 1. Martin Petkov, SOFLO 34.72, time drop 4.42, 2. David Valdiviezo, SOFLO 34.73, time drop 1.40, 3. Preston Christensen, SOFLO 37.34, time drop 3.56; SOFLO: 4. Aiden Delgado 38.71, time drop 8.15, 5. Dylan McVeigh 38.91, 7. Adrian Sowma 41.11, 10. Benjamin Liss 42.57, time drop 2.03, 11. Matthew Casanova 46.79, 13. Alexander Laughton 51.05, 15. Aiden Aristhomene 54.69.
13-14, 1. Aleksander Chaussky, SOFLO 32.81, time drop 4.04, 2. Andres Gonzalez 32.88, 3. Luke Mercier, SOFLO 34.63, time drop 6.02; SOFLO: 4. Aditya Kapadia 35.96, time drop 1.50, 5. Sakima Coradin 36.68, 6. Kenny Paas 36.96, timedrop 0.23, 8. Max Marrero 39.24, time drop 3.81; 9. Alexander Rahman 40.69, 10. Glendon Benson 42.62, 11. Pablo Mendez 53.62.
15-18, 1. Mati Eiletz Bottaro, SOFLO 36.03.

50-yard breaststroke:
9-10, 1. Eric Ferrer, SOFLO 43.07, time drop 5.30, 2. Alessandro Suarez Cabrera 45.60, time drop 2.40, 3. Toma Petkov, SOFLO 48.49, time drop 1.05; SOFLO: 4. Rafael Naranjo 48.55, time drop 3.04, 5. Michael Barber 51.90, time drop 4.20, 6. Antonio Rico 52.62, time drop 11.29, 8. Terence Cheung 55.64, 9. David Gonzalez 55.76, time drop 2.38, 10. Samuel Rico 55.96, time drop 5.43, 13. Michael Balius 57.86, 15. Nicolas Restrepo 1:03.14, 16. Jackson Puntervold 1:03.53, 17. Matthew Marrero 1:06.04, time drop 0.19.
11-12, 1. Joseph-Blake Natino, SOFLO 35.92, 2. Alex Diaz, SF 37.21, time drop 3.01, 3. Martin Petkov 38.75, time drop 1.90; SOFLO: 4. David Valdiviezo 39.59, time drop 6.03, 5. Dylan McVeigh 42.97, 7. Adrian Sowma 45.40, time drop 1.04, 8. Benjamin Liss 45.55, time drop 4.27, 10. Preston Christensen 48.08, time drop 0.62, 13. Alexander Laughton 58.90.
13-14, 1. Victor Valdiviezo, SOFLO 38.84, time drop 4.65, 2. Alexander Rahman, SOFLO 39.48, time drop 1.96,3. Giancarlo Padron, SF 41.50; SOFLO: 5. Max Marrero 44.59, time drop 2.00, 7. Aston Claxon 44.97, 8. Sakima Coradin 45.05, 9. Christian Collado 48.41, 10. Glendon Benson 48.87, 11. Gustavo De Oliveira 53.76, time drop 2.82, 12. John Wagner 58.00.
15-18, 1. Mati Eiletz Bottaro, SOFLO 37.39, time drop 0.31, 2. Jose Donare, SOFLO 42.73.

50-yard freestyle:
9-10, 1. Alessandro Suarez Cabrera, SOFLO 35.68, time drop 1.80, 2. Antonio Rico, SOFLO 36.16, time drop 1.83. 3. Toma Petkov, SOFLO 36.65, time drop 1.66; SOFLO: 4. Rafael Naranjo 37.25, time drop 0.19, 5. Michael Barber 37.66, time drop 0.12, 6. David Gonzalez 37.70, time drop 0.10, 7. Ethan Phan 38.04, 8. Matthew Ortiz 38.08, time drop 0.04, 10. Nicolas Restrepo 41.32, 12. Samuel Rico 41.95, time drop 0.21, 14. Jackson Puntervold 42.76, time drop 5.11, 15. Terence Cheung 44.18, 16. Michael Balius 44.62, 18. Matthew Marrero 49.91, time drop 0.04.
11-12, 1. Maximiliano Remmele, SOFLO 28.33, time drop 2.27, 2. Martin Petkov, SOFLO 30.06, time drop 0.86, 3. Alex Diaz, SF 30.20; SOFLO: 4. David Valdiviezo 30.56, time drop 1.92, 5. Joseph-Blake Natino 31.00, , 7. Aiden Delgado 34.16, time drop 1.20, 8. Dylan McVeigh 34.40, 9. Adrian Sowma 35.13, time drop 0.17, 10. Benjamin Liss 35.40, 11. Kyle Wehn 35.47, time drop 2.32, 12. Preston Christensen 35.56, 18. Alexander Santos 40.11, 19. Alexander Laughton 40.71, 20. Aiden Aristhomene 41.64, 21. Matthew Casanova 43.13, 22. Adrian Plotnikov 44.09.
13-14, 1. Sebastian Jackson, SOFLO 27.60, time drop 4.07, 2. Aleksander Chaussky, SOFLO 27.66, time drop 3.43, 3. Matt McVeigh, SOFLO 27.94, time drop 0.59; SOFLO: 4. Luke Mercier 28.21, 5. Victor Valdivieso 29.31, 6. Kenny Paas 29.38, time drop 1.60, 7. Alexander Rahman 29.94, time drop 0.87, 8. Diego Reveron 30.22, time drop 5.94, 9. Sakima Coradin 30.53, time drop 0.61, 11. Aditya Kapadia 30.81, 13. David Trejos 32.73, 14. Max Marrero 33.75, time drop, 0.04, 16. Bryan Gonzalez 38.66, 17. Christian Collado 42.83, 18. Pablo Mendez 47.52, 19. Gustavo De Oliveira 52.29.
15-18, 1. Jose Donayre, SOFLO 26.41, time drop 0.31, 2. Mati Eiletz Bottaro, SOFLO 27.76, time drop 2.03.

100-yard individual medley:
9-10, 1. Alessandro Suarez Cabrera, SOFLO 1:31.09, time drop 1.51, 2. Toma Petkov, SOFLO 1:31.91, time drop 1.57, 3. Matthew Ortiz, SOFLO 1:34.90, time drop 6.44; SOFLO: 4. Rafael Naranjo 1:35.14, time drop 2.53, 5. Antonio Rico 1:35.37, time drop 6.66, 6. David Gonzalez 1:35.65, time drop 2.53, 7. Michael Barber 1:39.11, 9. Samuel Rico 1:47.81, time drop 6.57, 10. Matthew Marrero 2:09.84, time drop 2.85.
11-12, 1. Alex Diaz, SF 1:12.87, 2. Martin Petkov, SOFLO 1:14.19, time drop 1.74, 3. Joseph-Blake Natino, SOFLO 1:16.41; SOFLO: 4. Dylan McVeigh 1:26.75, time drop 3.96, 5. Preston Christensen 1:29.33, time drop 3.28, 6. Benjamin Liss 1:31.16, 7. Kyle Wehn 1:31.42, time drop 0.83.
13-14, 1. Aleksander Chaussky, SOFLO 1:10.42, time drop 5.06, 2. Luke Mercier, SOFLO 1:12.46, 3. Kenny Paas, SOFLO 1:14.92, time drop 4.14; SOFLO: 4. Aditya Kapadia 1:15.88, time drop 0.50, 5. Sebastian Jackson 1:15.89, 6. Victor Valdiviezo 1:19.94, time drop 1.53, 7. Sakima Coradin 1:25.07, 9. Max Marrero 1:27.55, time drop 1.01.

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

Florida State Seminoles Announce 2021-22 Schedule; SOFLO’s Gaby Banks Returns

By Sharon Robb
TALLAHASSEE, August 28, 2021—Five home meets highlight the 2021-22 Florida State men’s and women’s swimming and diving schedule.

The dual meet schedule features meets against four Southeastern Conference teams including University of Florida, which is the most for the Seminoles in a single season since 2011-12.

Atlantic Coast Conference mates Georgia Tech and University of Miami women are also on the schedule. Among the 11 teams on the schedule, nine scored points at the 2021 NCAA Championships, with six finishing in the Top 25.

South Florida Aquatic Club’s Gaby Banks returns this season for her sophomore year. The Cypress Bay alum will compete in the freestyle and relay events.

“We are excited to get another season started,” FSU head coach Neal Studd said. “This is one of the most challenging schedules we have put together, but this will give us the opportunity to test ourselves against some of the best in the nation.”

“We have a very good team this year. We want to be prepared and at our best for championship season and this schedule will help us do that.”

The Seminoles open the season with five consecutive weekends of competition, starting with the Oct. 8-9 FIU TYR Fall Classic on the road in Miami. In addition to FSU and host Florida International, Pitt, Florida Atlantic, Missouri State and TCU are also in the field.

FSU will return to host Auburn (Oct.15) before heading out on its first of five trips to Atlanta on Oct. 23 to face Georgia Tech.

West Florida, North Florida and Florida Southern will head to Tallahassee on Oct. 30 for a quad meet, before the Seminoles host rival Florida on Nov. 5.

The first half of the schedule concludes at the Georgia Tech Invitational.

Following December holiday training, FSU will host Texas A&M on Jan. 6. The Seminoles last hosted both squads in January of 1994. The FSU women’s team also hosted the Aggies in a tri-meet in February of 2009 along with Auburn.

FSU travels to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for a dual against LSU on Jan. 15 and the women will swim University of Miami in Coral Gables on Jan. 21.

The Seminoles wrap up the regular season hosting Tampa on Jan. 28 on Seniors Day.

FSU will send a group to compete at the Auburn First Chance Invite from Feb. 3-5 before both teams compete together at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships in Atlanta at the McAuley Aquatic Center; the site of the 1996 Olympic Games, from Feb. 15-19.

The divers will look to qualify for the NCAA Championships at the NCAA Zone B Diving Championship from March 7-9 in Atlanta.

Qualified swimmers and divers return to Atlanta to compete at the NCAA Championships. The women will compete from March 16-19 and the men will follow March 23-26.

Before the start of the regular season, the Seminoles will host the annual Garnet vs. Gold exhibition on Sept. 24 at 2 p.m. The meet also highlights Alumni Weekend.

Despite the ongoing pandemic, fans are expected to be allowed to attend all meets at the Morcom Aquatics Center in 2021-22. Admission is free.

Other South Florida swimmers joining Banks on the roster are:

Brooke Goedel, Boca Raton alum, Boca Raton

Adrian Aguilar, Doral alum, Miami

Cameron Taddonio, Boca Raton High alum, Boca Raton

Elvis Kotikovski, Pine Crest, Sunny Isles

Izaak Bastian, St. Andrew’s alum, Bahamas

Kyle DiMatteo, Park Vista, Boynton Beach

FSU 2021-22 SCHEDULE
Sept. 24, Garnet-Gold Meet, 2 p.m.
Oct. 8-9, FIU TYR Fall Classic, Miami, 10 a.m., 5 p.m.
Oct. 15, Auburn, 2 p.m.
Oct. 23, at Georgia Tech, 11 a.m.
Oct. 30, UWF,UNF, FSC, 1 p.m.
Nov. 5, Florida, 2 p.m.
Nov. 18-20, Georgia Tech Invite
Jan. 6, Texas A&M, 2 p.m.
Jan. 15, at LSU, 11 a.m.
Jan. 21, at University of Miami women, 3 p.m.
Jan.28, Tampa, 2 p.m.
Feb. 3-5, Auburn First Chance
Feb. 26-27, UGA Last Chance
March 5-9, NCAA Zone B Diving, Atlanta
March 16-19, NCAA Women’s Championships, Atlanta
March 23-26, NCAA Men’s Championships, Atlanta

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

Pine Crest Girls, Braddock Boys Dominate Westminster Academy Relays

By Sharon Robb
FORT LAUDERDALE, August 27, 2021–Several Broward and Dade high schools got a chance to ease into the high school season with a unique format at the 27th annual Westminster Academy Invitational Friday at the O’Brien Family Swimming Complex.

Twenty boys, girls and mixed relay events were held. The meet was not scored.

Defending girls’ state champion Pine Crest won six girls, two boys and one mixed relays.

Braddock boys won three boys events followed by South Florida Heat with two.

South Florida Heat won two mixed relays.

FRIDAY RESULTS
GIRLS
200-yard medley relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:54.62, 2. Goleman 2:07.00, 3. Cardinal Gibbons 2:12.10.

Mixed 800-yard freestyle relay: 1. Pine Crest 7:52.38, 2. South Florida Heat 8:13.44, 3. Archbishop McCarthy 8:34.22.

400-yard medley relay: 1. Pine Crest 4:21.23, 2. South Florida Heat 4:23.45, 3. Cardinal Gibbons 4:33.24.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:46.76, 2. Archbishop McCarthy 2:05.43, 3. North Broward 2:10.02.

Mixed 200-yard freestyle relay: 1. South Florida Heat 1:42.74, 2. Pine Crest 1:45.19, 3. North Broward 1:53.20.

200-yard butterfly relay: 1. Cardinal Gibbons 1:43.70, 2. Pine Crest 1:52.47, 3. South Florida Heat 1:59.41.

100-yard freestyle relay: 1. South Florida Heat 53.48, 2. Pine Crest 54.16, 3. North Broward 57.85.

Mixed 500-yard freestyle relay: 1. Cardinal Gibbons 4:48.22, 2. Pine Crest 4:49.89, 3. Hialeah 5:08.69.

200-yard backstroke relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:56.27, 2. Cardinal Gibbons 2:01.15, 3. Hialeah 2:18.03.

200-yard breaststroke relay: 1. Pine Crest 2:09.57, 2. South Florida Heat 2:18.33, 3. Braddock 2:20.71.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Pine Crest 3:42.13, 2. North Broward 4:04.38, 3. Braddock 4:08.97.

Mixed 400-yard freestyle relay: 1. South Florida Heat 3:31.63, 2. Archbishop McCarthy 3:50.24, 3. Hialeah 4:10.56.

BOYS
200-yard medley relay: 1. Braddock 1:44.37, 2. South Florida Heat 1:47.65, 3. Pine Crest 1:47.69.

400-yard medley relay: 1. South Florida Heat 3:48.15, 2. Braddock 4:03.10, 3. Pine Crest 4:08.47.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Braddock 1:37.77, 2. Pine Crest 1:39.43, 3. Westminster Academy 1:47.78.

200-yard butterfly: 1. South Florida Heat 1:34.90, 2. Braddock 1:45.38, 3. Pine Crest 1:48.61.

100-yard freestyle relay: 1. Cardinal Gibbons 51.63, 2. Braddock 52.69, 3. Pine Crest 53.65.

200-yard backstroke relay: 1. Braddock 1:49.46, 2. Pine Crest 1:58.09, 3. Cardinal Gibbons 1:58.46.

200-yard breaststroke relay: 1. Pine Crest 1:59.80, 2. Cardinal Gibbons 2:18.91, 3. Goleman 2:25.59.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Pine Crest 3:31.32, 2. Goleman 3:47.53, 3. Westminster Academy 3:57.07.

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

Calvary Christian Girls, North Broward Prep Boys Sweep Season-Opener

COCONUT CREEK, August 27, 2021—Calvary Christian girls and North Broward Prep boys won the first high school tri-meet of the season Wednesday at host North Broward Prep.

Calvary Christian girls defeated St. John Paul, 94-66, and North Broward Prep, 87-64.

Hanna Lamb and Grace Parnas were double winners for Calvary Christian. Lamb won the 200-yard individual medley in 2:55.59 and 100-yard butterfly in 1:20.50.

Parnas won the 50-yard freestyle in 27.15 and 500-yard freestyle in 6:11.62.

Calvary Christian swept all three girls’ relays.

North Broward Prep boys topped St. John Paul, 87-67, and Calvary Christian, 88-66.

North Broward Prep boys won all individual events except one. Luca Wiersema and Egor Frantsevsky each won two events.

Wiersema won the 50-yard freestyle in 24.85 and 100-yard freestyle in 58.47.

Frantsevsky won the 200-yard freestyle in 2:17.09 and 100-yard butterfly in 1:02.09.

North Broward Prep won the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays.

The teams will compete Friday in the Westminster Academy Relays in Fort Lauderdale.

GIRLS
CALVARY CHRISTIAN 94, ST. JOHN PAUL 66
200-yard medley relay: 1. Calvary 2:16.59, 2. St. John Paul 2:21.85, 3. Calvary 3:15.36.

200-yard freestyle: 1. Christina Paschal, CC 2:26.32, 2. Leah Reinoso, PJP 2:44.00, 3. Mielah Pierce, CC 2:48.25.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Hanna Lamb, CC 2:55.59, 2. Marley Tyner, CC 3:02.19, 3. Kaelyn Nitkowski, PJP 3:13.22.

50-yard freestyle: 1. Grace Parnas, CC 27.15, 2. Ashley Kidd, PJP 33.60. 3. Savannah Miller, CC 33.69.

100-yard butterfly: 1. Hanna Lamb, CC 1:20.50, 2. Hannah Potter, PJP 1:23.03, 3.Christina Paschal, CC 1:28.37.

100-yard freestyle: 1. Leah Reinosa, PJP 1:11.31, 2. Savannah Miller, CC 1:17.37, 3. Grace Press, PJP 1:19.00.

500-yard freestyle: 1. Grace Parnas, CC 6:11.62, 2. Ruby Liebschutz, PJP 6:36.37, 3. Sophia Fortin, CC 7:39.41.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Calvary Christian 2:04.06, 2. St. John Pal 2:18.65, 3. Calvary Christian 2:32.68.

100-yard backstroke: 1. Hannah Potter, PJP 1:17.12, 2. Mielah Pierce, CC 1:31.00, 3. Julia Kereyva, PJP 1:35.00.

100-yard breaststroke: 1. Ruby Leibschutz, PJP 1:23.13, 2. Marley Tyner, CC 1:28.50, 3. Grace Press, PJP 1:35.00.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Calvary Christian 4:36.06, 2. St. John Paul 4:38.07, 3. Calvary Christian 5:52.85.

NORTH BROWARD PREP 78, ST. JOHN PAUL 68
200-yard medley relay: 1. North Broward Prep 2:19.31, 2. St. John Paul 2:21.85.

200-yard freestyle: 1. Shea Runsdorf, NBP 2:28.50, 2. Leah Reinoso, PJP 2:44.00, 3. Aubrey Dunlea, PJP 2:57.00.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Madi Laski, NBP 2:42.53, 2. Kaelyn Nitkowski, PJP 3:13.22, 3. Julia Kereyeva, PJP 3:26.27.

50-yard freestyle: 1. Emma Quirk, NBP 29.75, 2. Kayra Kanver, NBP 31.70, 3. Ashley Kidd, PJP 33.60.

100-yard butterfly: 1. Christina Sager, NBP 1:13.40, 2. Hannah Potter, PJP 1:23.03.

100-yard freestyle: 1. Shea Runsdorf, NBP 1:06.69, 2. Emma Quirk, NBP 1:09.77, 3. Leah Reinoso, PJP 1:11.31.

500-yard freestyle: 1. Ruby Liebschutz, PJP 6:36.37, 2. Ashley Kidd, PJP 7:52.00.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. North Broward Prep 2:04.90, 2. North Broward Prep 2:17.84, 3. St. John Paul 2:18.65.

100-yard backstroke: 1. Christina Saiger, NBP 1:16.56, 2. Hannah Potter, PJP 1:17.12, 3. Madi Laski, NBP 1:19.35.

100-yard breaststroke: 1. Ruby Liebschutz, PJP 1:23.13, 2. Grace Press, PJP 1:35.00, 3. Tekla Tulka, NBP 1:40.41.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. St. John Paul 4:38.07, 2. North Broward Prep 4:39.04, 3. North Broward Prep 5:12.66.

CALVARY CHRISTIAN 87, NORTH BROWARD PREP 64
200-yard medley relay: 1. Calvary Christian 2:16.59, 2. North Broward Prep 2:19.21, 3. Calvary Christian 3:15.36.

200-yard freestyle: 1. Christina Paschal, CC 2:26.32, 2. Shea Runsdorf, NBP 2:28.50, 3. Mielah Pierce 2:48.25.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Madi Laski, NBP 2:42.53, 2. Hanna Lamb, CC 2:55.59, 3. Marley Tyner, CC 3:02.19.

50-yard freestyle: 1. Grace Parnas, CC 27.15, 2. Emma Quirk, NBP 29.75, 3. Kayra Kanver, NBP 31.70.

100-yard butterfly: 1. Christina Saiger, NBP 1:13.40, 2. Hanna Lamb, CC 1:20.50, 3. Christina Paschal, CC 1:28.37.

100-yard freestyle: 1. Shea Runsdorf, NBP 1:06.69, 2. Emma Quirk, NBP 1:09.77, 3. Savannah Miller, CC 1:17.37.

500-yard freestyle: 1. Grace Parnas, CC 6:11.62, 2. Sophia Fortin, CC 7:39.41.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Calvary Christian 2:04.06, 2. North Broward Prep 2:04.90, 3. North Broward Prep 2:17.84.

100-yard backstroke: 1. Christina Saiger, NBP 1:16.56, 2. Madi Laski, NBP 1:19.35, 3. Mielah Pierce, CC 1:31.00.

100-yard breaststroke: 1. Marley Tyner, CC 1:28.50, 2. Sophia Fortin, CC 1:39.47, 3. Tekla Tulka, NBP 1:40.41.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Calvary Christian 4:36.06, 2. North Broward Prep 4:39.04, 3. North Broward Prep 5:12.66.

BOYS
CALVARY CHRISTIAN 88, ST. JOHN PAUL 72
200-yard medley relay: 1. St. John Paul 2:00.25, 2. Calvary Christian 2:02.37, 3. Calvary Christian 2:27.47.

200-yard freestyle: 1. Jose Rodriguez, CC 2:26.06, 2. Ryan Anderson, CC 2:38.57, 3. Johnny Press, PJP 2:41.44.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Luke Lehmann, PJP 2:35.94, 2. Brandon Greene, PJP 2:52.00, 3. Cortez Valencia, CC 2:58.31.

50-yard freestyle: 1. Tyler Lage, PJP 25.22, 2. Rocco Casale, CC 26.32, 3. Caleb Barnes, CC 26.69.

100-yard butterfly: 1. Josh Wallace, CC 1:08.31, 2. Luke Lehmann, PJP 1:10.16, 3. Max Sanders, PJP 1:15.00.

100-yard freestyle: 1. Tyler Lage, PJP 1:00.03, 2. Caleb Barnes, CC 1:03.47, 3. Pedro DePaula, PJP 1:11.00.

500-yard freestyle: 1. Shadrach Wallace, CC 6:50.28, 2. Cortez Valencia, CC 7:01.13, 3. Johnny Press, PJP 8:30.31.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. Calvary Christian 1:49.32, 2. St. John Paul 1:50.68, 3. Calvary Christian 2:01.19.

100-yard backstroke: 1. Joshua Wallace, CC 1:10.10, 2. Max Sanders, PJP 1:18.41, 3. Zach Dookhan, CC 1:30.50.

100-yard breaststroke: 1. Brandon Greene, PJP 1:16.35, 2. Shadrach Wallace, CC 1:18.82, 3. David Quiceno, CC 1:32.47.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. Calvary Christian 4:44.66, 2. Calvary Christian 4:50.19, 3. St. John Paul 5:30.21.

NORTH BROWARD PREP 87, ST. JOHN PAUL 67
200-yard medley relay: 1. St. John Paul 2:00.25, 2. North Broward Prep 2:00.40, 3. North Broward Prep 2:15.30.

200-yard freestyle: 1. Egor Frantsevsky, NBP 2:17.09, 2. Beny Papescu, NBP 2:17.57, 3. Johnny Press, PJP 2:41.44.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Simon Sheinfeld, NBP 2:33.76, 2. Luke Lehmann, PJP 2:35.94, 3. Brandon Greene, PJP 2:52.00.

50-yard freestyle: 1. Luca Wiersema, NBP 24.85, 2. Tyler Lage, PJP 25.22, 3. Martin Viola, NBP 25.63.

100-yard butterfly: 1. Egor Frantsevsky, NBP 1:02.09, 2. Ryan Altimari, NBP 1:05.19, 3. Luke Lehmann, PJP 1:10.16.

100-yard freestyle: 1. Luca Wiersema, NBP 58.47, 2. Tyler Lage, PJP 1:00.03, 3. Jacques Papescu, NBP 1:01.39.

500-yard freestyle: 1. Fabian Salvador, NBP 8:22.59, 2. Johnny Press, PJP 8:30.31, 3. Marcus Ossipion, PJP 9:16.00.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. North Broward Prep 1:41.61, 2. St. John Paul 1:50.68, 3. North Broward Prep 1:54.99.

100-yard backstroke: 1. Martin Viola, NBP 1:14.81, 2. Max Sanders, PJP 1:18.41, 3. Pedro DePaula, PJP 1:32.00.

100-yard breaststroke: 1. Brandon Greene, PJP 1:16.35, 2. Jacques Papescu. NBP 1:23.54, 3. Ryan Altimari, NBP 1:25.87.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. North Broward Prep 4:02.15, 2. St. John Paul 5:30.21.

NORTH BROWARD PREP 88, CALVARY CHRISTIAN 66
200-yard medley relay: 1. North Broward Prep 2:00.40, 2. Calvary Christian 2:02.37, 3. North Broward Prep 2:15.30.

200-yard freestyle: 1. Egor Frantsevsky, NBP 2:17.09, 2. Beny Papescu, NBP 2:17.57, 3. Jose Rodriguez, CC 2:26.06.

200-yard individual medley: 1. Simon Sheinfeld, NBP 2:33.76, 2. Cortez Valencia, CC 2:58.31, 3. Benn Korkis, CC 3:12.60.

50-yard freestyle: 1. Luca Wiersema, NBP 24.85, 2. Martin Viola, NBP 25.63, 3. Rocco Casale, CC 26.32.

100-yard butterfly: 1. Egor Frantsevsky, NBP 1:02.09, 2. Ryan Altimari, NBP 1:05.15, 3. Josh Wallace, CC 1:08.31.

100-yard freestyle: 1. Luca Wiersema, NBP 58.47, 2. Jacques Papescu, NBP 1:01.39, 3. Caleb Barnes, CC 1:03.47.

500-yard freestyle: 1. Shadrach Wallace, CC 6:50.28, 2. Cortez Valencia, CC 7:01.13, 3. Fabian Salvador, NBP 8:22.59.

200-yard freestyle relay: 1. North Broward Prep 1:41.61, 2. Calvary Christian 1:49.32, 3. North Broward Prep 1:54.99.

100-yard backstroke: 1. Joshua Wallace, CC 1:10.10, 2. Martin Viola, NBP 1:14.81, 3. Zach Dookhan, CC 1:30.50.

100-yard breaststroke: 1. Shadrach Wallace, CC 1:18.82, 2. Jacques Papescu, NBP 1:23.56, 3. Ryan Altimari, NBP 1:25.87.

400-yard freestyle relay: 1. North Broward Prep 4:02.15, 2. Calvary Christian 4:44.66, 3. Calvary Christian 4:50.19.

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

SOFLO Swimmers Ready To Race Saturday In SOFLO/TYR Back To School Developmental Meet

By Sharon Robb
PEMBROKE PINES, August 26, 2021–Now that students are back to school and settling in, swimmers will get a chance to race at the fall season-opening SOFLO/TYR Back To School Developmental Meet Saturday at Academic Village Pool.

Host SOFLO heads the field with 82 swimmers (56 boys and 26 girls) in 267 individual events and three relay events with 18 relay teams for the one-day meet.

In addition to SOFLO, other teams competing are Metro Aquatics and SwimFast.

The meet opens with Session One at 10 a.m. featuring the 8-and-under swimmers. Session Two follows at 11:30 a.m. for the 9-and-over swimmers.

SOFLO dominates the top-seeded spots. They are:

Ellie Phan, 6, 25-yard butterfly, 25.18; 25-yard backstroke, 25.24.

Gabriel Ferrer, 8, 25-yard butterfly, 23.90.

Leonardo Zuluaga, 8, 25-yard freestyle, 22.66; 25-yard backstroke, 23.94; 25-yard breaststroke, 24.93.

Gabriella Ordonez, 10, 50-yard butterfly, 42.68; 50-yard backstroke, 42.00; 50-yard freestyle, 36.68

Jose Donayre, 17, 50-yard butterfly, 38.72; 50-yard freestyle, 26.72.

Jiana Connor, 13, 50-yard butterfly, 43.32.

Mikhel Martin, 12, 50-yard backstroke 38.73; 50-yard breaststroke, 45.40.

Judith-Allison Natino, 15, 50-yard butterfly, NT; 50-yard backstroke, 37.00.

Matthew Ortiz, 10, 50-yard butterfly, 44.26.

Ethan Phan, 9, 50-yard backstroke, 42.91; 50-yard freestyle, 37.20.

David Valdiviezo, 11, 50-yard backstroke, 36.13.

Dominique Balli, 15, 50-yard backstroke, 45.60; 50-yard freestyle, 36.62.

Sakima Coradin, 14, 50-yard backstroke, 36.33.

Alessandro Suarez Cabrera, 9, 50-yard breaststroke, 48.00; 100-yard individual medley, 1:32.60.

Mati Eiletz Bottaro, 16, 50-yard backstroke, NT; 50-yard breaststroke, 37.70.

Sofia Duranti, 10, 50-yard breaststroke, 47.82.

Maximiliano Remmele, 12, 50-yard freestyle, 30.60.

Luke Mercier, 14, 50-yard freestyle, 28.07.

Joanna Valdiviezo, 10, 100-yard individual medley, 1:35.08.

Martin Petkov, 12, 100-yard individual medley, 1:15.93.

Alexander Chaussky, 13, 100-yard individual medley, 1:15.48.

With the ongoing pandemic, COVID protocols will continue at Academic Village Pool. Swimmers, coaches, officials and volunteers are required to wear masks. There is a designated spectator area on the pool deck. Spectators are encouraged to social distance. The meet will not be live streamed. Admission is free. Heat sheets are also free and available on Meet Mobile or soflomeets.info/Aviation.

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

TYR JULY GIRL SWIMMER OF THE MONTH: Jemma Baldwin

By Sharon Robb
PEMBROKE PINES, August 24, 2021–Even at age 10, Jemma Baldwin is fearless in and out of the pool.

“She is not afraid of anybody or any thing, she is not shy and will put an older kid in place in a heartbeat,” said her Bronze Group coach Rose Lockie.

“It wasn’t really that unexpected her doing well at JOs. She is one of the youngest in the group and training with 11- and 12-year-olds all the time. She works really, really hard.”

The hard work paid off. Baldwin turned in her finest performance at the Florida Gold Coast Junior Olympics, playing a key role in SOFLO winning the girls’ team title. She was the top scoring SOFLO girl swimmer with 40 points, ranked second in high point for 10-and-under girls.

Baldwin won two individual events and three relays. She won the 200-meter individual medley and 50-meter butterfly. She was also a member of the girls’ winning 200-meter freestyle relay and 200-meter medley relay and mixed 200-meter medley relay.

She swam five best times in the 400-meter freestyle (5:15.61, 18.23 time drop), 200-meter individual medley (2:54.34, 1.86 time drop), 100-meter backstroke (1:23.42, 1.37 time drop), 50-meter butterfly (35.10, 2.15 time drop) and 200-meter freestyle (2:33.01, 9.96 time drop).

“My favorite event in short course would be the 100 fly and in long course I really like the 400 free,” Baldwin said.

“I knew I would have a good JOs,” Baldwin said. “I am very confident in everything that I do in swimming. JOs was my biggest event so far. I was happiest with the 400 free. It was my second time swimming the 400 free and I dropped a lot of time.”

Baldwin is a fifth grader at Hawkes Bluff Elementary School in Pembroke Pines. She started swimming competitively at age 6 with the Midnight Sun Swim Team in Fairbanks, Alaska. Her dad said she has been swimming “since she was in diapers.” She was also involved in gymnastics and ice hockey but decided to focus solely on swimming. “Swimming wasn’t really a popular sport in Alaska, ice hockey was probably the most popular,” she said

“I just really like being in the water,” Baldwin said. “I like competition. I want to do well in practice. I really like Coach Rose, she’s funny.”

The family moved to South Florida in June, 2018. Since joining SOFLO, Baldwin has improved greatly. “I like the coaches, they are not strict or so hard on you but they are hard on you because they want you to do better. I’m glad I’m in swimming.”

Baldwin likes being challenged in workouts, meets and school, where she is a straight A student. She’s always pushing herself, said her dad.

“I like the racing part in swimming,” Baldwin said. “I have a lot of friends on SOFLO just because I have been there for so long. I know just about everybody in my group.”

Baldwin hopes to swim in high school and college.

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.

TYR, created by athletes, is named for the Norse god of warriors in Germanic mythology. Among its female-sponsored athletes are 2020 Olympians Simone Manuel, Katie Ledecky, Lilly King, Annie Lazor, Ashley Twichell and other elite swimmers Melanie Margalis, Molly Hannis and Kelsi Dahlia.

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

SWIMMING NOTEBOOK: SOFLO’s Alia Atkinson Awarded Honorary Doctorate

By Sharon Robb
PEMBROKE PINES, August 23, 2021—Five-time Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson has added another honor to her never-ending resume.

The South Florida Aquatic Club world short course and national record holder joins comedian Oliver Samuels, poet/author Linton Kwesi Johnson and philanthropist Gary “Butch” Hendrickson as this year’s recipients of honorary Doctors of Letters or Laws from the University of the West Indies Mona Campus in St. Andrew.

They will be honored November 4-5 for their outstanding contributions to regional and international development. Samuels and Johnson will receive an honorary Doctor of Letters degree while Atkinson and Hendrickson will receive honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

They join a list of more than 450 honorary degree recipients awarded by the regional university since 1965. The awards presentations during the college’s annual graduation ceremony are expected to be held virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Atkinson previously received an Order of Distinction, Commander of Class, from the Government in 2018.

GROTERS STARTS CLASSES AT USC

Former NSU University School and Pine Crest Swimming Club swimmer Patrick Groters of Aruba will be competing for the University of South Carolina after spending two seasons at Denver.

“It’s amazing,” Groters said on his Instagram account.

“I am beyond thrilled for the opportunity to continue my college swimming career at University of South Carolina under Jeff Poppell. I know this is my chance to improve, to get to the next level in my races.”

Groters is a 2020 Summit League champion in the 200-meter backstroke and 200-meter individual medley. He trained with his older brother Jordy for nine months at his club team Giants Aquatics Aruba before transferring.

Groters swam his best time in the 200 IM (2:01.62) at the 2019 U.S. Open. He missed the standard for selection to Aruba’s Olympic Team, but was the only Aruban to swim an Olympic B-standard during the pandemic, in 2:02.95 and 2:01.96 in the 200 IM at the 2021 Bahamas National Swimming Championships.

Groters has qualified for both the 2021 FINA Short Course World Swimming Championships in Abu Dhabi and 2022 FINA World Aquatic Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. He will represent Aruba in December at the Junior Pan-American Games in Cali, Colombia in the 100 and 200 backstrokes, 200 and 400 IMs and 400 freestyle.

MISSY FRANKLIN IS A MOM

Five-time Olympic gold medalist and her husband, former University of Texas swimmer Hayes Johnson, announced the birth of their daughter on Instagram.

“She’s more perfect than anything we could have ever imagined,” the post reads. “We love you so much Caitlin.”

Sarah Caitlin Johnson was born on Aug. 11 at 4:17 a.m., a birthday she shares with her grandfather, Franklin’s dad.

Franklin was one of the sport’s biggest stars when she captured four gold medals and a bronze as a 17-year-old high-schooler at the 2012 London Olympics. She competed at the 2016 Rio Games, where she was plagued by shoulder injuries but still managed another gold medal as a relay swimmer.

“I began to realize that my greatest dream in life, more so than Olympic gold, has always been becoming a mom,” Franklin said. “Swimming had been such a huge part of my life for as long as I could remember, but it was not my entire life.”

LOCHTE REHABBING AFTER KNEE SURGERY

Four-time Olympian Ryan Lochte, 36, of Gainesville underwent successful knee surgery after he suffered a torn meniscus during an inflatable kids water slide accident while playing with his two kids.

Lochte posted a selfie to his Instagram account from his Orthopaedic Surgery Center hospital bed in which he was giving the thumbs up, underneath the caption which read, ‘Surgery was a success.’ “Hey everyone, surgery went amazing, I’m all good, I feel great right now,” he said.

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

TYR JULY BOY SWIMMER OF THE MONTH: Noah Mejias

By Sharon Robb
PEMBROKE PINES, August 23, 2021–Two days after the Florida Gold Coast Junior Olympics, Noah Mejias got the best news.

The South Florida Aquatic Club swimmer was told he broke his first team record in the 10-and-under 100-meter butterfly in 1:13.54. He shaved 6.21 off his previous best 1:19.75.

“I was pretty confident going into the meet but I wasn’t really expecting a team record,” Mejias said. “I didn’t really learn about the team record until a couple of days after the meet.

“That makes all the time I put into it and practice worth it,” said Mejias, who agreed his biggest meet of his young career was JOs. “I think I’m getting better.”

His overall performance at JOs is proof of that. In addition to the team record, Mejias was SOFLO’s top scoring male swimmer, finishing third among the 10-and-under boys with 40.5 points. He was a member of the winning 200-meter freestyle and 200-meter mixed medley relays.

Mejias swam best times in all but one of his events: 400-meter freestyle, 5:19.79, a 21.09 drop; 200-meter individual medley, 2:52.37, a 3.09 drop; 100-meter breaststroke, 1:33.82, 4.28 drop; 100-meter freestyle, 1:12.29, a 3.68 drop; and 200-meter freestyle, 2:32.94, 11.90 drop.

Mejias, 10, is home schooled (sixth to seventh grade). He has been swimming for five years and trains with Bronze Group and veteran age group coach Rose Lockie. “She’s helped me get better,” Mejias said. “I like her.”

Lockie is impressed with his work ethic and attitude.

“He has the most amazing butterfly, probably the best butterfly in this group,” Lockie said. “He swims it very well and his technique on the butterfly is amazing. His record did not surprise me. I figured he would do it just because his fly is so good.

“It’s just not that,” Lockie said. “No matter how hard the workout I give them, he always embraces it willingly. He never says ‘arrrgggh’ like a lot of the kids do. He always says, ‘oh yeah, that’s great.’ His enthusiasm to train hard is just brilliant. He is the youngest in my group and he embraces work, work, work.”

Lockie said that Mejias is relatively new to Bronze Group. It was the first championship meet Lockie had seen him swim. “He is hard on himself, but he swam 100 percent best times so he’s very happy,” Lockie said. “The only thing he cares about is getting 11-12 cuts and he knows what they are.”

Mejias has always wanted to swim. “I just got in the water and wanted to swim,” he said. “I liked the feel of the water and the competitive side of it. I like to race. I like training with my teammates and focusing on technique, turns, race pace and underwaters.”

Naturally, his favorite stroke is butterfly. After watching the Tokyo Olympics, his favorite swimmer is Caeleb Dressel.

“My next goals are to make All-Stars and get to the next JOs,” Mejias said. He said swimming has helped with time management and discipline. He would love to swim in college one day and hopes to be a veterinarian. He has three dogs, turtles and fish.

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.

TYR, created by athletes, is named for the Norse god of warriors in Germanic mythology. Among its male-sponsored athletes are newly-minted 2020 Olympians Michael Andrew, Tom Shields, Nic Fink, Townley Haas and Jordan Wilimovsky and other elite swimmers Matt Grevers, Maxime Rooney, Jacob Pebley and Ryan Lochte.

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