Friday, February 12, 2010

I love to watch this team race!

What an amazing first session! I love starting a meet off well. Our team has shown once again we are habitual fast starters, beginning with great 500s, a slew of good 200 IMs and wrapping up the morning with strong 50 freestyle performances.

Positive energy was in large supply this morning. I had flashes of last year’s euphoria as I watched our team riding the wave of their teammates’ great swims and rushing around the deck to hug them after their races.

The best kind of morning is the one where you have a hard time highlighting great performances because of the sheer volume of good swimming going on. Rachel “Legitsky” Levitsky lopped about twenty seconds off her lifetime best in the 500 while Abbie Hebein and Claudia Ramirez cut approximately ten seconds apiece off their best 500s.

Kira McGieson took 1.5 seconds off her best 50 (how is this done???) and Hannah Frank dropped nearly a second to land solidly in the consolation heat tonight. Kaitlin Smith shaved a full second off her 50 time, as well, and now is looking forward to turning over and racing her 100 and 200 backstrokes the next couple days.

Our top seeds for tonight are Rachael Cazden in the 50 freestyle, Claire Jordan in the 500 and Cat Menkel-Lawrence in the 200 IM. As the top seed, Cat is busily choosing the music her final heat will march out to. To the prelims victor go the musical spoils.

Our men were no less impressive. We put five guys in the consol heat of the 200 IM. Two seniors, a junior, a sophomore, and a freshman! Who to root for? Doesn’t matter as long as he’s a Pioneer.

Freshmen Josh Spegman and Sam Smith are each preparing for second swims after their great 500s this morning, too.

And with Finals come the relays. Tonight we blast into action with the 200 freestyle relay and wrap the night up with the 400 medley relay.

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