Two Girls go to Spring Sectionals Championship Meet

Zobl and George drop times at Senior Sectional Swimming Champoinships

March 9, 2008…. Two of Sumner County’s top swimmers who train with Excel Aquatics in Gallatin, participated in the USA Swimming Spring Senior Sectional Championship Meet this past weekend in Nashville. The meet featured some of the top swimming talent in the South. Traditionally only the Top 10% of swimmers nationwide achieve Senior Sectional Qualifying Time Standards.

491 swimmers, representing 76 teams from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, West Virginia and Kentucky took part in the meet this past weekend in Nashville TN, and hosted by Excel Aquatics.

“Senior Sectionals consists of swimmers as varied as collegiate swimmers using it as a last-chance meet to attain NCAA qualifying time standards, to swimmers who have already signed with colleges to swim next year, to swimmers who are no longer in college and are still training for the Olympic Trials, to swimmers who are starting to emerge as some of the top talent in the South.” Excel Assistant Coach and Lebanon resident John Barnes explained. “This year we are swimming the meet in the Long Course format because many of the swimmers at the meet are in the midst of preparing for the Olympic Trials, and this is another meet in that progression of preparation for them.”

College coaches from numerous Division I schools are in attendance to watch and evaluate some of the younger talent that showed up.

Brittany Zobl, a Hendersonville resident and an 8^th Grader at Gallatin’s Sumner Academy qualified for the meet in the 100 Meter Backstroke, and finished with a time of 1:14.04, a 1.82 second drop off her personal best time. “Brittany has done great this past short course season, and has started the long course season off in a nice way with her time drop,” Barnes noted. “This was Brittany’s second year to attend Spring Sectionals, and she was much more relaxed, even though she was still one of the youngest swimmers in the meet.”

Zobl has been selected to be the lead off swimmer on Excel Aquatics’ 400 Medley Relay that is traveling down to Orlando for the NCSA Junior National Swimming Championships in two weeks. While there she will also swim in time trials for the 50 Yard Freestyle and 100 Yard Backstroke.

Kathryn George of Gallatin and a 10th Grader at Pope John Paul II High School participated in two events, the 100 Meter Butterfly and the 200 Meter Butterfly.

George went out and dropped 5.15 seconds in the 100 Meter Fly, turning a time of 1:08.08 on Friday and then swam the 200 Fly on Saturday, dropping 5.77 seconds, finishing in a time of 2:33.84.

“This was KK’s first Sectional Meet and she was not fazed by the competition at all,” Barnes explained. “The 200 Fly is a physically and mentally grueling race, one that tests your technique and endurance. Most swimmers try to shy away from it, however KK steps up and loves to swim it.”

“Both of these girls reflect what is great about today’s youth. They excel in a sport that is physically demanding and are in better shape than 99% of their colleagues in school. They work on their technique constantly, they set the example for our younger swimmers who aspire to these higher level meets, they challenge the coaches to become better at what we do, and like the rest of our Excel swimmers, they are a joy to coach.”

For more information on swimming in Sumner County visit www.ExcelAquatics.org/age_group or call John Barnes at 615-400-6792.

· Contact Person: John Barnes 400-6792 coachbarnes@charter.net

Fall Fest 2007 Swimmers Excel

Swimmers Excel in First Meet of Season

September 24, 2007……The Summer of 2007 is officially over according to the calendar, and attention has now turned to swimming indoors. The first area-wide sanctioned meet in the USA Swimming Short Course Swim Season took place this past weekend when the Excel Aquatics Fall Fest Swim Meet was held in Brentwood TN.

Swimmers from Sumner Country ranging from Hendersonville to White House to Westmoreland and back down to Gallatin, who train with Excel Aquatics, converged on the Indoor Sports Complex in Brentwood and competed against 529 swimmers from Alabama, North Carolina, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee who made the trip to compete in the meet.

Representing Sumner County at the meet were Dylan Bollinger, Jimmie Joe Boone, Caroline Cole, Kathryn Cole, Schuyler Daniel, Griffin Garrison, Kathryn George, Alyson Gomer, Maggie Greene, Brittany Henderson, Madison Kolbe, Caroline McCrory, Katie Mize, Hannah Ray, Allison Riley, Sarah Rittenberry, Jenni Singleton, Abbie Wood, and Brittany Zobl.

Placing in the Top 8 in events during this meet were Kathryn George, Senior Girls, 2^nd Place 400 Yard Individual Medley; 3^rd Place 100 Yard Butterfly; 4^th Place 50 Yard Freestyle; 6^th Place 200 Yard Butterfly; and 7^th Place 200 Yard Backstroke. Maggie Greene, 8&Under Year Old Girls, 8^th Place 100 Yard Freestyle. Madison Kolbe, 11&12 Year Old Girls, 5^th Place 50 Yard Breaststroke; 8^th Place 50 Yard Backstroke. Katie Mize, Senior Girls, 7^th Place 100 Yard Butterfly. Brittany Zobl, 13&14 Year Old Girls, 7^th Place 50 Yard Freestyle; 7^th Place 200 Yard Backstroke; 8^th Place 100 Yard Backstroke.

Swimming in their first ever year-round USA Swimming sanctioned meet were Dylan Bollinger, an Indian Lake Summer League participant in the 10&Under Boys category; Griffin Garrison, 10&Under Boys; Maggie Greene, 8&Under Girls; and Jenni Singleton, 11&12 Year Old Girls.

“The Excel Aquatics coaches are proud of all of these swimmers.” Excel Assistant Coach John Barnes proclaimed. “Our Silver 1 squad under Coach Andreea Ianoli-Mitrofan turned in some great time drops. Those with significant double digit drops in seconds in some of their events from this group were Caroline Cole, Kathryn Cole, Schuyler Daniel, Alyson Gomer, and Allison Riley. Madison Kolbe dropped times in every one of her events, Sarah Rittenberry showed some great time drops in her Individual Medley event and Fly and Free events, while Jimmie Joe Boone did great in his Free, Breast, and IM events.”

Excel newcomer Abbie Wood, a Freshman at Pope John Paul II High School and a summer league swimmer at Blue Grass Country Club who is now training with Excel’s Gold squad, stepped up to the blocks and competed in some events that were outside her comfort zone. “Abbie has been working hard these past 4 weeks of practice, and has made some great strides already. We entered her in events such as the 200 Yard Freestyle and the 500 Yard Freestyle that would challenge her and ultimately make her a stronger swimmer in terms of experience and versatility.” Barnes explained. “Abbie did a great job in both events, and came within 92 one-hundredths of a second away from the State of Tennessee High School Championship Meet Qualifying Time in the 200 Yard Free, and 3.54 seconds away from the standard in the 500 Yard Freestyle. She is going to contribute immediately to Pope John Paul II in every one of the Freestyle events, from the 50 to the 500, and is working to refine her technique in the other strokes. In the long run that hard work will pay off and make her a well-rounded swimmer and add value to her high school team.”

“At Excel Aquatics we have multiple goals for our swimmers. We want to drop times, be competitive with anyone anywhere at any time, improve our stroke techniques, and we also want to instill a sense of hard-work into these student-athletes that they will carry with them the rest of their lives. There are no short-cuts to being a successful swimmer, and there are no short-cuts to succeeding in school and life.” Coach Barnes explained.

The next meet for these swimmers will be the Nashville Aquatic Club October Open to be held in Nashville on October 13^th and 14^th. In November the team will be traveling to the world-famous Indianapolis Natatorium, one of the fastest pools in the world.

For more information on competitive swimming visit www.ExcelAquatics.org

New SES Times from Sumner County Swimmers at Summer Sizzler

New Qualifying Time Cuts Attained at Swim Meet by Sumner County Swimmers

June 25, 2007……At the annual Summer Sizzler Meet in Nashville TN this past weekend, Schuyler Daniel and Madison Kolbe attained new Championship Meet Qualifying Times, leading a contingent of Hendersonville and Gallatin swimmers who train at the Gallatin Civic Center with Excel Aquatics.

The Summer Sizzler Meet is a three day meet swam in the “Long Course” 50 Meter format, the same pool distance the major international competitions are held, such as the Olympics. 808 athletes from 29 separate teams covering 11 states converged on Nashville to compete in what has become one of the most competitive meets in the South each summer. The meet is in the Preliminary/Finals format whereby if a swimmer qualifies in the “Prelims” in the morning, they come back to swim in the Final’s at night.

Swimming for Excel Aquatics in the meet from Sumner County were Paige Scheriger, Jimmie Joe Boone, Schuyler Daniel, Madison Kolbe, and Brittany Zobl.

Schuyler Daniel, a 9 year old from Gallatin, attained her first ever Southeastern Swimming (SES) Long Course Championship Meet Qualifying Time Cut in the 10&Under Girl’s 100 Meter Backstroke. "Schuyler is doing great, she got the cut in the 100 Back as a 9 year old, and is within striking range of her cut in the 50 Meter Backstroke. We are so proud of her and what she is doing.” Excel Assistant Coach John Barnes noted.

Madison Kolbe added her first 11&12 Year Old Girl’s Qualifying Cut in the Long Course format, doing so in the 50 Meter Breaststroke, where she cut nearly 3 seconds to finish 15^th with a time of 42 seconds and 31 one-hundreths of a second (0:42.31). “Madi had some real nice time drops in this meet. In addition to the time drops in the 50 Meter Breaststroke, she also dropped 2.82 seconds in the 100 Meter Breaststroke, and 4.44 seconds in the 100 Meter Freestyle.”

Scheriger place 5^th in the 11&12 Year Old Girl’s 100 Meter Breaststroke, and 6^th in the 50 Meter Breaststroke. “Paige did great coming back in Finals in those two events and swimming them again. She was the only 11 year old girl in the Finals for that event, the rest were 12 years old.”

Jimmie Joe Boone, competing in the 11&12 Boy’s category, dropped time in the 50 Meter Freestyle, coming in with a time of 0:35.59. “Jimmie Joe is a well rounded kid, having played multiple basketball games this past week, he turns around and competes in one of the major swim meets of the summer.”

Brittany Zobl, a rising 8^th Grader at Sumner Academy, dropped time in the 13&14 Year Old Girl’s 100 Meter Breaststroke, finishing in a time of 1:34.87. Zobl placed 11^th in the 50 Meter Freestyle. “We limited what “BZ” was swimming in this meet, in preparation for the SES Meet next month, we know what we have to work on to be prepared for the meet.”

For more information on competitive swimming visit www.ExcelAquatics.org

Cole Sisters Rock at Stars and Stripes Meet

Young Swimmers Make Their Mark at Swim Meet

May 29, 2007……The Cole Sisters of Hendersonville led a contingent of nine Sumner County residents in competing at the Excel Aquatics Stars & Stripes Long Course Swim Meet in Brentwood TN this past weekend. Joining Caroline and Kathryn Cole from Hendersonville were Jimmie Joe Boone, Madison Kolbe, Paige Scheriger, and Brittany Zobl. From Gallatin were Schuyler Daniel, Kathryn George, and Katie Mize. All nine compete for nationally recognized Excel Aquatics.

The Long Course format is swam in a 50 Meter Pool, the same pool dimensions as the Olympic Games.

Caroline Cole, a rising 5^th Grader from Indian Lake Elementary, and swimming for only the second time in the Long Course format had time drops in 7 of her 8 events, with notable drops in the Girl’s 10&Under Year Old 100 Meter Freestyle and 100 Meter Breaststroke. Caroline’s highest finish came in the 200 Meter Freestyle where she placed 13^th overall. Younger sister Kathryn, a rising 4^th Grader, had time drops in 6 of her 8 events, including a notable 7 second time drop in the Girl’s 10&Under 100 Meter Breaststroke. Kathryn’s highest finish came in both the 50 Meter Breaststroke and 100 Meter Breaststroke with a 17^th place finish in each.

“The Cole sisters swam very well in this meet. Their first Long Course format meet was only 3 weeks ago, and they had some nice time drops in that short of a span of time. That shows that they are adjusting well to the new format, and with continued focus and hard work in practice we should see them start moving up in placing.” Excel Aquatics/Sumner County Site Coordinator John Barnes noted.

“Some of the other swimmers who were more experienced in this format were focusing on obtaining some Southeastern Swimming Long Course Championship Meet Qualifying Time Standards.” Coach Barnes added.

Among those who obtained new time standards were Kathryn George (Girl’s 13&14 100 Meter Breaststroke, 13&14 200 Meter Breaststroke, 15&16 200 Meter Breaststroke, and Senior 200 Meter Breaststroke); Brittany Zobl (Girls 13&14 100 Meter Freestyle and 200 Meter Backstroke); and Paige Scheriger (Girl’s 11&12 50 Meter Backstroke, Senior 100 Meter Breaststroke).

Several other swimmers are very close to obtaining their first Long Course Qualifying Time Standard. Schuyler Daniel is 1.32 seconds away in the Girl’s 10&Under 100 Meter Backstroke, Madison Kolbe is 1.43 seconds away in the Girl’s 11&12 50 Meter Breaststroke, while Jimmie Joe Boone is 1.63 seconds away in the Boy’s 11&12 50 Meter Backstroke.

“Overall our kids swam great, these kids had a tremendous amount of fun at the meet, while applying all their coaches have taught them. We have a few more Long Course meets left this summer, with the next one being at the end of June in Nashville. In between our meets, these kids will be swimming in Summer League meets for various teams in Hendersonville and Gallatin. Seven of the nine swimmers who were in this meet as teammates, will turn around and compete against each other when Cages Bend Swim Club hosts Indian Lake Swim Club on July 10^th.”

For more information on swimming opportunities for all Sumner County residents, visit www.ExcelAquatics.org. Excel Aquatics is a USA Swimming Silver Medal Club of Excellence for the past 5 straight years.