Divisional dinner information

Please check your email for the information regarding the Divisional dinner tomorrow night. The location and directions are listed in that message, so I will not publish it here. This gathering is open to all swimmers, whether you are swimming at the meet or not. Hopefully you have already signed up so that we can get an accurate head count.

Reminder on what to bring:

8 & Unders: Desserts
9-10 Girls: Mac and Cheese
9-10 Boys: Veggies or Fruit
11-12s: Chicken
13-14 Girls: 12 cans Sierra Mist/Sprite or Lemonade
13-14 Boys: Pack of small bottled water
15-18s: Pizza

Divisional meet information

What: MCSL L Division Championship meet

When: Saturday, July 23, 2011 at 7:15 AM

Where: North Creek

Who: Wheaton Woods Divisional lineup

Other items of note:

• We have the final warm-up period, but it is only 15 minutes long, so please arrive so that you have plenty of time to get settled and are ready to get in promptly at the start of our warm-ups.
• The weather is going to be challenging, so be prepared. Being water, sunscreen, and anything that you might be able to use for shade. A folding chair might also be a good item to being as well.
• Our team area is near the entrance at the pavilion, near where the concessions will be set up. We are situated between the diving boards and the edge of the pavilion. The team area will be clearly marked.
• Parking passes have been distributed to some people already, but we still have a few to hand out. There is plenty of parking within a short walking distance of the pool even if you do not get a parking pass. Please avoid parking in the condo parking, as they are apparently aggressive about towing.
• Even if you are not swimming, please feel free to come out and cheer for the team. This is a great opportunity to show your team spirit and to support your teammates.

Wednesday morning activities

Tomorrow morning there are many special activities planned, since this will be the last practice for all those who are not swimming in Divisionals. In our usual tradition, we will be making t-shirts for the Divisional meet, and all members of the team are encouraged to join in the fun, whether they are in the meet or not. We will be making tie-dye t-shirts, so you just need to supply the t-shirt and everything else will be available at the pool.

Practice will be like the usual "Fun Friday" practice, and there will be some other special events as well, so it should be a festive morning at the pool.

Practice changes for Divisional swimmers

After our final B meet tomorrow, there will be some changes to the practice schedule. So that we may focus on preparing those who are swimming in the Divisional meet, only swimmers who are listed in the Divisional entry should attend these practices on Thursday or Friday.

Morning practices will be combined into a single session and run from 9:15 AM - 10:30 AM on Thursday and Friday. There will be a single practice on Thursday evening from 5:45 PM - 7:00 PM, and no practice on Friday evening as we have our Divisional dinner, which is open to everyone on the team.

Practice Recap for Divisional swimmers

Thursday July 21: 9:15-10:30 AM and 5:45-7:00 PM

Friday, July 22: 9:15-10:30 AM

Wednesday B meet lineup vs Tanterra

The entry for the final Wednesday night B meet and final home meet tomorrow night against Tanterra has been completed. The coaches will go over this with swimmers at practice in the morning, and since we are hosting the meet, we should be able to any changes that need to be made as the meet goes along. The entries can be viewed by clicking on one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event

Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Please arrive at Wheaton Woods pool by 5:00 PM tomorrow evening for warm-ups.

Final B meet of the 2011 season

Wednesday night is the last home meet of the season, as we will be hosting Tanterra for a B meet. The lineup will be posted tomorrow evening, but the coaches do want to remind everyone that even though this is the last B meet of the season for everyone and the last meet of the season for those swimmers who are not in the Divisional meet, the same rules for event eligibility will still apply for this final B meet of the 2011 season. You will not be eligible to swim your events from the week 5 A meet in the meet on Wednesday night. We would also like to encourage those who are swimming multiple events in the Divisional meet to come out and cheer and support the team, but those swimmers really do not need to swim in the meet.

The entry and schedule information will be posted as soon as they are finalized.

Week 5 recap

The fifth week of the dual meet season was highlighted by a busy weekend, with our final Saturday A meet of the season at Norbeck Hills and the B relay carnival at King Farm, in addition to a home B meet on Wednesday night with Manor Woods.

Dual Meet at Norbeck Hills

Norbeck Hills was ranked at the top of the division coming into the season, and they had shown their depth and speed by taking the top spot at the L division relay carnival in week 2. We had just come off one of our best performances of the season in a close loss to Montgomery Square the previous Saturday, so we were looking forward to the challenge of competing against strong competition. Both elements were present, as Norbeck Hills opened up an early lead that they gradually extended over the course of the morning, but as a team we raced well and put forth a very strong effort despite the fact that we came up on the short end of the score.

Notable Performances

• Monica Blassou with a big 2 second drop in 25 free
• Sophia Radich improving over 2 seconds in 50 free
• Katie English shaving nearly 3 seconds off her time in 100 free
• George Marcolin with an outstanding drop of almost 4 seconds in 25 back
• Annie Marcolin dropping almost 2 seconds in 50 back
• Gabriel Radich showing an big improvement of almost 5 seconds in 25 breast
• Andre Claro showing a nearly 2 second improvement in 100 breast
• Katie English posting her best time by nearly 2 seconds in 100 breast
• Maddy Keen with a big 2.5 second improvement in 25 fly
• Marcello Beatley with a huge 3 second drop in 50 fly
• Benedict Radich with a 1.5 second drop in 50 fly

Event winners

• Marcello Beatley - 11-12 50 fly
• Lena Bossler - 11-12 50 breast
• Maddy Keen - 8 & under 25 breast, 8 & under 25 fly
• Paul Rowedder - 15-18 50 fly
• Alex Wasel - 13-14 50 back
• Tim Wasel - 11-12 50 back
• Michael Zambrano - 9-10 25 breast

This meet marked the end of our dual meet schedule. While we were not able to win a dual meet this year, we did swim well throughout the season, and definitely showed improvement from week to week.

B Relay Carnival at King Farm

Our Wednesday night B league held a relay carnival on Sunday morning. This meet used the same order of events as the L Division relay carnival held during week 2 of the season, and we had a nice morning of swimming.

The primary goal was to make sure that everyone got a chance to swim in at least one relay, and that everyone raced and had fun. On that front, we were very successful. Everyone was very enthusiastic and the meet itself was a wonderful atmosphere. We were also able to put together many relay teams with siblings getting to swim together, so it was a very festive time for all of the Wheaton Woods families.

Two of our relay teams grabbed first place finishes in the B relay carnival: the mixed 11-12 200m freestyle relay of Annie Marcolin, Chrissy Wasel, Griffin Borman and Tim Wasel ; and the 11-12 girls 200m medley relay of Mary Kate Wasel, Keely Mashburn, Annie Marcolin, and Chrissy Wasel.

Congratulations to all swimmers who took part in the relay carnival. It was a very enjoyable morning for all, and thanks as always to the parent volunteers who helped to make the event a success.

L Division Championship meet lineup

The entry for the L Division Championship meet has been completed and is available for review by clicking on one of the links below. The Divisional meet is different from our usual Saturday dual meets, as we are only permitted to enter two swimmers in each event rather than three. Times for the Divisional entry must have been achieved in a Saturday dual meet, so in some cases the entry times may not reflect a best time of the season if a faster time was achieved in a Wednesday night B meet.

The entry was due at the Divisional meeting earlier this evening. The only changes that can be made from this point forward are to remove someone from the meet completely and replace them with another swimmer. Event selections for this meet are final at this point and will not change except in the case of someone in the entry being unavailable for the meet.

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

More details on the practice schedule and other activities related to the Divisional meet will be posted soon.

B Relay carnival participants

The B relay carnival is Sunday morning at King Farm. We will be making sure that everyone who is available for the meet and who wants to swim is able to swim in at least one relay. Given our size, even if you swam in a relay at the A relay carnival, we may still need some people to swim the B relay carnival so that we can field teams in all of the events.

The specific relay teams for each event are still being developed, so that information will be available later.

Here is the preliminary list of participants for Sunday. If you are on this list and will not be available, or if you are not on the list and want to swim, please let one of the coaches know at practice on Friday morning or at the pep rally on Friday afternoon.

Participant List

Aldrete, Cristina
Barboza, Bruce
Barish, Matthias
Barish, Nathaniel
Beatley, Cristian
Beatley, Marcello
Beatley, Patricio
Blassou, Monica
Bloodgood, Caroline
Borman, Griffin
Claro, Andre
Claro, Monica
D'Avella, Gianna
D'Avella, Nicholas
Davis, Christopher
Davis, Justin
English, Brigid
English, Johnny
English, Katie
Ferreira, Danny
Malusky, David
Malusky, Joseph
Marcolin, Annie
Marcolin, George
Marcolin, John Francis
Marcolin, Sarah
Martin, Molly
Marvel, Madelyn
Marx, Joseph
Mashburn, Kaelyn
Mashburn, Keely
Mashburn, Shawn
McGovern, Myriam
McGovern, Therese
Miller, Avery
Miller, Maxwell
Morales, Gabriel
Naccarato, Laura
Naccarato, Maggie
O'Brien, Andrew
O'Brien, Haley
Ourand, Kevin
Ourand, Matthew
Rowedder, Francis
Sheetz, Katie
Sheetz, Mary
Wasel, Alexandra
Wasel, Chrissy
Wasel, Mary Kate
Wasel, Paul
Wasel, Tim
Welton, Christine
Welton, Rebecca
Wilson, Gabriel
Wilson, Nastasja

The draft entry for the final Saturday dual has been completed. The coaches will go over this will swimmers at practice of Friday morning. The entries can be viewed by clicking on one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Lineup for Wednesday meet against Manor Woods

The draft entry for the Wednesday night home meet tomorrow night against Manor Woods has been completed. The coaches will go over this will swimmers at practice in the morning, and since we are hosting the meet, we can make any changes that need to be made. The entries can be viewed by clicking on one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Please arrive at Wheaton Woods pool by 5:00 PM tomorrow evening for warm-ups.

Week 4 recap

Saturday was our final home dual meet of the season, and was also the final home meet for three graduating seniors to add additional significance to the morning. Anna Barboza, Monica Claro, and Paul Rowedder were recognized during halftime for their contributions to the team and their accomplishments as they prepare to join the ranks of the Tiger alumni. This also marked the first time this season that the entire roster was available for a Saturday dual meet, so we approached the meet with high spirits and expectations for a close, competitive meet.

Based on the meet seeding, we knew that their would be cases where we were facing strong competition in certain age groups or strokes. The meet started off with an MS sweep of 11-12 100 IM, despite strong efforts from our boys, led by a best time by Thomas Moynihan. Lena Bossler led the way with a victory in the 11-12 girls 100 IM, and that set the tone for the next few events.

The Open Medley relays followed the 11-12 100 IMs, and it was our best showing of the season. The team of Bryan Van Gieson, Andre Claro, Paul Rowedder, and Joe Malusky posted a season-best time as they raced to victory. The girls followed suit, as the team of Anna Barboza, Monica Claro, Taylor Swift, and Maggie Nacarrato posted their season-best time and cruised to a big win in their relay. This started a nice run where we managed to score better than seeded as the meet entered the Freestyle events.

The 8 & under boys exemplified our strong efforts, as they faced a very competitive group from MS. Facing a possible sweep of the top 6 spots based on entry times, Joe Kilmer, Shawn Mashburn, and George Marcolin put their best forward and stepped up with a 3-4-5 finish to avoid any sweep and score some unexpected points. All posted best times, but Shawn and George both big drops in time to jump up several places. The 8 & under girls did their part, as Maddy Keen and Tali Zambrano swam their best times of the season as they took second and fourth place, respectively. Throughout the freestyle events, we continued to place better than seeded and even had a nice 1-2-3-4 finish in the 13-14 boys 50 free. Saving the best for last, our 15-18s closed out the Freestyle events with style. Paul Rowedder jumped out an early lead and never let up, posting his season-best time and taking first place in his 100 Free. Not to be outdone, Taylor Swift and Anna Barboza followed up with a 1-2 finish in the Girls 100 Free.

As we moved to the 13-14 100 IM, Bruce Barboza kept the streak going as he took first, followed by Francis Rowedder in second. The girls kept the momentum rolling as Alex Wasel raced to second place, and Nastasja Wilson dropped nearly 5 seconds to grab fourth place. Moving to the backstroke events, once again our 8 & unders showed that they were ready for the challenge. Shawn Mashburn took first place in the boys' event, and for the girls Christine Welton dropped over a second in her swim. Michael Zambrano took the top spot in the 9-10 boys event, while Sarah Marcolin and Emma Kuhnsman helped the 9-10 girls capture second and third. Across all of the age groups we raced very well, and closed out the backstroke events with a 1-2-3 sweep by Francis Rowedder, Johnny English, and Mitchell Kuhnsman in the 13-14 boys 50 back as we approached halftime.

The halftime break was focused on the celebration of our graduating seniors. Anna, Monica, and Paul were recognized with a ceremony to highlight their accomplishments, contributions to the team and to the community, and a look at their future plans. After the completion of the ceremony, we were greeted with another pleasant surprise, as the score was announced as WW 198, and MS 214. It was only a 16-point gap, which was the closest halftime margin this season.

The second half of the meet started with the 15-18 100 IM, and the boys did their best to cut into that lead, posting a 2-3-5 finish. Paul Rowedder again set the pace for WW, and swam his fastest time of the season by over 3 seconds. The girls took it to the next level with their swimming, as they swept the top 3 spots to cut the MS lead to 6 points. Taylor Swift grabbed first place, followed by Anna Barboza and Monica Claro. As the meet entered the breaststroke events, it was as exciting and competitive as a meet could be.

The 8 & under boys continued their stellar efforts, as Joe Kilmer and Shawn Mashburn took first and third place to cut the lead down to 4 points. The 8 & under girls did their part, as Therese McGovern jumped up to a second place finish with her best time, helping WW to keep the gap at 4 points. As the breaststroke events progressed, despite the good start, it became clear that MS was very strong in this area, and they pulled away a bit by the end. In the Butterfly events we closed the gap back down, but unfortunately it wasn't enough, and at the end of the meet the final score was WW 373 and MS 419.

Despite the close loss, there was a lot of great swimming that morning, and we can truly say that we put forth our best effort. While it came up a bit short on the scoreboard, we should be proud of our performance.

Notable Performances

• Mary Kate Wasel with a nearly 5 second improvement in 100 IM
• George Marcolin with an enormous drop of nearly 5 seconds in 25 free
• Shawn Mashburn with a huge drop of almost 4 seconds in 24 free
• Brigid English shaving nearly 2 seconds off her time in 50 free
• Annie Marcolin with an almost 3 second drop in 50 free
• Paul Rowedder with a 2 second improvement in 100 free
• Nastasja Wilson dropping nearly 5 seconds in 100 IM
• Thomas Moynihan cutting over seconds off in 50 back
• Matthew Ourand dropping almost 3.5 seconds in 50 back
• Molly Martin with a big 3.5 second drop in 50 back
• Paul Rowedder with another big 3 second drop in 100 IM
• Tom Kilmer with a big 4 second improvement in 25 fly
• Molly Martin with a 2 second drop in 50 fly

Clean Sweepers [a swimmer who won 3 individual events and the Individual

Medley]

• Lena Bossler - 11-12 Girls
• Taylor Swift - 15-18 Girls

Event winners

• Bruce Barboza - 13-14 100 IM, 13-14 50 free, 13-14 50 breast
• Tom Kilmer - 8 & under 25 breast, 8 & under 25 fly
• Emma Kuhnsman - 9-10 50 free
• Sarah Marcolin - 9-10 25 fly
• Shawn Mashburn - 8 & under 25 back
• Francis Rowedder - 13-14 50 back
• Paul Rowedder - 15-18 100 free, 15-18 50 fly
• Alex Wasel - 13-14 50 free
• Michael Zambrano - 9-10 25 back

Lineup for Saturday A meet against Montgomery Square

Our last home dual meet of the season is this Saturday morning against Montgomery Square. The draft lineup is complete and can be viewed at one of the links below. Please note that this is still subject to change, but it is pretty close to final. The coaches will be checking with people on some events tomorrow morning at practice.

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Lineup for Wednesday meet at Strathmore Bel Pre

The entries for the Wednesday night away meet tomorrow night at Strathmore Bel Pre have been completed. The coaches have spoken with most everyone already during practice, so the kids should be aware of what they are swimming if they are swimming the meet. The entries can be viewed by clicking on one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Please arrive at the Strathmore Bel Pre pool by 5:15 PM for warm-ups.

Information for Wednesday meet at Strathmore Bel Pre

Our dual meet tomorrow night is at Strathmore Bel Pre. They are in a different league than we are, so the order of events will be different from the usual order that we follow. This will be a nice opportunity for those who usually swim in the second half of the meet to get a chance to swim events such as fly at the beginning of the meet. The draft lineup has already been created, and the coaches will review it with those present at practice this afternoon. Once we have had a chance to check on and finalize some event selections, the final lineup will be posted for review.

Please be at Strathmore Bel Pre by 5:15 PM tomorrow, so that we have time to get settled and ready for warm-ups at 5:30 PM. The meet starts at 6:15 PM.

Directions to Strathmore Bel Pre pool
13920 Bethpage Lane, Silver Spring, MD 20906

1. Exit the Wheaton Woods parking lot and turn right onto Marianna Drive
2. Turn left onto Aspen Hill Road
3. Turn left onto Connecticut Avenue
4. Turn right onto Bel Pre Road
5. Turn right onto Rippling Brook Drive
6. Turn right onto Bethpage Lane. The Strathmore Bel Pre Pool is on the right

Week 3 recap

Week 3 of the season marked our first home Saturday meet of the season, with North Creek traveling to Wheaton Woods for the scheduled dual meet matchup. Coming off a close loss at James Creek last week, the Tigers were looking to tally the first dual meet victory of the 2011 season.

Marcello Beatley kicked off the effort with a nice finish in the 11-12 Boys 100 IM, making a strong charge in breaststroke to take the lead and then holding off a challenge in freestyle to capture first place in the opening event of the meet. The 11-12 girls followed with a strong effort as well, and we entered the 200 medley relay with the score tied after the first two events. Our boys captured the top spot in the 200 medley relay, while North Creek's girls did the same in the next event. This was a pattern that appeared throughout the meet. While our girls in all age groups swam well and posted many season-best times, North Creek was very deep on the girls side and has many swimmers who have achieved MCSL All-Star times this season. Their depth turned out to be more than we were able to match.

At the break, North Creek had opened up an 81 point lead, which was a significant but not insurmountable margin. Paul Rowedder posted a fast swim in 15-18 100 IM to lead a 2-3-4 finish to cut into the lead, but the North Creek girls, featuring some of the fastest in the entire league in their respective age groups, came right back to extend the lead that they would never relinquish.

We did match up very well in the breaststroke and fly events, and kept the final meet margin at 88 points, which means that basically we swam them even in the second half of the meet. While it was disappointing to lose, there was nothing in the way that we swam or performed that was disappointing. We simply swam against a team that was very strong in several of the age groups, so while we did our best and had a very strong overall effort, it wasn't enough to pull out a victory.

Notable Performances

• Matthew Ourand with a 2 second drop in 100 IM
• Mary Kate Wasel with a nearly 2 second drop in 100 IM
• George Marcolin with an almost 4 second improvement in 25 Free
• Gabriel Radich cutting 2 seconds off his time in 25 Free
• Nick D'Avella posting a nearly 4 second improvement in 50 Free
• Justin Davis with a big drop of over 6 seconds in 50 Free
• Gianna d'Avella with an improvement of 1.5 seconds in 50 Free
• Paul Wasel with a 2 second improvement in 100 Free
• Anna Barboza with a nearly 5 second drop in 100 Free
• Nastasja Wilson with a 2 second improvement in 100 IM
• Shawn Mashburn with an almost 2 second drop in 25 Back
• Caroline Bloodgood dropping over 3 seconds in 25 Back
• Francis Rowedder posting a season-best by nearly 3 seconds in 50 Back
• Maddy Keen dropping almost 3 seconds in 25 Breast
• Tali Zambrano improving by 2 seconds in 25 Breast
• Nastasja Wilson racing well to drop nearly 5 seconds in 50 Breast
• Tom Kilmer with a huge 6 second drop in 25 Fly
• Paul Rowedder cutting a big 3 seconds off in 100 IM
• Taylor Swift posting season-best times in all of her events
• Bruce Barboza, in his first dual meet, posting fast times in all his swims

Event winners

• Marcello Beatley, 12 & under 100 IM
• Tim Kilmer, 8 & under 25 Free
• Bruce Barboza, 13-14 50 Free
• Lena Bossler, 11-12 50 Free
• Bruce Barboza, 13-14 100 IM
• Shawn Mashburn, 8 & under 25 Back
• Francis Rowedder, 13-14 50 Back
• Tom Kilmer, 8 & under 25 Breast
• Michael Zambrano, 9-10 25 Breast
• Lena Bossler, 11-12 50 Breast
• Bruce Barboza, 13-14 50 Breast
• Tom Kilmer, 8 & under 25 Fly
• Marcello Beatley, 11-12 50 Fly
• Lena Bossler, 11-12 50 Fly
• Paul Rowedder, 15-18 50 Fly

Overall it was a strong effort by the team as a whole, and even though the team came up short in the final score, we should take pride on the effort put forth. We made the meet closer than it was seeded to be, and we raced well throughout the morning. We took care of the things that were under our control, which was how we swam and competed in each race. Since we can't control how many people are on the other team or how fast they can swim, doing the best that we can do is all that we should be worried about.

We expect a close meet this coming Saturday against Montgomery Square, so let's enjoy the long holiday weekend and then have focused practices as we prepare for our last Saturday home meet of the season.

Practice schedule update

As we prepare to celebrate Independence Day on Monday, we are going to make a few schedule changes so that everyone can enjoy the day's activities.

We will have the normal practice schedule on Monday morning.  There will be no practice in the afternoon on Monday.  There will be no practice on Tuesday morning so that all of those who stay up late for fireworks or other celebrations get a chance to catch up on sleep.  We will have practice at the normal time on Tuesday afternoon.

Schedule recap
Monday, July 4: Practice in the morning only
Tuesday, July 5: Practice in the afternoon only

Meet information for tomorrow

Please be at the pool before 8:00 AM so that you are ready to get in on-time for our warm-up session. The theme for the meet is superheroes, so put something together to show off your super powers.

Let's have a great meet tomorrow and swim fast.

Lineup for Saturday A meet against North Creek

Our first home dual meet is this Saturday morning against North Creek. The lineup is complete and can be viewed at one of the links below.

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Final lineup for Wednesday night

The entries for the home meet tomorrow night with Rockville have been completed. The entries can be viewed by clicking on one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Please arrive at the pool by 5:15 PM for warm-ups.

Wednesday B meet lineup vs Rockville

We are finalizing the lineup for Wednesday night. Given that this is usually a large meet, we are being a little more selective about events for the participants. The coaches should have something to share at morning practice tomorrow, and a copy of the draft lineup should be posted later tonight.

Week 2 recap

It was a very busy weekend, with an away meet on Saturday and then the relay carnival on Sunday at Wheaton Woods.

Dual meet at James Creek

Our week 2 dual meet brought us to face a familiar opponent in James Creek, who has been in the same division with Wheaton Woods for the past three seasons. Unlike the week 1 dual meet, this was a close meet with many great races throughout the morning. While the pre-meet scoring showed that this could be an easy win for James Creek, we came in and swam fast and challenged them in every event.

This was a very close meet, with each team showing strengths in different age groups and events. The difference in just a few age groups allowed James Creek to take a 20 point lead at the break. While we continued to swim fast and race, it just wasn't quite enough to make up the difference, and they were able to extend their lead slightly in the second half.

The final margin was 38 points, as James Creek held on to win 397 to 359. It was a fun and exciting meet, and while Wheaton Woods came up short on the scoreboard, there was a lot of great swimming by the Tigers to be proud of. As mentioned previously, the pre-meet scoring showed James Creek cruising to a big win of over 120 points, so we really did a great job to make it a close meet and to give ourselves a chance to win.

Notable Performances

• Tim Wasel with a nearly 5 second drop in 100 IM
• Shawn Mashburn with a huge drop of 5 seconds in 25 Free
• Monica Blassou with a big 3 second improvement in 25 Free
• Cristina Aldrete dropping nearly 2.5 seconds in 25 Free
• Joseph Moynihan shaving 2 seconds off in 50 Free
• Julie Kilmer with a stellar improvement of nearly 5 seconds in 50 Free
• Christina Kilmer with an amazing drop of almost 10 seconds in 50 Free
• Molly Martin with a giant 5 second drop in 50 Free
• Francis Rowedder with a huge drop of over 8 seconds in 100 IM
• Mary Rowedder with an astounding drop of 24 seconds(!) in 100 IM
• Christina Kilmer with another big improvement of nearly 5 seconds in 100 IM
• Shawn Mashburn with a nearly 4 second drop in 25 Back
• George Marcolin with a big drop of over 6 seconds in 25 Back
• Cristina Aldrete with a nice improvement of over 3 seconds in 25 Back
• Bryan Van Gieson with a strong showing, taking over 4 seconds off in 100 Back
• Jason Beam trimming over 4 seconds off his time in 100 Back
• Mitchell Kuhsman taking a big leap with an 8 second drop in 50 Back
• Gabriel Radich with a giant 5 second time drop in 25 Breast
• Annie Marcolin cruising to a nearly 4 second improvement in 50 Breast
• Christina Kilmer showing her stuff with an over 4 second drop in 50 Breast
• Paul Wasel racing to a nearly 2.5 second time drop in 100 Breast
• Danny Ferreira shaping up with a nearly 4 second improvement in 100 Breast
• Tom Kilmer trimming nearly 3 seconds in 25 Fly
• Marcello Beatley dropping over 5 seconds in 50 Fly
• Gabriel Wilson with a 5 second improvement in 50 Fly

There were many other swims that were best times for the season, and I could probably list just about every name of someone who swam at the meet as having posted a best time. It truly was a stellar performance across the entire team.

Clean Sweepers [a swimmer who won 3 individual events and the Individual

Medley]

• Lena Bossler - 11-12 Girls
• Paul Rowedder - 15-18 Boys

Event Winners

• Tom Kilmer - 8 & under 25 Breast
• Shawn Mashburn - 8 & under 25 Back
• Thomas Moynihan - 11-12 50 Breast
• Francis Rowedder - 13-14 50 Free, 13-14 50 Back, 13-14 50 Breast
• Taylor Swift - 15-18 100 Free, 15-18 100 Breast
• Bryan Van Gieson - 15-18 100 Back
• Chrissy Wasel - 11-12 50 Back

As you can see from all of the recognitions in the sections above, we swam really well at the meet. Sometimes the scoreboard doesn't really reflect how well we performed, and I believe that to be the case for this dual meet. As a team we continue to swim fast and compete despite usually having a much smaller roster than the opposing team. I am very proud of our effort and results from this meet.

Relay Carnival

Wheaton Woods hosted the L division relay carnival on Sunday morning. After our strong showing at the dual meet at James Creek on Saturday, we were hoping to make an impact on the meet. This was the first time that we had hosted a relay carnival in many years, and our parent volunteers did an amazing job of running the meet.

From a swimming perspective, we had a bit of a tough morning. While we were admittedly missing some people for the relay meet, we didn't quite manage to perform as well in the relay events as we did in our individual events at the meet on Saturday.

L Division relay carnival lineup

Here is the updated lineup for the L division relay carnival tomorrow morning at Wheaton Woods. Please plan on being at the pool at 7:45 AM for our warm-up period, which begins at 8:00 AM. We only have a very brief period for warm-ups, so please be on time.

Participant list

Barish, Matthias

Barish, Nathaniel

Beatley, Marcello

D'Avella, Gianna

Keen, Maddy

Kilmer, Christina

Kilmer, Julie

Kilmer, Michelle

Kilmer, Tom

Kuhnsman, Emma

Kuhnsman, Mitchell

Malusky, Joe

Marcolin, Annie

Marcolin, George

Marcolin, Sara

Marcolin, Sarah

Martin, Molly

Mashburn, Keely

Mashburn, Shawn

Mayer-Whittington, Deena

McGovern, Therese

Miller, Avery

O'Brien, Andrew

O'Brien, Haley

Ourand, Kevin

Ourand, Matthew

Rowedder, Francis

Rowedder, Mary

Rowedder, Paul

Sheetz, Mary

Swift, Taylor

Van Gieson, Bryan

Van Gieson, Mickey

Wasel, Chrissy

Wasel, Mary Kate

Wasel, Paul

Wasel, Tim

Wilson, Gabriel

Zambrano, Michael

Zambrano, Tali

Lineup by event

Event 1: Boys Graduated 175m Free

Kevin Ourand, Tim Wasel, Francis Rowedder, Tom Kilmer

Event 2: Girls Graduated 175m Free

Emma Kuhnsman, Chrissy Wasel, Molly Martin, Maddy Keen

Event 3: Mixed 15-18 200 Free

Paul Rowedder, Joe Malusky, Taylor Swift, Deena Mayer-Whittington

Event 4: Mixed 13-14 200 Free

Francis Rowedder, Gabriel Wilson, Mary Rowedder, Molly Martin

Event 5: Mixed 8 & under 100 Free

Tom Kilmer, Nathaniel Barish, Maddy Keen, Tali Zambrano

Event 6: Mixed 9-10 200 Free

Kevin Ourand, Michael Zambrano, Emma Kuhnsman, Julie Kilmer

Event 7: Mixed 11-12 200 Free

Matthew Ourand, Tim Wasel, Chrissy Wasel, Annie Marcolin

Event 8: Boys Open 200 Medley

Bryan Van Gieson, Paul Wasel, Paul Rowedder, Joe Malusky

Event 9: Girls Open 200 Medley

Haley O'Brien, Deena Mayer-Whittington, Taylor Swift, Mary Kate Wasel

Event 10: Boys 14 & under 100 graduated Medley

Francis Rowedder, Tom Kilmer, Avery Miller, Tim Wasel

Event 11: Girls 14 & under 100 graduated Medley

Chrissy Wasel, Therese McGovern, Sarah Marcolin, Molly Martin

-- 10 minute break --

Event 12: Boys 8 & under 100 Medley

George Marcolin, Shawn Mashburn, Tom Kilmer, Nathaniel Barish

Event 13: Girls 8 & under 100 Medley

Mary Sheetz, Therese McGovern, Maddy Keen, Tali Zambrano

Event 14: Boys 9-10 100 Medley

Matthias Barish, Michael Zambrano, Avery Miller, Kevin Ourand

Event 15: Girls 9-10 100 Medley

Emma Kuhnsman, Michelle Kilmer, Sara Marcolin, Julie Kilmer

Event 16: Mixed 15-18 200 Medley

Bryan Van Gieson, Taylor Swift, Paul Rowedder, Deena Mayer-Whittington

Event 17: Boys 11-12 200 Medley

Tim Wasel, Matthew Ourand, Marcello Beatley, Andrew O'Brien

Event 18: Girls 11-12 200 Medley

Annie Marcolin, Mary Kate Wasel, Chrissy Wasel, Gianna D'Avella

Event 19: Boys 13-14 200 Medley

Mitchell Kuhnsman, Francis Rowedder, Gabriel Wilson, Mickey Van Gieson

Event 20: Girls 13-14 200 Medley

Keely Mashburn, Christina Kilmer, Molly Martin, Mary Rowedder

-- 10 minute break --

Event 21: Boys Crescendo 250 Free

Tom Kilmer, Tim Wasel, Paul Rowedder, Francis Rowedder, Kevin Ourand

Event 22: Girls Crescendo 250 Free

Maddy Keen, Chrissy Wasel, Taylor Swift, Molly Martin, Emma Kuhnsman

Information for James Creek dual meet

We will meet at Wheaton Woods at 7:45 AM to caravan up to James Creek in Olney. This is a pretty straight shot up Georgia Avenue, so we don't need too long to get there. If you are going directly to the James Creek pool, please be there by 8:15 AM. Our warm-ups start right after that, so please be on time so we can make sure that we have everyone for the meet.

Directions to James Creek

1. Take Georgia Ave North
2. Follow through the intersection of 108 (Sandy Spring Rd) and Georgia Ave
3. Proceed 1/4 mile and turn right on Prince Phillip
4. Turn left on Lindenwood Road
5. Pool is on the right

Tentative Relay Carnival lineup

Here are the tentative lineups for the relay carnival. These are subject to change based on the results from the meet on Saturday morning and also if there availability issues.

Event 1: Boys Graduated 175m Free

Kevin Ourand, Matthew Ourand, Francis Rowedder, Tom Kilmer

Event 2: Girls Graduated 175m Free

Sara Marcolin, Chrissy Wasel, Molly Martin, Tali Zambrano

Event 3: Mixed 15-18 200 Free

Paul Rowedder, Bryan Van Gieson, Taylor Swift, Deena Mayer-Whittington

Event 4: Mixed 13-14 200 Free

Francis Rowedder, Gabriel Wilson, Mary Rowedder, Molly Martin

Event 5: Mixed 8 & under 100 Free

Tom Kilmer, Nathaniel Barish, Maddy Keen, Tali Zambrano

Event 6: Mixed 9-10 200 Free

Kevin Ourand, Avery Miller, Sara Marcolin, Emma Kuhnsman

Event 7: Mixed 11-12 200 Free

Matthew Ourand, Tim Wasel, Chrissy Wasel, Mary Kate Wasel

Event 8: Boys Open 200 Medley

Bryan Van Gieson, Paul Wasel, Paul Rowedder, Joe Malusky

Event 9: Girls Open 200 Medley

Haley O'Brien, Deena Mayer-Whittington, Taylor Swift, Annie Marcolin

Event 10: Boys 14 & under 100 graduated Medley

Francis Rowedder, Tom Kilmer, Avery Miller, Matthew Ourand

Event 11: Girls 14 & under 100 graduated Medley

Chrissy Wasel, Sarah Marcolin, Molly Martin, Tali Zambrano

-- 10 minute break --

Event 12: Boys 8 & under 100 Medley

Nathaniel Barish, Shawn Mashburn, Tom Kilmer, Gabriel Radich

Event 13: Girls 8 & under 100 Medley

Mary Sheetz, Therese McGovern, Maddy Keen, Tali Zambrano

Event 14: Boys 9-10 100 Medley

Matthias Barish, Kevin Ourand, Avery Miller, Michael Zambrano

Event 15: Girls 9-10 100 Medley

Emma Kuhnsman, Sara Marcolin, Maddy Marvel, Julie Kilmer

Event 16: Mixed 15-18 200 Medley

Bryan Van Gieson, Taylor Swift, Paul Rowedder, Deena Mayer-Whittington

Event 17: Boys 11-12 200 Medley

Tim Wasel, Matthew Ourand, Marcello Beatley, Andrew O'Brien

Event 18: Girls 11-12 200 Medley

Annie Marcolin, Mary Kate Wasel, Chrissy Wasel, Gianna D'Avella

Event 19: Boys 13-14 200 Medley

Francis Rowedder, Gabriel Wilson, Mickey Van Gieson, Mitchell Kuhnsman

Event 20: Girls 13-14 200 Medley

Keely Mashburn, Christina Kilmer, Molly Martin, Mary Rowedder

-- 10 minute break --

Event 21: Boys Crescendo 250 Free

Tom Kilmer, Matthew Ourand, Paul Rowedder, Francis Rowedder, Kevin Ourand

Event 22: Girls Crescendo 250 Free

Tali Zambrano, Chrissy Wasel, Taylor Swift, Molly Martin, Emma Kuhnsman

Relay Carnival reminder

We are hosting the L division relay meet this coming Sunday morning, the 26th of June. The relay carnival is relatively early this year due to the desire to avoid any conflicts with the weekend around July 4th. This should be an exciting event, providing a great opportunity for fun, fast swimming, and a chance to raise some funds as well. As always, we will need help from parents and other volunteers to make the event a success.

As for the list of participants, anyone who is swimming in the dual meet on Saturday should check to see if they are in the relay meet on Sunday. Given the size of our team, it may be the case where we need someone who might not expect to be in the meet. The coaches are working on a draft lineup for the relay meet, and we should be able to let people know tomorrow if we expect them to swim on Sunday.

Lineup for Saturday A meet at James Creek

The lineup for the Saturday dual meet at James Creek is complete. You can view the specifics by clicking on one of the links below. We are expecting a close meet, as our experience last weekend was an outlier and will not be something that we see again in our dual meets for the remainder of this season. As always, if you see something in the lineup that may be a problem, please let me know right away, such as someone in entered in the meet who will not be available.

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Revised entry for tomorrow's meet posted

The lineup for tomorrow night has been updated with some changes that were requested at practice and via email. Please see the original post for the lineup, as the reports have been updated to reflect the most recent requests, or you use the links below.

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Information for the Wednesday meet vs Long Branch

This is a home meet tomorrow, our first home meet of the season, so let's make a strong showing. Please be at the pool no later than 5:15 PM for warm-ups. The meet is scheduled to start at 6:15 PM. With the weather forecast showing the threat of afternoon thunderstorms, we want to make sure that we get the meet started on time.

Recap of meet schedule

Wheaton Woods swimmers and parent volunteers: 5:15 PM arrival

Meet start time: 6:15 PM

See you there!

Wednesday B meet lineup vs Long Branch

For the first home B meet on Wednesday, June 22, the lineup for WW can be viewed by clicking on one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Changes can be made at the meet if necessary, but this lineup reflects the events that the coaches would like to each individual to swim.

Events for the week of June 20

This is a busy week for the swim team. Our first B meet (and first home meet) is on Wednesday night, our second dual A meet is Saturday morning, and then the L Division Relay Carnival on Sunday morning at Wheaton Woods completes a very full week of events.

The lineup for the meet Wednesday night should be posted later this evening. The coaches will also be letting each swimmer know during practice what events they are scheduled to swim at the B meet. Just as a reminder, the usual rule for entries in our B meets is that swimmers may not swim the same events on Wednesday night that they swam at the previous Saturday meet. If a swimmer was disqualified in an event at the Saturday meet, they may be entered in that event on the following Wednesday night at the discretion of the coaching staff.

If you know you will not be available for any of the events this week and you have not already let us know, please do so as soon as possible. Notification by e-mail is always helpful. Thanks to all of those who have already notified us regarding your availability for events during the season.

Let's have a great week of practice and get ready for all of the events that are scheduled for the week.

Practice changes for the week of June 20

Since we have such a large number of participants in VBS at St. Jude, we will be modifying the practice schedule for this week only. This only affects morning practices. Afternoon practices will be unchanged.

Morning practice schedule

8:00 - 8:45 AM for VBS participants

8:15 - 9:30 for 13 & older swimmers

9:00 - 10:00 for all other 12 & unders

Please note this time change and make sure that everyone is picked up from practice at 10. Also, just a reminder that pre-team swimmers should not be at morning practices. They should only be attending in the afternoons.

Saturday A meet recap

The first dual meet of the season saw the WWST Tigers head out to Germantown to swim against Cloppers Mill. The morning was gray and threatening to rain, but neither the weather nor the strong competition from the home team kept our team from putting forth a very strong showing. While the final score of the meet showed it to be a big win for the home team, that was not a reflection of how our team performed, but rather a reflection on the changes that Clopper Mill underwent prior to the start of the season.

The first event, the 12 & under Boys 100 IM, was typical of how the meet went on Saturday. Thomas Moynihan and and Tim Wasel both posted enormous drops in time from their efforts at time trials on the previous Saturday, with Thomas dropping nearly 9 seconds and Tim improving by nearly 12 seconds. However, they were only able to place third and fourth respectively in the event. Cloppers Mill set a bunch of team and pool records during the meet, so while many swims for Wheaton Woods showed major improvements in performance, that improvement in time was not always reflected in how the Tigers placed in an event.

The other coaches and I were very proud of how we as a team conducted ourselves and continued to race and compete throughout the meet, even when it was apparent that outcome of the meet was not going to be in doubt. We showed good sportsmanship and showed that we can handle a setback, which was something that we never had to deal with during our perfect run last season.

Notable Performances

In addition to the great 100 IM swims by Thomas Moynihan and Tim Wasel, there are some other swims that deserve some special recognition. The time improvements are in comparison to the times that were swum at time trials the week before.

• George Marcolin with an improvement of over 5 seconds in 25 free
• Mary Sheetz with an amazing time drop of over 15 seconds in 25 free
• Joseph Moynihan with a huge drop of 18 seconds in 50 free
• Matthias Barish with a 9 second improvement in 50 free
• Mitchell Kuhnsman with a 5 second drop in 50 free
• Mary Rowedder with a nice 5 second improvement in 50 free
• Alex Wasel with a 4 second improvement in 100 IM
• Shawn Mashburn with a 5 second drop in 25 back
• Matthew Ourand with a 7 second drop in 50 back
• Tim Wasel with a 7 second drop in 50 back
• Marcello Beatley with a 5 second drop in 50 back
• Thomas Moynihan with a 5 second drop in 50 breast
• Michael Moynihan with a nearly 5 second improvement in 50 breast
• Brigid English with a 3 second drop in 25 fly
• Thomas Moynihan with a 6 second improvement in 50 fly
• Benedict Radich with a big 8 second improvement in 50 fly
• John Francis Marcolin with a large 8 second drop in 50 fly

These were just the big time drops that we showed. There were many other improvements of "only" a second or two, which are of course significant improvements n their own right. As mentioned before, this was a very strong showing the by team as a whole. There were also very strong performances by some people who had been away or who were not able to attend time trials.

Event Winners

Despite the touch competition, we were able to grab some first-place finishes.

• Kevin Ourand, 9-10 50 free
• Tom Kilmer, 8 & under 25 breast
• Johnny English, 13-14 50 breast
• Taylor Swift, 15-18 100 breast
• Avery Miller, 9-10 25 fly

Overall, we had a good meet in that we took care of the things that we could control. We improved our times and we raced well in each event, which is all we can do as a team. We can't change what the other team can do, so we focus on taking care of our business at the meet. As long as we do that, then we will give ourselves a chance to win.

This is a busy week with another dual meet on Saturday and the relay carnival on Sunday. Let's have a great week of practice and be ready for the next challenge.

Lineup for Saturday A meet at Clopper's Mill

The lineup is complete and can be viewed by clicking one of the links below:

Wheaton Woods lineup by event
Wheaton Woods lineup by name

Just about everyone is swimming at least one event at the meet, so it will truly be a total team effort. Let's swim fast and have fun tomorrow.

Dual meet information

We will meet at the pool at 7:15 AM tomorrow to caravan up to Clopper's Mill for the meet tomorrow morning. If you do not wish to caravan to the meet, then please be at Clopper's mill pool no later than 8:00 AM. Directions to the pool are in the sidebar under the schedule listing, but they are reported here for your convenience.


Directions to Clopper's Mill
13665 Ansel Terrace, Germantown, MD 20874

1. Take I-270 to Exit 9B, Sam Eig Highway (West)
2. Follow Sam Eig Hwy to its end
3. Bear Right on Great Seneca Highway
4. Follow Great Seneca Highway approx. 5 miles
5. Turn left onto Richter Farm Road
6. Park in the Northwest High School Stadium Lot (on the right)
7. Pool is across Richter Farm Road at the corner of Shearwater Place and Ansel Terrace

Pep rally tonight

Our pep rally is tonight at 6 PM at the pool to celebrate the start of the dual meet season tomorrow. Parent volunteers are working to prepare a pasta dinner for the team, and we are grateful for their efforts that are making this event happen. Let's enjoy ourselves tonight, get excited for the meet, and have fun swimming fast tomorrow.

The pep rally on Friday nights will be in place of the usual afternoon practices. There will be no regular practice on Friday nights, but the coaches may pull some people aside to work on specific things either before or after the pep rally as time permits.

Morning practice starts tomorrow

Practice schedule

8:15 AM - 9:30 AM for 13 & older

9:30 AM - 10:30 AM for 12 & unders

We are planning a few special items to kick off our Friday fun days. See you tomorrow morning.

Morning practices start Friday

Morning practices start on Friday, June 17. There was an earlier message that went out that indicated that morning practices would start Thursday, but this is not correct. No morning practice tomorrow.

Dual meet lineups

As was the case last year, almost everyone on the team will get an opportunity to swim in the Saturday dual meets. Unless you are told that you are not in the lineup, you should consider yourself to be needed for the meet. Lineups are exchanged no later that noon on Fridays, so the final lineup should be ready and posted on Thursdays.

If you know that you will not be available for a meet, please let me know as soon as possible. Many thanks to those who have already let me know about travel plans or other times when you will not be able to participate in the Saturday meets. We only get a limited number of scratches, so it is preferable to know before the meet rather than on the day of the meet.

Time trials makeup

For those who missed Time Trials on Saturday, you will have the opportunity to swim for time at practice tomorrow evening. Anyone that we are not able to get tomorrow will get one more chance on Thursday, but at that point we need to get the meet lineup completed, so please get to practice on one of those nights if you need to be timed.

Weekend recap

It was a good start to the summer meet season with Time Trials on Saturday morning. The meet ran well, ran fast, and there were a lot of good swims. With many new faces on the volunteer side, we ran a great meet and had a good rehearsal for future dual meets.

I will be posting the results of time trials and the draft lineup for the first dual meet in the the next few days. We have some people who missed time trials, so we will try to get some times for them during practice this week. Please let one of the coaches know if you will not be available for the meet on Saturday. Given the size of our team, just about everyone can expect to swim in the Saturday meets, so it is important that we know if you will not be available.

'Prep' rally aka meeting for parents

I know there is a little confusion about tomorrow night, so let me clarify the planned activities once again. Our new team rep, Rich Barish, is holding a meeting for parents and volunteers at the pool at 6 PM on Friday. This is what he termed his "prep rally" in his email, and is not the usual pre-meet pep rally. Practices will be held on the normal schedule while parents are meeting with Rich.

The first pre-meet social event will take place on Friday, June 17. I hope this clears up any confusion.

Time trials and other notes

We will have regular practice on Friday afternoon. There will not be a pep rally prior to time trials, as we will have the first one prior to our first Saturday dual meet.

Parents, we will need your help on Saturday morning to run the time trials. The meet should run fairly quickly, but we can't do it without volunteers. Please check in with Rich Barish to let him know how you will be able to help out.
If you have not completed and turned in your registration forms, please do so as soon as possible. We need to get our roster updated prior to the start of the dual meet season.

Please encourage anyone you know who might like to try the swim team or to join the pool to come check things out. While we are doing well in terms of numbers, we are thin in a few age groups so we would love to have new faces join us.

Suit orders have been turned in to Aardvark. If you did not get your order in with this batch, you can go to the Aardvark retail store on Rockville Pike and order your suit at the store. We also have team caps on order, which will be made available as soon as they are ready.

Friday night June 10

Just a clarification in case there was any confusion - we will be following the regular practice on Friday night for all age groups. While it is the night before time trials, we want to use the available practice time to continue to prepare for the first dual meet on June 17. Friday night pep rallies will start on June 16, so no pep rally this week, just regular practice.

Latest news

After a good first week of practice, we are getting fully into the swing of things as we look ahead to time trials this weekend. Please let me know if you will not be available for time trials. With the many changes in our volunteer roles, this is a great opportunity to get comfortable with running the meet before we start our regular meet schedule.

Please remember to get your registration forms completed and turned in to Rich Barish. You may also give them to one of the coaches during practice.

Practice has started!

The first day of practice is in the books, and it was great to see so many returning swimmers as well as a few faces in the water. No worries about the water being cold, as our unseasonably warm weather has made the water the place to be. We will continue with afternoon practices through this week and through almost all of next week until we start our mornings on June 17.

Let's get the word out to everyone and make sure that we get everyone we can to join in with the fun. It is going to be another fun and exciting summer of swimming.

2011 Season is Almost Here

It's that time of year - as school winds down and the weather warms up - to get ready for the summer swim season. Holding with our tradition, we will kick off the season with an ice cream social at the pool on Friday, May 27, 2011. Hope to see all of you there, and I am really looking forward to another fun and successful swim season.