PNS Senior Championships Meet Recap

The Wave Senior Team (High School, Senior 1, and Senior Epic) kicked off the Championship Meet season with an absolute bang. Wave swimmers did an amazing job of stepping up and putting everything they had into their races. All the groups have trained very hard this season, and it was incredible to see it pay off in such a big way. For their efforts, our swimmers walked away from the meet with new Team Records, new Senior Zones cuts, Senior Sectionals cuts, Winter Juniors cuts, and Summer Juniors cuts. Our swimmers raced so well over the weekend that several move up from their entry ranking to make finals. We entered the meet expecting around 15 finals swims for the whole meet and blew those expectations away by the end of the second day. We are all very proud of the Senior swimmers and are excited to see what Wave does at the upcoming meets. GO WAVE!!

Senior 1

The Senior 1 group had 10 swimmers compete at the Long Course Senior Championships. Everyone who competed did an amazing job stepping up and racing. This group has put in some serious work, and it was a pleasure to see them rewarded in such a big way. We had two swimmers qualify for the first Senior Zones meet, two swimmers picked up new Senior Zones cuts, and two swimmers qualified for finals. It was a great way to spend the weekend and to kick off our Championship Meets. Next up we have swimmers competing at Age Group Champs and Senior Zones. Looking forward to a fantastic end to an already awesome year.

• Bradley Barkans entered the meet with one goal: to qualify for Senior Zones. He had an awesome lead off leg of the 800 Free Relay but missed the cut by just 0.01 second. Knowing that he could do it he dialed in and absolutely crushed it in the individual 200, going a half second faster than the day before and earning him his first Zones qualifying time. He was all smiles afterwards which led to him turning in a stellar performance in the 200 Back, dropping 5 seconds, to end his meet. Bradley scored 2 points for Wave.
• Logan Downing has been working very hard to improve his sprint freestyle. The work he has put in paid off in leagues as he crushed his old best times in both the 50 and 100 Free, breaking the 1:00 barrier in the 100 for the first time and getting a Senior Zones qualifying time in the 50. He wasn’t content to just improve in freestyle though as his breaststroke races were on point as well. He had a strong 100 going right at his best time then showed improved endurance in the 200 splitting the race well and dropping 1 second.
• Bennett Geitz only swam two races as his main focus is Age Group Champs. He was hoping to get himself some new Senior Zones cuts to up his event number at that meet. He came into the meet ready to race and turned in an awesome performance in his 400 IM, dropping 9 seconds, qualifying for Zones, and getting a AAA time. He started the race with a strong best time in his 100 Fly then really turned on the jets in the breaststroke leg overtaking all but one swimmer in the field then closed with a strong freestyle leg.
• Peter Hansen was another swimmer with one primary goal of qualifying for Senior Zones. He led off the 200 Free Relay and blazed his way to a huge 1 second drop and his first Senior Zones cut. He was ecstatic afterwards and used that momentum to carry him through the rest of the meet. On the final day, he had another tall task in the 100 Free, he more than rose to the occasion sprinting his way home to a 3-second drop and his first sub 1:00.
• Cora Ledrick had a tough order of events, but she didn’t let that scare her. She started the meet off as a strong member of the 800 Free Relay helping that relay move up and score points for the team. She has been shifting her gear more towards sprint training recently and that paid off in her shorter races. She had a strong 200 Free going just off her best. As a member of the 200 Free Relay team she turned in a blazing fast 50 Free time and helped that relay score points for the team as well. She is excited to swim some shorter races at her next meet and really put her speed on display. Cora scored 3.5 points for Wave.
• Amelia Pletosu was one of the youngest swimmers in the meet. She turned in several strong swims resulting in solid drops in both the 200 Fly and 400 IM. Her most exciting race came in the 1500 Free as she was one of the Top 8 swimmers she got the chance to swim the race in finals in front of the entire crowd. Not willing to let the moment get the best of her she stepped up and swam an incredible race, dropping 11 seconds and moving up a spot to finish 6^th overall as the youngest swimmer in the event. Amelia scored 16 points for Wave.
• Ani Purkayastha had a very strong meet, going best times in all but one of her races. She has been working hard on keeping her tempo up in backstroke as she usually relies heavily on the walls and there aren’t as many. That work really paid off as she sped her way to a 2-second drop in the 100 Back, she looked strong the whole way and kept her arms moving fast all the way to the finish. Her work would also help her 200 Back: during prelims she turned in a gutsy last 100 that resulted in a 2-second drop and a trip to finals.
• Amaris Rus was coming off a wrist injury and made the absolute most out of the training he has put in. He really went for it in the 100 Fly taking it out with great speed then doing a fantastic job of holding on to come home strong and give him a half second drop. He then turned in a strong 200 Fly staying composed and splitting the race incredibly well giving him another half second drop.
• Josh Rus had been on fire at the meets leading up to this and just continued to ride the hot streak. He turned in best times in all but one of his events, looking strong in all his races. He had a monster swim in the 400 IM using a stellar backstroke leg and an improved breaststroke to give himself a 10-second drop. Not done there he went after it in the 400 Free pushing himself to the finish and another 4-second drop, the third drop in three swims in the event.
• Gabe Traina came into the meet riding his own wave of success at the past meets. He kept the good vibes rolling as he turned in several best times over the weekend. He started off with a strong 200 Free where after going out just a little fast he was still able to hold on and finish strong resulting in a 1-second drop. He had an amazing 50 Free where after a bit of a slow start he sprinted hard to the finish and picked up his Senior Zones cut in the event. He is excited to continue to show off his speed in the short races.

High School

• Rik Brusilovski had with no time drops. These were all great swims though.
• Feynman Chen had no time drops but really raced hard in all three of the individual events. He swam a 50 fly for the A medley relay and second leg of the B 400 free relay.
• Andy Wang -0.57 in 100 Fly for an A time. -0.68 in his 100 Free for an A time. He also qualified to swim his 100 Free as a bonus event in Zones. He swam the 50 Fly in the 200 Medley Relay.

Senior Epic

Senior Epic swam extremely well at the LC Senior Champs and most of the swimmers crushed their times. We had several new cuts achieved, including Summer Junior Nationals, Summer and Spring Sectionals, Senior Zones cuts, a good number of swimmers coming back for finals and tons of personal best times during the week. And a huge shout out to Jaiden Sreenivasan for breaking the Team Open Record in the 200 Free and 200 Breast at Champs!

• Anouk Balog had a consistent meet and swam four events. She had a strong 200 Fly in prelims where she swam right at her time and qualified for finals in one of her strongest events. Anouk went a best time in the 200 Free, dropping half second in a consistent race from beginning to end.
• Megan Traina had a strong meet and went three best times. Her outstanding swim was the 200 Free where she looked good the entire race and dropped 2.73 seconds. She was also happy to go a best time in one of her favorite events, the 100 Back where she dropped 0.59 second. Megan scored 3.5 points for Wave.
• Bianca Bensen went best times in 3 of 4 events. Her outstanding swim was the 200 Back where she dominated her race, dropped 2.32 seconds and qualified for the A final, finishing the race in 8^th place in the evening. Bianca scored 11 points for Wave.
• Caroline Bryant swam three events at Champs and went a best time in the 100 Back dropping almost 3 seconds from her previous time. She also had a strong 50 Free where she has been working on her stroke tempo during the race and was able to do it at Champs. Caroline scored 0.5 points for Wave.
• Daniel Xia dominated the meet, went five lifetime bests and qualified for finals in all events he did at Champs. Among many great results, his strongest races were the 100 Free where he won the C final with an expressive 1.66-second drop and the 200 IM where he was able to swim a stronger first half that helped him drop a full 3 seconds from his previous time. Daniel scored 42 points for Wave.
• Anderson Quinn had a fantastic meet and went five best times! He has been working on his race strategies and was able to put together a great 400 Free dropping 8.5 seconds from a best time he did just a few weeks before at the Seattle Open. He also qualified for finals in the 400 IM with a total of 7.68-second drop.
• Ethan Na was feeling fast at Champs and had an amazing meet. He got his first ever Summer Sectionals cut in the 50 Free and smashed his 100 Free time where he qualified for finals and dropped 1.28 seconds, got a Spring Sectionals cut and a AAA Time. Ethan scored 11 points for Wave.
• Noah Sattari swam only two events at Champs and was able to put together a solid 100 Fly where he had a strong start and fast underwater dolphin kicks.
• Oleg Arlouski crushed the freestyle distance events and went lifetime bests and a AAA time in both the 400 and 800 Free. In the 400 Free, he smashed his time with a huge 15.84-second drop finishing in 13^thplace. In the 800 Free, he had an impressive 35-second drop, almost breaking the 9:00 barrier and scoring points for the team with his 15^th place. He also finished in 5^th place in the 200 Fly swimming right at his time on the last day. Oleg scored 27 points for Wave.
• Nik Brusilovski had an excellent meet going four personal bests, swimming two finals (200 & 1500 Free) and earning another two AAA times. Among many great swims, his strongest event was the 1500 Free where he held a strong pace for the entire race to finish in 4^th place with a solid 8.45-second drop. Nik scored 21 points for Wave.
• Henry Geitz had an amazing meet and went personal best times in four events. His outstanding swim was the 400 IM where he dropped 11 seconds, picked his Summer Sectionals cuts, a AAA Time and qualified for finals. At finals, he finished 13^th. He also got another Summer Sectionals cut in the 800 Free where he dropped 6 seconds. Henry scored 6 points for Wave.
• Boston Borg swam a best time in the 100 Free, shaving off 0.36. He also had a fundamental role in the 400 Free Relay stepping up to swim the relay at the last minute to help his team.
• Jaiden Sreenivasan swam two events at Champs and crushed it. He got two new Summer Junior Nationals cuts in both the 200 Free and 200 Breast. He also broke the Team Open Record and got a AAAA Time in both events in the process. In the 200 Free, he dropped 5 seconds to finish strong in 3^rd place. In the 200 Breast, he has been improving a lot recently and dropped 3.14 seconds to place 2^nd at finals. Jaiden scored 40 points for Wave.

Graduating Seniors

• Jenna Kimborowicz went two best times at Champs and was excited to qualify for finals in the 400 Free. Then she came back strong in the evening and had an excellent 400 beating a time that she swam three years ago! She also went a best time in the 200 Free dropping 0.69. Jenna scored 5 points for Wave.
• Rina Yuan has been recovering from an illness and swam only two events at Champs. Her strongest swim was the 50 Free. She had the opportunity to swim it twice at the meet, first leading off the 200 Free Relay, then again in the individual race. She was able to make adjustments from one race to the other and swam less than a second off her best time in her second shot. Rina scored 0.5 points for Wave.
• Kevin Flannery went lifetime bests in his main events, the 100 & 200 Breast. He hasn’t been swimming breaststroke recently due to a knee injury and was happily surprised with his times at the meet. He dropped almost four seconds in the 200 Breast, looking good for the entire race and finishing strong.
• Kieran O’Gorman went 5 of 5 personal bests at Champs, dropping time in all three backstroke events (50, 100 & 200) and demonstrated great improvement in his breaststroke where he had his biggest time drops in the 100 & 200 Breast.
• Daniel Cho went lifetime bests in all three events. He qualified for finals in both the 100 & 200 Breast. In the 100 Breast, he earned his first AAA Time while in the 200 Breast he was able to go a best time in the morning and go even faster in finals.

Congrats for a strong season of hard work and goals achieved! Good luck to our graduating seniors! We wish you all the best in your new journey and I hope to see you in the pool again in the near future!

Top 16 Finishes

Individual

• Oleg Arlouski – 5^th 200 Fly, 13^th 800 Free, 15^th 400 Free
• Bianca Bensen – 8^th 200 Back
• Nik Brusilovskyi – 4^th 1500 Free, 14^th 200 Free
• Henry Geitz – 13^th 400 IM
• Jenna Kimborowicz – 15^th 800 Free
• Amelia Pletosu – 6^th 1500 Free
• Jaiden Sreenivasan – 2^nd 200 Breast, 3^rd 200 Free
• Daniel Xia – 5^th 200 Breast, 8^th 200 IM, 11^th 100 Breast

Relay

• 4^th - Male 400 Medley – Jaiden Sreenivasan, Daniel Xia, Oleg Arlouski, Ethan Na
• 8^th – Female 800 Free – Cora Ledrick, Megan Traina, Amelia Pletosu, Jenna Kimborowicz
• 13^th – Male 400 Free – Nik Brusilovskyi, Ethan, Henry Geitz, Daniel X
• 13^th – Male 800 Free – Bradley Barkans, Nik, Daniel X, Ethan
• 16^th – Female 200 Free – Rina Yuan, Cora, Caroline Bryant, Megan

New US Motivational Times

 AAAA 

• Jaiden Sreenivasan – 200 Breast, 200 Free

 AAA 

• Oleg Arlouski – 400 & 800 Free
• Nik Brusilovskyi – 100 Fly, 100 Free
• Bennett Geitz – 400 IM
• Henry Geitz – 400 IM
• Ethan Na – 100 Free
• Daniel Xia – 100 & 200 Free

 AA 

• Quinn Anderson – 100 & 400 Free, 200 & 400 IM
• Oleg Arlouski – 400 IM
• Bianca Bensen – 100 Back
• Logan Downing – 50 Free
• Kevin Flannery – 100 & 200 Breast
• Peter Hansen – 50 Free
• Ani Purkayastha – 100 Back
• Gabe Traina – 50 Free
• Megan Traina – 100 Back

 A 

• Quinn Anderson – 100 Fly
• Bradley Barkans – 200 Back
• Henry Geitz – 200 Fly
• Peter Hansen – 100 Free
• Ethan Na – 400 IM
• Keiran O’Gorman – 100 Breast
• Joshua Rus – 400 IM
• Andy Wang – 100 Free

 BB 

• Caroline Bryant – 100 Back

WAVE ON 3!!