November AGI & Distance Meet Recaps

Wave swimmers showed up big at Kamiak High School for the November Age Group Invitational, our last meet before December championships! This was our first big qualifying meet of the season and every workout group was well represented. A huge shout out to Addy Clarke, who earned her first-ever AAAA time in the 50 Free!

The Friday night before AGI, we had a distance meet for Select members who were trying to get Champs cuts in the 500 or 1650 Free. A big shout out to those who were racing either event for the first time!

Black Group

We had 22 swimmers from Black Group qualify for the meet, which is awesome, 18 of whom attended the meet. This was a big deal for them, so there were a ton of nerves on the pool deck. The kids worked to get settled and focused on swimming their races like they have been working on at practice which I think helped them out.

• Starting off my recap with a bang, Aaradhya Bharadwaj had two very impressive swims, working on her freestyle to lengthen her strokes out and swimming an awesome 36.6 in her 50 Free as a result. Her 50 Breast was awesome too with a big drop there and just missed breaking :50.
• Martin Li had just one race, and he gave it everything, racing hard for a huge drop of more than 4 seconds in his 50 Back.
• Ryan Hu was the lone swimmer from Black Group B, and he did really well in all three races. I was especially impressed with his 100 Free where he dropped 2.4 seconds.
• Amelia Horng had just one race. The coaches have been super impressed with her practice efforts and the visible improvements she’s been making and those improvements showed in her race with a great swim in her 50 Breast as she dropped 1.6 seconds.
• Hudson Porter is another practice work horse who just keeps improving and those efforts showed at the meet in his two races: 50 Free (-2.5 seconds) and 50 Back (-3.6 seconds).
• Yusuf Cavcic had just one race, his 50 Back. He’s done incredibly well so far with his limited experience, and the coaches believe he’ll just keep getting better and better. His 50 Back was a very nice swim and a new best time in the event by more than 1 second.

White Group

It has been a few weeks since the White Group had a meet. It was great to see a big chunk of the group at the AGI Meet with qualifying times ranging from a single swim to a full slate of six events. The group has really shown a lot of growth over the past few months, and we are excited to see where these athletes go over the coming years. Great Job to the White Group athletes. Standout Swims of the Meet:

A Group

• Melanie King had a great meet going 6/6 in best times. Her standout swim was her 4.5-second drop in the 100 Breast. She did a great job with her pull outs and kept her stroke tempo strong the whole swim.
• Otis Lloyd had a great meet with a big time drop in his 50 Back. He took 3 seconds off with a strong start and a great backstroke flip turn. Great work, Otis.
• Emily Caspaar had five swims at the meet with four of those being best times. It was great to see her dominant swim in the 100 Free where she took it out aggressively and held on strong throughout for a 6.5-second time drop and a new B time.

B Group

• Arvaan Deshmukh had two swims, and he crushed both with some solid times. His standout swim would be his almost full second drop in the 50 Back where he did a great job kicking throughout the swim.
• Felix Henaire was in his first-ever AGI Meet and had just one swim. He made the most of that swim with a half-second drop in the 50 Back. He showed some great improvement in his body placement and had a great race.
• Claire Zhang had three swims and had two great time drops. Her standout was her 100 Breast, where she kept her kick strong throughout the swim and had an amazing 5-second drop and earned a B time.

Purple Group

A group

• Kyra Yuan had a smashing 50 Breast holding an aggressive and smooth pace winning her first A time at 35.90! Her focus and determination at practice has massively paid off!
• Rachel Siu dropped 7 seconds in her 100 Free, earning her a very solid 1:13.64! She took the lead early on and kept it the whole race, crushing her heat.
• Michael Zhou dropped almost 10 seconds in the 200 IM coming in at 2:46.98. His consistent drive throughout the race led to an impressive finish. He is always great at checking in and out and learning from feedback. Great job, Michael!

B group

• Joshua Hunter had all great races at this meet. He not only dropped in every event he swam but also gained two new B times!
• Elizabeth Lytvynenko only got to swim in one event this meet but she showed up and excelled in it. In her 50 Back, she was aggressive and fast getting a 37.34 and her first-ever B time!
• Keshav Iyer got drops in all three events! He has always been an independent thinker and swimmer but recently has been listening and learning from his teammates and coaches. Great swims and mindset, Keshav!

High School

AGI was fast! So many time drops from so many athletes! I am so happy to see how everyone swam. It was hard with the time off during the week, but we came to RACE!!! We had a total of 6 A times, 22 BB times, and 16 B times swam at this meet! So many close to their goals this season.

• Alex Belkin got his first-ever A time in his 50 Free! He got out so pumped that he finally earned it! He has been working and trying to get this cut for the past three meets. He also dropped -0.33 in his 100 Free for a BB time and -2.72 in his 200 IM for a B time.
• Carlo Villanueva had several great swims highlighted by dropping an astonishing -8.34 in his 200 Free for a B time.
• Liya Wu had her first meet back since high school season and she swam great! She had a time drop of -0.30 in 100 Back for a BB time, -1.17 in her 100 Free for a BB time, and -0.38 in her 200 Free for another BB time. Every event that she swam was a BB time!

Age Group 1

The AG1 Group also came off a short week between the MMSC meet and this meet. They kept the fast swimming going and crushed the meet with several new motivational times, a few new Champs cuts, a few new swimmers to make the Champs Meet, and lots of time drops. Great work to the group. Standout Swims of the Meet:

• Bella Zhang had a very strong weekend with just 3 swims at the meet but she made them count with 3 best times. Bella’s stand out was her 200 Free where her endurance shined through with a strong back 100 and a 3 second time drop.
• Natalie Whitbeck came to AGIs to do some work and crushed it. I have to shout out her 200 IM where she dropped 55 seconds since she last swam the event, as well as her 500 Free in the Distance Meet where she dropped 44 seconds. It was awesome to see how all four of her strokes have improved.
• Yeim Jung had a great meet going 5/6 best times. His standout swim was his 5-second drop in his 100 Back, where he kept his kick strong the whole swim and really showed some improvement in his backstroke flip turns.

Age Group 2

AG2 just swam last weekend and came back swimming even faster at the AGI meet. Loads of best times and new Champs cuts. Big shout outs to Abby Gray, who raced her first-ever 1650 at the Distance Meet and earned her first two A times, and to Maksim Nikitenko, who swam the 500 at both meets, going 5 seconds faster on Sunday from his swim on Friday!

• Mira Arora comes ready to practice hard every day and saw her best meet yet since joining Wave. She picked up four best times and narrowly missed going 6/6. Her standout swim was her 100 Free where she took it out fast, nailed every breakout, then finished strong with powerful kicks and getting her head down for the end. She dropped nearly 6 seconds and earned a new B time.
• Ally Yuan has long set the AG2 standard of work ethic. Her attention to detail and the effort she puts into every set is a high bar that should be the envy of every member of Wave. It paid off big time in her 100 Back where she dropped 3 seconds to score her first 11-12 A time. She also went 5/5 in best times and earned a BB time in her first-ever 200 Breast. Tremendous job, Ally!
• Berit Dunn has adapted quickly to AG2 since moving up and had a fabulous meet, earning her first two 11-12 A times and five new best times. She had two swims, however, that outshone even her A times. The first was her 50 Fly where she dropped 2.4 seconds and proved she’s more than a breaststroker and that she can sprint. The second was her 400 IM where she broke 6:00 for the first time with outstanding strategy to earn a new Champs cut.

Senior Prep

The SR Prep Group came off a great meet weekend at the MMSC Meet and continued the fast times and time drops at the AGI Meet. It was great to see the athletes’ great swimming continue as the group picked up new Motivational Times, new AG Champs Cuts, and tons of best times. Great job to the whole group. Standout Swims of the Meet:

• Arjun Yadav had a great meet, dropping time all weekend long. His standout swim came during his 200 Breast where he had consistent pull outs and kept his kick together on the back 100 for a 25-second time drop.
• Anika Razdan had a strong meet weekend and put together some really strong swims. Her highlight swim was her 100 Breast where she kept her tempo up and really raced the event one 25 at a time for a strong 1.5-second time drop.
• Emily MacDonald had a great swim meet at Kamiak. Her standout swim was her one second drop in her 100 Fly where she kept her hips up the whole swim and stayed consistent on her breathing pattern for a great time and swim.

Senior 1

We had 30 swimmers suit up and throw down at the meet. Overall the group was very ready to race and did an excellent job stepping up and posting fantastic swims. This group has been working very hard this season and that work is really starting to show in their races. One of the things I stress every day in practice is finishing well. At the meet we had several races where swimmers were able to out touch another swimmer because they had a strong finish. It was so awesome for me to see something we talk about so often be reflected in their racing. We have been working hard and doing quite a bit of volume training before this meet and that really paid off. The group performed incredibly well in the 200s and 500 Free. I am very proud of each one of them and am looking forward to seeing what they are able to do at our upcoming taper meets. Highlights:

• Arya Bhatt has been working incredibly hard lately focusing on his technique and pushing himself to make faster intervals. That work paid off in spades at the meet as he posted best times in four races. He had a great swim in the 100 Fly, holding on and finishing the second 50 much better than previously, resulting in a stunning 3-second drop. He also had a huge milestone swim, going under 1:00 in the 100 Free for the first time.
• Dario Giuliani shows up to every practice with a positive attitude and a desire to improve. He never complains about the workouts, he just puts his head down and does everything to the best of his ability. He was due for some break out swims and this meet proved to be just that. His hard work and positive attitude paid off in the biggest way as he crushed his previous best time in the 50 Breast, dropping 2 seconds, and qualifying for Senior Champs for the first time.
• Sophia Gorveatt is not afraid to take on any set in practice. Most of the time she is even willing to swim butterfly for the entire workout and is always asking to swim the 200 Fly at practice. Her eagerness to crush the event set her up for a huge swim at AGI. She got off to an amazing start then swam an incredibly steady race holding the pace she has been training for giving her a huge best time and going under the 2:10 mark.

Senior Epic

Senior Epic came ready to swim fast at AGI and that's what they did! The group did at the meet what they have been doing at practice and the result was fast swims all weekend long! We had several best times and a few more Champs cuts achieved. We will continue to focus on getting faster and better in the upcoming weeks in preparation for our Champs Meets this month. Enjoy some highlights from our group:

• Anton Mazepa dominated the weekend and went 6/6 lifetime bests! He crushed his backstroke events, dropping 2.11 seconds in the 100 Back and 3.49 seconds in the 200 Back by executing solid underwater dolphin kicks and smooth breakouts. He also demonstrated great versatility swimming an excellent 500 Free going strong the entire race and breaking the 5:00 barrier for the first time (4.59.46).
• Quinn Anderson was consistent the entire weekend and went 5/5 best times. His outstanding swims were the 100 and 200 Free where he had solid drops in both events. He was looking good in the pool and was able to drop almost 2 full seconds in the 100 Free breaking the :50 barrier for the first time (48.73). In the 200 Free, he had a great race with a fantastic finish and cut 2.55 seconds from his time. He got AA Times in both events.
• Bradley Barkans had an excellent meet and finished the weekend with four new best times. He has been working on his underwater dolphin kicks and breakouts and it showed on his 200 Back where he dropped 7 seconds! Another great swim for him was his 100 Free where he felt fast and dropped 1.27 seconds to earn an A Time.

New US Motivational Times

 AAAA 

• Addy Clarke – 50 Free

 AAA 

• Olivia Henaire – 1650 Free, 100 IM, 50 Breast
• Dami Jung – 100 Free
• Lingyi Li – 100 IM, 50 Fly
• Andy Nguyen – 200 Breast
• Irene Qu – 100 Back

 AA 

• Quinn Anderson – 100 & 200 Free
• Ahana Bhattacharya – 100 Back
• Deniz Cankaya – 400 IM
• Addy Clarke – 500 Free, 200 IM
• Ellen Feng – 200 Fly
• Henry Geitz – 400 IM
• Dami Jung – 100 Fly
• Anton Mazepa – 100 Back, 200 IM
• Ethan Na – 200 Free
• Andy Nguyen – 200 IM
• Irene Qu – 200 Back
• Han Sun – 200 IM
• Gabe Traina – 100 Free
• Molly Traina – 500 Free
• Alex Wang – 200 IM
• Finley Wiegand – 50 Back
• Owen Wilson – 100 Fly, 200 IM
• Isshin Yokoyama – 50 Breast

 A 

• Bradley Barkans – 100 Free
• Alex Belkin – 50 Free
• Aman Bhatt – 50 Breast
• Ahana Bhattacharya – 100 IM
• Lucy Broyles – 100 Back, 200 IM
• Kamilla Bugaitsova – 1650 Free
• Roman Byelykh – 1650 Free
• Deniz Cankaya – 100 & 1650 Free, 100 Fly
• Evan Deng – 50 Free
• Ann Ding – 50 Breast
• Logan Downing – 100 Fly, 200 IM
• Berit Dunn – 50 & 200 Breast
• Abby Gray – 50 & 100 Free
• Blakely Hansen – 100 Fly
• Olivia Henaire – 50 Back
• Nora Herman – 200 & 1650 Free
• Vivian Hu – 100 Fly, 200 IM
• Yihan Li – 100 Free, 100 IM
• Olivia Liu – 50 Breast, 50 Fly
• Victor Lyakhovitski – 50 & 100 Free, 100 Back
• Anton Mazepa – 100 Fly
• Andy Nguyen – 50 Back
• Vien Pogue – 50 Free
• Beatrix Pressman – 100 Fly
• Ani Purkayastha – 200 Free
• Amaris Rus – 100 Fly
• Jessie Shi – 100 Free
• Dan Sun – 100 & 200 IM
• Han Sun – 100 Fly, 100 IM
• Megan Traina – 1650 Free
• Alex Wang – 50 Breast
• Piper Wiegand – 100 Fly, 400 IM
• Owen Wilson – 500 Free, 100 Breast
• Ally Yuan – 100 Back
• Grace Zhang – 50 & 200 Breast

 BB 

• Gahl Ami ad – 200 Free
• Akira Andhare – 100 IM
• Alex Arlouski – 100 Breast
• Arya Bhatt – 100 Fly, 100 Free
• Norah Braun – 100 & 200 Breast
• Lucy Broyles – 200 Back
• Emily Caspaar – 100 Back
• Aaron Chakraborty – 500 Free, 100 IM, 50 Breast, 50 Fly
• Sebastian Chan – 50 Back
• Katelyn Chen – 100 IM, 50 Fly
• Leo Chen – 100 IM
• Hayley Chou – 100 Fly
• Braxton Davis – 100 IM, 50 Fly
• Even Deng – 100 Fly
• Ann Ding – 200 Free
• Mira Erdim – 200 IM
• Rihit Gandhi – 200 IM
• Ella Gao – 50 Back
• Avni Garg – 50 Breast
• Abby Gray – 200 IM
• Caden Gray – 100 Fly
• Alexander Hor – 100 Back, 100 Free, 50 Breast
• Haim Jung – 50 Fly
• Melanie King – 50 & 100 Free
• Maria Kokhan – 1650 Free
• David Li – 100 Breast
• Jonathan Liu – 50 Breast
• Lydia Liu – 50 Breast, 50 Fly
• Elizabeth Luo – 50 Back
• Victor Lyakhovitski – 100 Fly, 200 Back
• Yuna Ma – 50 & 100 Breast
• Emily MacDonald – 100 Fly
• Karina Maksyutov – 200 & 500 Free
• Rinat Maksyutov – 100 IM, 200 Back
• Max Malinovskyi – 50 & 100 Free, 100 IM
• Vien Pogue – 200 Free
• Irene Qu – 500 Free
• Maya Razdan – 100 Breast, 100 IM
• Siena Stahlkopf – 100 Free, 200 IM
• Dan Sun – 500 Free
• Max Sun – 100 & 500 Free, 200 IM
• Nika Svirydovich – 100 IM, 200 Breast
• Vedah Tuladhar – 100 & 500 Free
• Anna Ventura – 50 & 100 Back, 100 Free
• Aditeya Verma – 50 Fly
• Steven Wang – 50 Breast, 50 Fly
• Natalie Whitbeck – 500 Free, 200 IM
• Finley Wiegand – 200 IM
• Piper Wiegand – 100 Back
• Arjun Yadav – 500 Free, 50 Fly
• Kenshin Yokoyama – 500 Free
• Kyra Yuan – 100 Breast
• Landon Yuan – 200 Free
• Maggie Zhou – 200 IM, 50 Free

 B 

• Apolline Abram-Profeta – 200 Free
• Akira Andhare – 50 Breast
• Victoria Arena – 50 & 200 Back
• Mira Arora – 100 Free, 100 IM
• Aaradhya Bharadwaj – 50 Free
• Esha Bhatia – 100 IM
• Stas Black – 50 Free
• Norah Braun – 100 IM
• Arifin Capiral – 50 Fly
• Emily Caspaar – 100 Free
• Aaron Chakraborty – 200 Breast
• Leo Chen – 200 Breast
• Miley Chen – 50 Breast
• Rhea Dawani – 50 Fly
• Lucas Deng – 100 Back, 100 Free, 50 Fly
• Berit Dunn – 500 Free
• Kaito Falk – 100 IM
• Joseph Foster – 50 Breast
• Abby Gray – 1650 Free
• Martin Hernandez – 50 Breast
• Olivia Horng – 100 IM, 50 Fly
• Joshua Hunter – 50 Breast, 100 IM
• Roohi Indurkar – 50 Fly
• Zhizhi Ji – 50 & 100 Free
• Bessie Jiang – 50 Breast
• Ira Joshi – 50 & 100 Breast, 100 Free
• Haim Jung – 500 Free
• Yeim Jung – 50 & 100 Back
• Elise Kabacki – 50 Fly
• Alizeh Kurji – 200 Free
• Priya Lahiri – 100 Free
• Avery Lee – 100 Back, 100 Breast, 50 Free
• David Li – 100 Back
• Lydia Liu – 100 Fly
• Sophie Liu – 50 Fly
• Emma Lu – 100 Breast, 50 Free
• Elizabeth Lytvynenko – 50 Back
• Ilia Maksimchuk – 100 & 500 Free, 50 Back, 50 Fly
• Rinat Maksyutov – 100 Free
• Heidi Mensching – 100 IM
• Kumail Mukadam – 500 Free
• Melissa Nguyen – 100 Back, 200 Breast
• Maksim Nikitenko – 100 Back
• Andrew Ouyang – 50 Breast
• Benji Ovendale – 200 Free
• Anika Razdan – 100 Breast
• Rachel Siu – 100 Free, 100 IM
• Zoey Stark – 50 Fly
• Gabriel Steijn – 100 Breast, 50 Fly
• Leo Steijn – 100 IM
• Aditeya Verma – 100 Back, 100 Free
• Carlos Villeanueva – 200 Free
• Aleksei Volkov – 50 Breast
• Claire Wang – 100 Free
• Steven Wang – 50 Back
• Isaac Xie – 100 Free, 50 Fly
• Arjun Yadav – 200 Breast
• Alex Yang – 100 & 200 Back
• Alyssa Yang – 100 Breast
• Claire Zhang – 50 & 100 Breast
• Eric Zhou – 50 Free
• Michael Zhou – 200 Free, 50 Breast, 50 Fly
• Andrew Zhu – 50 Breast

WAVE ON 3!!