2015 Short Course Far Westerns: Day Two Finals – NAGs and Meet Records Testify to Fast Meet

2015 Short Course Far Westerns Championships

• Dates: Thursday, April 9 to Sunday, April 12, 2015
• Times: prelims 9 am, finals 5 pm (PDT)
• Location: Morgan Hill Swim Club Makos, Morgan Hill, California
• Live Results: (on Meet Mobile)
• Championship Central

The Far Westerns short-course championship meet is the end-of-season taper meet for a large number of teams in the Western Zone, and specifically so for their 14-and-under swimmers. The format is prelims/finals, but with only ten swimmers scoring in one heat of finals.

Day Two

1650 Freestyle – Timed Finals

It was the boys’ turn to race the mile on Friday, as the girls had contested the event the previous day. Lleyton Plattel of Pleasanton Seahawks won the boys’ 11-12 race by more than a 50, finishing 18.4 second faster than his seed time in 17:10.42. Keane Alejandro of Canyons Aquatic Club was second with 17:42.64. Plattel moved to third on the top-ten list for 12-year-old boys for the season.

Mitch Stoddard of College Area Swim Team won a much closer contest in the 13-14 age category, beating Joseph Zales of Davis Arden Racing Team, 16:29.46 to 16:34.37. Both achieved best times by 15 seconds.

Benjamin Culberson* from Davis Arden Racing Team improved his time by 17 seconds winning the boys’ 15-16 age group in 16:14.76. He took over from Santa Clara Swim Club’s Oli Hunt* at the 500 and never looked back. Hunt finished second in 16:21.53.

Christopher Miller of Lakeridge Swim Team went 15:42.60 to win the boys’ 17-18 title.

400 IM – Finals

Reno Aquatic Club’s Madeleine Hurst, winner of the girls’ 17-18 200 IM on Thursday, doubled up with a win in the 400 on Friday, going 4:22.63. She finished 11 seconds ahead of Pleasanton Seahawks’ Eva Chung* (4:33.44). Palo Alto Stanford’s Chloe Isleta* broke the girls’ 15-16 meet record with her best-by-.9 time of 4:14.96. Isleta finished 9 seconds ahead of teammate Grace Zhao* (4:23.78) and Reno Aquatic Club’s Mckenna Meyer (4:24.85).

PASA’s Joe Molinari crushed the 17-18 boys’ record, going 3:51.87, a best time by .5, for the win. Teammate Daichi Matsuda* placed second in 3:57.82. Dagen Kipling of Lakeridge Swim Team erased 4 seconds from his previous best time, winning the boys’ 15-16 contest in 4:00.76. Andrew Koustik* of Irvine Novaquatics was runner-up in 4:06.01.

200 IM – Finals

Vivian Wang of Peak Swimming missed the meet record for 13-14 girls by 6/100 but won the event handily, touching in 2:01.37. That was a best time by 3.1 seconds. Second place went to Chloe Clark of Foothill Aqua Sharks in 2:03.78, her best by 1.2. Santa Clara Swim Club’s Nathan Yates held onto his top seeding and won the boys’ race with 1:55.73, a best time by .7. The top 8 boys all broke 2:00. Irvine Novaquatics’ Kevin Tu placed second in 1:57.54, while Andy Huang of Peak dropped 4 seconds for a third-place 1:58.60.

In the 11-12 age category, Mission Viejo’s Mia Ristic lowered her time another half-second, making a total drop of 4.2 seconds on the day, as she won in 2:09.51. Bianca Yongyuth of Santa Clara Swim Club went 2:10.01 for second. Alexander Pascual of Napa Valley Swim Team picked up a new PB, going 1.8 seconds faster to win the boys’ 11-12 race in 2:04.92. Sean Swift of Foothill Aqua Sharks used a strong breaststroke leg to overcome a 1.3-second deficit at the 100 and beat out PASA’s Theodore Makler for second place, 2:06.04 to 2:07.64.

Mia Tandingan of Pikes Peak Athletics dropped another 4.5 seconds and broke the meet record –as well as the national age group record– for 10-and-under girls with 2:14.30. Second and third places went to recent NAG record-breakers, Claire Tuggle of Yosemite Marlins (2:17.65) and Miriam Sheehan of Phoenix Swim Club (2:18.20). Ronald Dalmacio of Rose Bowl Aquatics lowered the meet record he set in prelims by another 2 seconds, winning in 2:15.49. Humberto Najera of NOVA went 2:19.15 for second place, a best time by .9; PASA’s Anthony Sebastian was third with in 2:22.16, a PB by 2.6 seconds.

100 Freestyle – Finals

Top-seeded Jennifer Campbell* of PASA won the 17-18 girls’ 100 free in 51.02 over Danielle Taylor* of Walnut Creek Aquabears (51.69). In the 15-16s, Walnut Creek’s Isabella Barattolo eked out a .02 victory over Shelby Koontz of Douglas Dolfins, 51.05 to 51.07. Albert Gwo* of PASA broke the boys’ 17-18 meet record in prelims with 45.39; he won the event in finals with 45.91. Lakeridge’s Jeffrey Tung was runner-up in 47.34 over Arjun Sharma* of Walnut Creek (47.46). Palo Alto Stanford’s Benjamin Ho* broke the 15-16 meet record with 45.38, while teammate Alex Liang* was runner-up with 45.92.

Foothill Aqua Sharks’ Chloe Clark won the girls’ 13-14 race with a meet record of 50.19, just ahead of Isabelle Henig* of PASA, who also came in under the previous meet mark in 50.32. Peak’s Wang was third in 50.71.

In the boys’ 13-14 race, Novaquatics’ Hunter Hitchens broke the meet record of 46.55, set by Ugur Taner in 1989. He also broke the Southern California LSC record of 46.56 and the Irvine Novaquatics team record, both of which were set by Michael Cavic in 1999. Incidentally, Taner now coaches his son, 13-year-old Brooks, who was in lane 2 in the final.

Ella Ristic of Mission Viejo won the girls’ 11-12 100 free with a personal-best 52.69. McLean Hall of Heartland Swim Association went another .25 faster than in prelims, finishing second in 54.46. Abby David from Solano Aquatic Sea Otters was third in 54.82, just ahead of PASA’s Sydney Harris (54.91). Redding Swim Team’s Winn Aung lowered the boys’ 11-12 meet record that he set in prelims by another .6, winning in 48.56. Justin Culetu* from PASA was second with a personal-best 49.61.

In the 10&U race, both Tuggle of Yosemite Marlins and Peak’s Tandingan were under the previous meet record of 56.39, set in 1993. Tuggle won in 55.68 and Tandingan was runner-up in 55.98. In the boys’ race Rose Bowl’s Dalmacio broke the meet record, going 54.98. NOVA’s Mitchell Schott was runner-up in 57.23.

100 Butterfly – Finals

Walnut Creek’s Brittany Usinger broke the girls 17-18 meet record in prelims with 53.76; her finals time was just a tick off (53.87) but still 1.5 seconds faster than runner-up Taylor of Walnut Creek (55.37). In the 15-16s PASA’s Isleta* went 54.52 to get the win over Grace Zhao* of PASA (56.20) and Makenna Turner* of Crow Canyon Country Club Sharks (56.25). On the boys’ 17-18 side, Sharma of Walnut Creek broke the meet record by 5/100 with 49.23. PASA’s Molinari was runner-up in 49.39. Then in the 15-16 race, PASA’s Liang (49.33) and Ho (49.56) both came in under the meet record of 50.14, set in 1988 by Joey Rossetti.

200 Backstroke – Finals

Top-seeded Milan Hilde-Jones of Palo Alto Stanford won the girls’ 13-14 200 back with 2:2.87, with Abriana Howard* from Crow Canyon Country Club Sharks not far behind in 2:03.60. NOVA’s Tu came out on top of the boys’ race with 1:53.13. Nathan Yates of SCSC was runner-up in 1:54.45.

Mia Ristic of Mission Viejo dropped another 1.5 on top of the 4.7 she dropped in prelims, to win the girls’ 11-12 race with 2:07.86. McLean Hall of Heartland Swim Association came in second with 2:12.44, coming from behind to beat NOVA’s Cameron Mykkanen (2:12.68). Pleasant Valley’s Nick Williams was the only sub-2:00 in the field, winning in 1:59.68, for a 2.4-second improvement. PASA’s Makler took second, going 2:03.81.

50 Backstroke – Finals

Phoenix Swim Club’s Sheehan won the girls’ 10-and-under 50 back in 28.75, just .10 off her best time. Montclair Swim Team’s Hannah Lockyer was runner-up in 30.69. On the boys’ side, Dalmacio of Rose Bowl re-broke his second meet record, touching in 27.89, nearly 4 seconds faster than Reno’s Aidan Pflieger (31.75) and Kellan Pattison of Scottsdale Aquatic Club (31.77).

50 Butterfly – Finals

Mission Viejo’s Mia Ristic won the girls’ 11-12 50 fly with 26.22. Kailyn Winter of Cabrillo Threshers came in second in 26.50, with Jordan Foster of Aces Swim Club in third at 26.61. Aung of Redding Swim Club missed the meet record by 2/100 but won handily in 24.36. Matthew Trejo* from Ripon Aquatics was second with 25.56.

400 Freestyle Relay – Finals

Both Pleasanton (Claire Suen, Daniella Hawkins, Caroline Eckel, and Miranda Heckman) and Palo Alto Stanford (Hilde-Jones, Ashley Stahmer, Allison Asborno, and Brooke Schaffer) were under the 13-14 meet record; Pleasanton won 3:31.12 to 3:31.24. The boys of Peak Swimming (Ethan Hu, Patrick Xu, Tianyi Zhang, and Andy Huang) edged Irvine Novaquatics, 3:21.39 to 3:21.56. Pleasanton was third in 3:21.82.

Scottsdale Aquatic Club won the girls’ 11-12 race in 3:43.39 with Greer Pattison, Sara Segneri, Samantha Krew, Leila Rosin). De Anza Cupertino finished second with 3:44.22. Palo Alto Stanford’s boys (Makler, Alexander Wong, Ryan Kim, and Jerry Yang) won the 11-12 contest handily, touching in 3:35.95.

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*swimming unattached for high school season