The Waynesboro Y Swim Team (SMAC) competed in the Virginia Senior Championships from March 6-9 in Richmond. This was the final championship meet for the older swimmers at the State level for the short course season. Short course swimming means all events are swum in 25 yard pools, which is the same as collegiate swimming. Any age can qualify for the Virginia senior champs, but generally it is high school age athletes who can make the fast qualifying standards.
Congratulations to the following SMAC swimmers who qualified for and swam in the meet: Jessie Arnold (17), Bobby Carey (16), Alexander Flowers (15), Colleen Higgins (15), Norah Hunt (16), Sarah Loomis (14), Justin Merritt (16), Jordan Miller (15), Hunter McMillon (16), Remedy Rule (17), Charlotte Rumsey (14), Kristen Wagner (12) and Jake Zamalis (16).
SMAC was the overall high point winner for the girl’s small team and the combined boys and girls small team. The girls would have placed second for the medium sized teams. A small team is one with less than 100 swimmers and a medium is between 100 and 250 swimmers. Jessie Arnold was 3rd in the overall individual points and Remedy Rule was 4th. Points are awarded based on the swimmers place in the race. First through sixteenth place earn points with scoring going from 20 points for first place, 17 for second and down to 1 point for 16th place.
Highlights of the meet included: 1) swimmers achieving their first Y nationals time standards (Flowers and Carey in the mile and Rumsey in the 500), Wagner (age 12) and Loomis Age (14) competing in her first Senior Championship meet, Carey dropping time in all six of his races, Arnold placing 2nd in mile, 3rd in the 500 and 3rd in the 1,000 and Rule placing 1st in the 200 fly, 200 back and 200 IM.
SMAC seemed to hold back the best for the last day at finals on Sunday night after three long days of swimming with the last three races resulting in new SMAC Records. McMillion started it off with a 9:39 in the 1,000 which broke the previous SMAC record set by Michael Mowen in 2009, Rule followed that up with a 1st place finish in the 200 backstroke in 1:57.61 breaking her record set last year and finished the night with a 1st place in the 200 IM with a time of 2:02.18 breaking her record set in 2011.
The SMAC swimmers that have achieved the Y national standard will be competing at the Y National Championships held April 1-5 in Greensboro, NC.
The SMAC swim team is a Waynesboro Y program and practices are held at the Waynesboro Y, Augusta Health and Ridgeview Park Pool. For more information regarding SMAC swimming contact Coach Norm Wright, Director of Competitive Swimming at the Waynesboro Y at 942-5107 or email him at [email protected]
For more information about SMAC, please visit their website: http://www.smacswimming.org/
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Chris Graham
