BLAST EXPLODES ONTO THE LA SCENE!
Oh, when the BLAST go swimmin' in,
When the BLAST go swimmin' in,
You know we want to be in that number;
When the BLAST go and swim to WIN!
We had everybody in that number this weekend! In our inaugural swim meet as a full team, the Mighty BLAST rocked the LSU Natatorium with an eighth place finish, scoring 1740 points - 256 points ahead of our friends the FINS and only 64 points off of seventh place. We were the fourth best Louisiana team in the meet and in the 12 & unders we were the second best team in the meet, just behind State Champion Crawfish Aquatics.
Most importantly, we had over 83% best times in the meet. Everyone improved in most of their events and the ascension into quality swimming for many was dramatic.
We had eight individual event winners and one relay victory. The event winners were: Jesi Kopcso [13-14 100 and 200 breaststroke], Kara Kopcso [9-10 100 and 200 free], Andrew Knudsen [9-10 50 breast], Harrison Prieto [7-8 25 fly], Grant Gallaspy [8&u 100 breast] and Grace Tucker [8&u 50 back]. The 8 & under boys free relay of Matthew Stegen, Harrison Prieto, Griffin Guzan and Alex Salles won in a thrilling come from behind victory.
We had 17 swimmers with 100% best times! They are: Carley Boyce, Katie Fearn, Grant Gallaspy, Louise Goodfellow, Kristen Jennings, Sam Jones, Alex Knudsen, Andrew Knudsen, Madeleine Rawls, Alex Salles, Emmie Salles, Mandy Salles, Lauren Salles, Jessica Sloan, Brooke Vinturella, Allison Warwick and Will Warwick. Way to go!
We also had several swimmers make new state qualifying times: Will Warwick [9-10 50 back], Brooke Vinturella [9-10 50 fly], Colin Babcock [13-14 200 free], Andrew Knudsen [9-10 100 IM, 200 IM, 50 fly], Alex Knudsen [11 & 12 50 & 100 breast], Gianni Scaramuzza [9-10 100 fly], Emmie Salles [9-10 50 and 100 breast], Kristen Jennings [9-10 - 100 back] and Lauren Salles [11-12 50 & 100 frees]. So many improved their times to where they are within tenths of seconds from making state.
Individual Team Scoring: We had 27 swimmers score individual team points. That's amazing! Our boys high point scorer was Harrison Prieto with 144 points and runner up was Griffin Guzan with 124 points. Grace Tucker was our girls high point leader with 118 points and Kara Kopcso was our runner up with 116 points. All the points that the swimmers scored are posted on the bulletin board at the pool. Factor in relay swims and every swimmer who swam a relay either helped their relay score or improve their seed time.
We had other swimmers who had a high percentage of personal records [PR's] and showed they are on track for more improvement in the future. They are: Liam Babcock [six PR's], Claire Battle [six PR's], Zachary Boudreaux [seven PR's], Gavin Breaux [five PR's], Macie Breaux [one PR], Alex Cloutet [eight PR's], Jack Copes [two PR's], Caroline Gallaspy [eight PR's], Sarah Keating [four PR's], Robert Klazynski [nine PR's], Zach Knudsen [five PR's], Susan Mathies [six PR's], Emily Prieto [six PR's], Alex Rawls [three PR's], Anna Rawls [three PR's], Kat Snitzer [three PR's],
Matthew Stegen [three PR's], Rachel Strain [eight PR's], Callie Tucker [six PR's],
Fallon Turner [one PR] and Ellie Young [three PR's].
If you didn't get your best time ribbons and BTAC Christmas cap, please do so when you come to practice.
Some Final Thought & Observations on the meet:
This was another meet where everyone who was signed up, showed up. The coaches really appreciate the dedication of the swimmers who competed while they were recovering from a stomach bug. They may have missed a day, but when they could race, they did and did very well under the circumstances. Their efforts inspired coaches and fellow swimmers.
For other swimmers, there were other conflicts that were originally unanticipated, but on the day those swimmers were able to come to the meet they also performed extremely well.
The Salles family had an amazing meet. Four children, Alex, Emmie, Mandy and Lauren hit the pool for 33 swims. EVERY SWIM WAS A BEST TIME! All you parents with multiple children can appreciate what an amazing accomplishment that is!
The 100 flyers: the highest level of anxiety from the swimmers came before the 100 fly. Many of the 9-10's and 11-12's were a "little nervous" about doing the race. But everyone who had those personal doubts stood up, raced and performed incredibly well. Congratulations to all those swimmers who overcame their fears and doubts and succeeded so well in the 100 fly. That event had 100% best times and we are very proud of you.
The BLAST "look" - we received more complements about our team suits and team gear from all the teams at the meet. The Kostume Krewe deserves a big thanks and hug from the team, to have our first team meet and be completely outfitted was an amazing feat. We are both fast and stylish.
See ya, poolside,
BB
