Intro to Nitro
Cedar Park: Mary Ligarde – Like any new swimmer Mary first came to Intro a little nervous. New team, new coach, new team mates…but she came to practice each week and gave her best effort no matter what. And now, a few months later, Mary has become a leader in her group. Going first, watching the clock confidently, swimming fast and listening attentively. I am so impressed! Not only is she a great example, but I know she’s going to be a great team mate to all the new Intro swimmers just starting this season! – Coach Jessie
Bee Cave: Zoe Horsey – Zoe did a fantastic job of being a leader in my group this week. She volunteered to do examples, was motivated and excited to do what we were doing. In the time I have coached Zoe, I have never seen her complain or get discouraged. It’s rather remarkable, because I have pushed her hard on some days. So fun to coach you Zoe and keep it up! – Coach Sarah
Bronze
Cedar Park: Patrick Tapp – Patrick has been working really hard this past month and has made some significant changes in all four strokes. He is swimming a lot taller in his freestyle and backstroke and has been working on his timing in breaststroke and butterfly. Keep up the hard work Patrick! – Coach Jeremy
Bee Cave: Walter Armstrong – Walter works his underwaters like they are a fifth stroke, he sets a tight streamline, strong push off, then the magic happens, he waits till he passes the second line before dropping the hammer on his fly kick, and that is why he has the farthest underwaters in Silver. Great work young man! – Coach Chuck
Technique & Fitness
Cedar Park: Catherine Tu & Matthew Synstegard – Catherine and Matthew really impressed us this past week. They are fairly new to our group and are already showing signs of leadership. Leading the lanes and implementing all of our directions. Their freestyle catch up drill was spot on and all the little BUT important things that we look for such as your basic streamlines, flipturns,
Bee Cave: Andrew Pataky – Andrew has been working incredibly hard these past few weeks on almost every part of his swimming. His streamlines and underwaters have improved immensely, and he is making huge strides. I’m excited to see him continue to improve in the coming weeks and months! Great job, Andrew! – Coach Peter
Silver
Cedar Park: Hailey Moulton – Hailey is quite brand new to silver, but already I can tell what kind of swimmer she is. Super hard worker, always focused, never a distraction, and most importantly is not afraid to ask questions when things just aren’t quite clicking-which shows she not only is concentrating on the task, but really cares if she gets the skill and if she gets better. Love to see that. No doubt these traits will lead to much success, in swimming and beyond. I’m excited to have her in Silver, and looking forward to what is to come. Keep up the great work Hailey! – Coach Nick
Bee Cave: Swetha Ayinala – Swetha has left no stone unturned, butterfly is long patient and strong, backstroke has great hand speed, breaststroke with power legs, and a smooth fast freestyle, yes she has become quite a good IMer! She has done a great job working a great balance on all of her strokes, you would be hard pressed to find a weakness. Now that we turn to short course Swetha will show her biggest strength, turns, fast low and clean, I can’t wait for her first meet. Great Job Young Lady – Coach Chuck
Advanced Silver
Cedar Park: Isabel Garcia – Isabel Garcia earned herself this week’s SOW title. Isabel has some of the best attendance of the group and her consistent practice habits have really paid off. She has come a long way during her time with AS and she is a prime example of what hard work can lead to. Isabel will be joining Gold this coming week, and while her teammates will miss her positive impact in the group, we look forward to her continuing success. Keep working hard, Izzy! – Coach Alex
Bee Cave: Michelle Taylor – Michelle, your outstanding PERFORMANCE in every practice, is a living example of your DEDICATION every time you come on deck. Always keep that vibe on high and all your goals will be accomplished. Keep it up Michelle! FOCUS FOCUS FOCUS..SI SI SI!!! – Coach Felix
Gold
Cedar Park: Hailey Freeman – Hailey came to every practice eager to learn! I was very impressed with her hard work and excitement with working on some of her strengths and weaknesses. Keep up the great work and positive attitude Hailey! –Coach Jeremy
Bee Cave: Tam-my Nguyen – Tam-my is such a ray of sunshine. She always has a smile on her face, and makes practice such a fun place to be for her team mates and myself. As I am learning all of the new swimmers and the way they train, I am seeing so much potential from Tam-my. She works hard, listens to her coaches, and makes changes when asked, which is one of the most difficult tasks for a swimmer to do. I can’t wait to watch her race in the future and work each day towards her goals in the sport of swimming. Way to go Tam-my, and I can’t wait to get to know you more. –Coach Allison
Swimmer of the Month for August 2015:
Cedar Park
High School Training: Michael Dolan – Michael has always possessed tremendous talent when it comes to the sport of swimming, but this month was something special to see. Now two things I’ve taken away from my time with Michael are 1) He loves to be challenged. 2) He’s a natural racer. Both are great qualities in the kind of swimmers we want in HST. But this month I began to see Michael embracing some of the little and the not so fun things in swimming. Taking time on the drills, focusing on specific goals of each set, sprint kicking for the entire kick set, getting in the water on time/even early, pushing/expanding that sprint mentality into longer aerobic sets, and at one point, I do believe he even put on some fins! (One of his swimming rivals). This is a sport of racing, and it’s true you can only swim the race for yourself. But the team is the vehicle that drives you there, and each race is won at practice every single day. With this kind of focus and hard work, Michael surely is helping HST as a team, rise up to yet another level. Keep on being challenged by the little things, and Keep bringing it Michael. –Coach Nick
TAGS 2: Zones Athletes (Karen Yin, Vincent Ribeiro, Joseph Hunninghake & Shreyush Shankar) – These four athletes represented our Cedar Park TAGS 2 group at ZONES meet in Tupelo, Mississippi. All represented our group and themselves very well. We even had ZONES champions amongst the group, Karen winning the 11-12 Girls 100 Back and Vincent winning the 11-12 Boys 200 IM. Very proud of what all four athletes have accomplished by being selected for this team and how they represented Nitro so well. – Coach Flo
Senior: James McCurley – James has had the most significant changes in the last two months. During the summer he was constantly coming into the afternoon practice to work on stroke technique and it has paid of tremendously! His Backstroke and Freestyle are have evolved into more powerful and effective strokes for him and his butterfly isn’t too far behind. Keep up the hard work and great effort on your changes! – Coach Jeremy
No entry for Tags 1 or ND – Coaches will communicate separately.
Bee Cave
Middle & High School Training: Madison Eppard – There are several swimmers in HS/MS that could have easily gotten SOW this week, but Maddie has been working exceptionally hard, as she is trying out for the Bowie HS swim team this Wednesday! I have no doubt that she will make the team. She is always leading her lane and is always looking to improve every aspect of her swimming. This week she made some small tweaks to her flip turn that allows her to be more efficient. Good luck this week, Maddie! You’re going to do great! – Coach Peter
TAGS 2: Yasmina Buhl – As Yasmina finished up her last week practicing with TAGS 2, she never faltered, and gave it her all. She was a great demonstrator and leader as we ended practices this past week. We were also able to celebrate her birthday this past week, and everyone got the treat of being able to climb the rope, which is a Nitro favorite. I have noticed how well her team mates relate to her, and most people are drawn to her energy in and out of the water. Keep on smiling! – Coach Allison
TAGS 1: Josh Bannon – Josh did a great job of managing his time away from the pool and when he returned, he was ready to get to work! He was very focused on his technique and conditioning. This focus and determination will lead him to a fantastic season. Set your goals high and get ready to work! – Coach Jason
Senior: Camille Sweeney – It is great to be back working with the Senior group and I look forward to finding ways to help these young swimmers find ways to improve. Camille has already taken the first step, legs are the key and watching the work she is willing to do these first few days shows me Camille is ready to commit to the hardest work she knows is required to achieve the times she wants. All four strokes will be her focus, and having the right mind will be her greatest asset. First steps are always the hardest young lady, Great Job!! – Coach Chuck
National Development: Ted Beiter – The month of August was a time for recover and starting to get back into a routine leading into the start of our short course season. Ted managed his time off and his return to the pool very well. He has come back more motivated than ever and determined to train hard and compete! He was very focused on his technique and is always asking questions and excited to make corrections. Keep up the great work and it will be a great season! – Coach Jason
National Group: Taylor Abbott, Sean Grieshop & Chris Yeager – These three boys had an amazing and very busy month of August. They started the month competing at Junior Nationals where they helped the men win Juniors and overall 2nd place for the team. Then 2 days after competing at Juniors, they competed at Nationals. There they swam even faster than at Juniors and made the Junior World Championship team. Taylor and Chris made the 800 and 1500, while Sean made the 200 IM and 400 IM. After Nationals they came back to Nitro to tough workouts to get them ready against the top 18 and younger swimmers in the world. These boys trained aggressively and with a lot of determination for about 10 days before heading to Singapore. While at Junior Worlds they made a huge impression on Team USA swimmers, coaches and staff by showing them how great of young men they are and how great of teammates they are. In the pool they competed with true grit and determination. Taylor placed 10th in the 800 and 2nd in the 1500 dropping 5 seconds. Sean took home a 3rd in the 200 IM, a 1st place in the 400 IM and on the 800 Free Relay he was a part of the winning team in a junior world’s record setting time. Chris in his first ever international competition fought strong and raced as hard and as well as he could. He was fighting a back issue but it didn’t stop him from placing 15th in the 800 and 10th in the 1500. We are truly proud of all three boys for showing the world how tough they are and representing the USA in an amazingly positive light. Now enjoy some rest and some well deserved down time. – Coach Tim & Coach Rob