Intro to Nitro
Cedar Park: Lillian Garcia and Brooke Frushour
Lilly is one of our new Intro swimmers. She had some nerves her first day, but she looks like a veteran now and rocked freestyle this week. Coach Mike even got her to demonstrate her great head position! Brooke is consistently engaged at practice. This week she swam in her very first meet at Nitro at the Races and looked like a pro with a very strong 50 freestyle. Way to show off your freestyle work, ladies! —Coach Lindsay
Bee Cave: Matvay Hamm
Matvay joined Intro only a month ago and is all of five! He is quick to pick up on drills and skills. He swam his very first swim meet this weekend and did a phenomenal job! Coach Mike took the time to compliment his backstroke and was surprised to learn he was only five. Matvay has really fit in well with his practice group—picking on up the group’s desire to tickle me during attendance—and works hard to master each skill we focus on. Thank you for always coming on deck with a big smile and full of excitement. Keep up the good work Matvay! —Coach Raven
Bronze
Cedar Park: Elizabeth Ma
On a short week, Bronze reviewed a few things from the last month. Elizabeth came in to each practice ready to give it her all, showing off her ability to maintain skills. She had some great looking flip turns, even coming off the wall with tight streamlines. Elizabeth may be a bit quiet, but she is definitely very smart, as she was always willing to answer questions others may not have been brave enough to. Way to go Elizabeth! —Coach Adam
Bee Cave: Colson Hornbaker – What can I say about Colson, sometimes you have to physically hold him back in practice, the young man loves to race so much that you have to slow him down to work on his strokes! The butterfly just looks so nice, tall straight arm swing, strong kick pushing the heiny to the surface every kick, smooth and long every time. His backstroke is fast hands over the water with just the right kicking speed. Breaststroke pullouts are some of his best work and he can hit any stroke count you ask of him. The freestyle is crazy fast and the capper to any IM, which is what he did on Saturday posting a 1:42 for his 100 IM and finding himself on Monday swimming in the Silver #1 group! Great job young man! —Coach Chuck
Technique and Fitness
Cedar Park: Theo Johnson
Theo had an incredible meet showing strength through adversity. Awesome job to know how to let some emotions go and focus on the present and compete! Great job with your diving, starts, and finishes. Your butterfly has really come a long way. Thanks for being a part of the Nitro family and we will see you at the pool. THANKS for the coffee mug/vase! It’s on my work desk! —Coach Stephen
Bee Cave: Nisha Mishra
Nishi did an outstanding job this week while diving. She finally conquered this coordinately tough maneuver; and, I couldn’t be more proud! One of my favorite things to coach is diving because not only is something counterintuitive performed, but usually a fear is quelled in the midst as well. For Nishi, it wasn’t just that she did an official dive from the block for the first time; but she did it so well that I had her demonstrate for the whole group – and she crushed it! —Coach Jonny
Silver
Cedar Park: Mallika Jade
Mallika has been working so hard lately. I can see her drive to get better in practice as well her want to succeed in this sport. She has shown some real initiative by leading her lane and making time after practice to ask me what she can be working on or to go over a few skills. When I see this level of self-motivation my biggest desire is to fan that flame. Finally Mallika is really adaptable and coachable when it comes to accepting feedback and making corrections in her stroke. Keep working hard, Mallika! Your motivation and awesome attitude are what will make you great no matter what it is that you undertake. —Coach Claire
Bee Cave: Ian Cunliffe
Ian did a tremendous job this week with the backstroke work we did. We had a big emphasis on rotating our body while keeping our head super still, and Ian was one of the best in the group. So good in fact, that I had him demonstrate for the rest of the group. His side kick backstroke was phenomenal! All of this translated into a very smooth and efficient backstroke. I’m so pleased with Ian’s performance this week; it was an easy decision for me. Great job, Ian! —Coach Peter
Advanced Silver
Bee Cave: Riley Cloud and Travis Zinzer
Riley Cloud & Travis Zinzer are our Advanced Silver Swimmers of the Week! Travis and Riley have been steadily improving in our sport every week, having near perfect attendance for both LC and SC seasons. Their streamlines, turns, and most impressively their butterfly strength and rhythm have each improved tremendously. I am also consistently impressed with their drive on main sets. Keep it up, young men. Good luck in the Championship Season! —Coach Paige
Gold I & II
CP Gold I: Franziska Buckel
Franny has been stepping up to the challenge all summer. When it is time to go fast, I can count on her to be right there at the top. Although she is stronger in the shorter events, she has been impressing in some of our longer sets, like on distance Wednesdays (which I’m sure she secretly loves!). In the end, I can count on Franny to focus, work hard, and have fun while doing it. Keep it up Franny! —Coach Adam
CP Gold II: Matthew Jiampietro
Matthew has been working his tail off this season. He came into the group a little raw, but he consistently works to make positive changes every single practice. He’s the best listener in the group and is always hungry to get better. He has improved tremendously and I see a great future in this sport for him. Keep it up, Matt! —Coach Alex
Bee Cave: Allan Zhou
Allan has been doing such an amazing job in Gold group. From pushing his races in practice, to competing at meets, he has stepped into a leadership role in the group. I enjoy seeing him continue to be a great teammate and encourage/joke around with the people in his lane. I have really taken notice to his breaststroke lately, as he has been swimming it in practice more and more, and I am excited to continue to watch him race. Way to go! —Coach Allison