SMACtastic Swimmer of the Month: October

 

 

Maddex Tabulina

Age Group Evergreen

Maddex has taken a big step forward this season, growing into a lane leader and becoming more confident competing in all four strokes.  At the THSC Fall Invite, he also reminded us that racing is about more than just times - he had a blast hanging out and competing with his buddies in the Age Group Performance group.  Maddex is building a great combination of leadership, versatility, and enjoyment of the sport.  Keep up the strong work, Maddex!

Anna Kozhemiako          

Stroke D Evergreen

Anna has been growing as both a leader and an athlete this season.  She leads her lane in practice, works hard to improve all four strokes, and brings a wonderful enthusiasm to swimming fast at meets.  Add in all the time she spends training as a gymnast, and Anna is developing an impressive combination of work ethic, coordination, and competitive spirit.  We love seeing her challenge herself, enjoy the process, and help make her team better.  This is a winning combination, Anna!

Clara Galvin                      

Catfish Evergreen

Clara is building some excellent habits that will help her swim super-fast!  Her dives are strong, her streamlines are fantastic, and she’s developing a strong kick to carry her speed off the walls.  Just as importantly, Clara listens carefully, asks great questions, and shows a real desire to learn.  With the Mini Meet this Sunday, we’re excited to see Clara put that hard work into action and discover what she can do.

Abhir Goel                        

Stroke Development Newport

Abhir brings a “big brother” presence to practice that helps make it fun and social for everyone. During pumpkin relays he quietly helped younger swimmers find creative ways to fulfill the prompts, and whenever someone is called upon to demonstrate a new skill, he congratulates them. 

Noah Porter                     

Catfish MSC

Noah is always eager to learn new skills and asks great questions at practice! He’s a fantastic listener, a great teammate, and always brings a positive attitude to the pool. We love his enthusiasm and willingness to learn!

Liam Bowen                     

Stroke Development MSC

Liam has shown incredible dedication this season! He’s always looking for ways to improve, listens carefully to feedback, and has maintained 100% attendance so far this season! His consistency and hard work are really paying off, and it’s been awesome watching his progress!

Jeffrey Lou                       

Age Group MSC

Jeffrey is a great teammate who brings so much positive energy to practice! He’s a hard worker, always willing to help the group stay organized with send offs, and leads by example. We really appreciate his enthusiasm and the energy he brings to the pool every day!

Wyatt Higgins   

Catfish Fife

Wyatt always brings joy to the group, and makes sure the practice is fun for everyone. He shows up ready to go and get started every day and always wants to take the lead in the lane and race his teammates in practice. He has gotten much better at listening and focusing on what the group is working on in practice, which has helped him to make great improvements this month with his starts and breaststroke especially.

Victoria Ruiz                    

Stroke Development Fife

Victoria always gives her full attention to the coach's instructions, ensuring that she not only knows what we're doing, but why we're doing it and what we're working on. She brings a fantastic attitude and work ethic to every practice, which will certainly translate into major successes in the months to come.   

Maya Olarte                    

Age Group Fife

Maya has shown great focus and effort at practice this month and results are beginning to show. In the past couple of months, she has made her way to the top of the group. She is always focused, and has made great improvements in the quality and speed of all of her strokes. Maya has been a swimmer who makes the group better when she’s in it.

Carter Sawin                    

Senior Fife

Carter joined the team this month and has made a great addition to the group in the few weeks he’s been with us. Carter brings great positive energy to the group, making sure everyone is having a great time at practice. He’s been working hard and has been making some crucial changes to his strokes to make sure he can keep the improvements coming.

Jinwoo Dong                    

Catfish Kent

Jinwoo has shown great resilience at practice, taking feedback in stride and working diligently to improve. He also is able to have fun and make practice more fun for his teammates. His hard work in October led to great swims at the November Mini Meet.

Addy Czaplicki  

Stroke Development Kent

Addy continues to impress in her first couple of months on SMAC. She is a great teammate, often seen cheering for her friends at the end of lanes at meets. She takes feedback very well, always looking for ways to get better. This has led to many time drops and completing new races.

Ari Bailey                          

Senior Kent

Ari has had a great month of training, showing consistent attendance, great work ethic, and strong attention to detail. Further, Ari is a great teammate - able to connect with anyone and up life. 

Lucas Bean                       

Senior Performance Kent

Lucas has been a standout leader this month, showing great attendance and attention to detail. Most importantly, Lucas carried out one of our group goals wonderfully - the ability to look at every meet and every race as a part of a larger iterative process of improvement. This resulted in coming off of the SMAC Fall Kickoff, analyzing how he did, and making adjustments that led to 100% best times at the VAST Fall Classic. 

Mackenzie Bernier         

AGP Mt. Rainier

Mackenzie has done an amazing job in making the transition from Age Group to AGP in a very short period of time.  She has an amazing infectious personality and is always smiling and happy to be at practice.  She has taken on a leadership role in her lane and is always eager to learn and wants all feedback.  She has had some amazing performances this early season due to her approach at practice which she does an amazing job with carrying over to meet performances.  I am excited to see how the rest of the season goes.

Joey Rinker                       

Age Group Mt. Rainier

Joey arrives at practice on time and with a sense of urgency. He will always lead his lane with confidence and in a cheerful manner. Joey has tackled each and every set he faces enthusiastically and with nothing but the desire to improve on his mind.

Maylee Lewis   

Stroke Development Mt. Rainier

Maylee everyday is on time and ready to get in.  She tackles practice with great focus on details and working to her best ability at practice.  She does this always with a smile on her face and such a positive attitude at workout.  She has had some amazing performances this season and this is due to her positive attitude and her hard work at practice.  I anticipate a lot of great things for Maylee this season.

Asher Meerdink              

Catfish Mt. Rainier

Asher arrives every day with a positive and infectious attitude eager to learn everything that he can.  He has such an amazing attitude at practice and wants to lead his lane and be a leader in the group.  You have seen Asher develop and really apply all things he learns at practice.  Keep up the great work Asher and I am excited to see how this season progresses for him.

Daniel Mkrtchyan          

AGP Central

At practice Daniel consistently demonstrates what being a good teammate looks like and helps make everyone else around him better. Daniel always gives his full attention to coaches when they are talking and understands not only the purpose of each set but the expectations that go with it. When swimming, Daniel helps make everyone else around him by being competitive, supportive, but also keeps his teammates accountable. It's great having you at practice Daniel, keep it up!

Sky Cline                           

AGP Kent

Sky has taken huge steps forward in his training intensity this season and leads by example. The focus that Sky has shown daily in practice, technical correction and effort, has led to significant improvement in early meets. I am excited to see where the increased focus takes Sky this season. Congratulations Sky!

Ellie Carter                        

AG Kent

Ellie has done an exceptional job of making necessary changes for improvement since her September move to Age Group. Ellie requests feedback and does an excellent job of making changes as a result of the feedback. I have also been pleased with the effort that Ellie shows at practice daily. Congratulations Ellie!

Sophie Selberg 

Catfish Central

Sophie is a great leader and consistently sets a positive example for her teammates. She comes to practice focused, ready to learn, and always willing to put in the effort to improve. She does a great job of taking feedback and quickly applying it. Her positive attitude and willingness to learn make Sophie a great teammate and role model for the group. Nice job, Sophie!

Tisya Sharan                    

Stroke Development Central

Tisya consistently comes to practice focused and ready. She is always willing to challenge herself by trying new events and continues to focus on her technique. Tisya does a great job of staying aware of what is going on around her, always knowing what the group is doing, what comes next, and when it's time to go. Keep up the great work!

Abigail Dixon                   

Age Group Central

Abigail has consistently demonstrated a positive attitude, building good habits, and willingness to step outside of her comfort zone. She is always open to trying new things, embracing challenges, and asking the questions that push her to continue growing as a swimmer. Abigail is also a supportive and encouraging teammate who brings positivity to the group both in and out of the pool. 

Lilian Yang                        

National Central

Lilian has shown tremendous consistency in her attendance, attitude, and performance this year. She has displayed a supportive attitude towards her teammates even during the hardest parts of training. And there have been hard parts because she has embraced training for and racing longer events like the 200 butterfly, 400 IM, and 500 freestyle. I am looking forward to her hard work and consistency paying dividends over the next 6 weeks. Great job, Lilian!

Cole Sommers  

Senior Central

Cole has been one of our most consistent swimmers this season, and it’s been fun to see that commitment translate into huge time drops already. What I’ve appreciated just as much is how he supports his teammates. Whether he’s behind the blocks cheering someone on, the first one in the water at practice, or ready to help a teammate, Cole sets an example through his everyday actions. He’s helping build a team where swimmers work toward their own goals and care about each other’s success. Congratulations, Cole!

Daniel Isaza      

Senior Performance View Ridge

Daniel has demonstrated to his coach and teammates that he is “all in” when it comes to setting high level goals and doing what it takes to consistently make the tough choices in training. He made his first Champs cuts at the T Hills meet last weekend. Daniel is coachable and committed to “the process” by improving his technique daily.

Jaimee Dong     

Stroke Development View Ridge

Jaimee is a pleasure to coach because at 8 years old, she quickly grasps technique and racing concepts. Jaimee has excellent practice attendance, consistent meet attendance and has an IM Ready Score. At practice, Jaimee is often called on to demonstrate excellent technique and skills.

Brooklyn Davis

Catfish View Ridge

At the very young age of six, Brooklyn has shown significant improvements in his stroke technique and time improvements going into his second year in Catfish. Brooklyn loves to compete and has grasped good basics in all four strokes. As Brooklyn improves his ability to follow direction, we foresee lots of improvement in his future.

Joe Lauinger                     

Senior Evergreen

Since the start of the season, Joe has been a leader in our group, demonstrating what it looks like to get the most out of practice. Joe brings a great work ethic and a willingness to incorporate constructive feedback. Most importantly, he swims each set with intention! We're excited to see his consistent hard work and attention to detail pay off.

Sophie Wang                   

AGP View Ridge

Day in and day out, Sophie gets the work done right. She's consistent in her attendance, her effort, and in the attitude she brings to each practice. She engages with the "why" of each set and skill, and this has shown up in a big way in her meet results.  

Cooper Dickie   

AG View Ridge

Cooper put together an excellent month of practices in October. He engages in the technical work and consistently applies new skills during physiologically challenging sets. He's become a lane leader in the group, and it's been so gratifying to watch him step into that role.

Greta Ambach  

SR View Ridge

Greta has been an excellent addition to the Senior group. She's been a consistent positive example of what it looks like to engage with the technical and physiological goals of each set. It's been such a joy to work with her, to have her be so receptive to new ways of thinking about her target events, and to watch her have such success. 

Will Frost                          

SP Central

Will’s a model of consistency.  He doesn’t just work hard; he’s the example you can point to on a regular basis.  Beyond the good work in the pool, he’s taking care of himself, stretching out before practice, getting the pool set up for others and simply looking around and seeing what else needs to get done. He makes the group better.