Noelle Minck
Over the long weekend of June 20 through June 24, six SaddleBrooke Swim Team members flew to Indianapolis, Ind., to compete in the U.S. Masters Swimming Spring National Championships. The meet was held at the Indiana University Natatorium, down the road from the Lucas Oil Stadium, where the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials were taking place. The proximity to so much great swimming and amazing effort by elite athletes proved quite the inspiration to our friends, neighbors, and teammates.
Theresa Ashton, Larry John, Samantha Martoni, Stacy Olson, Craig Shaffer, and Steve Willer all chose to prepare for a meet that was a long way from home with little support or back-up, should they need it. They acted as a cohesive group from Arizona Swimming and turned in some amazing personal performances.
Theresa Ashton, competing in the 80-84 age group in her third Nationals competition, established herself as National Champion in the 50-yard Butterfly. Theresa further established her dominance in her age group with two second place and two third place finishes in her respective events. Theresa is an Indiana University alum and felt fortunate to go back to where she first started competing at a young age.
Stacy Olson qualified for Nationals in the 60-64 age group in the 1650-yard Freestyle. She proceeded to stomp all over her previous best time from just two months ago. Stacy dropped a remarkable two and a half minutes off that personal best.
Larry John, a SaddleBrooke swim coach, competing in the 60-64 age group, swam the 200 Freestyle over 6 seconds faster than his seed time. He also shaved off another 2 seconds from his time in the 100-yard Freestyle.
Steve Willer, swimming in the highly competitive 70-74 age group, dropped time in all of his scheduled events. His herculean efforts in the 100-yard Butterfly netted him over a 3-second drop in his finish time.
Samantha Martoni continued in her push for Breaststroke dominance in the 60-64 age group and finished with a sixth place finish in the 50-yard Breaststroke, dropping 3.5 seconds off her entry time.
Craig Shaffer, competing in the 75-79 age group, bettered his entry times in events he didn’t place in. Craig illustrated his strength in the Butterfly events with a sixth place finish in the 100-yard Butterfly and a third place finish in the 200-yard Butterfly, an event not for the faint of heart.
Altogether, Saddlebrook Swim Club performed exceptionally at the Spring National Championships. The swimmers all pronounced the meet to be an incredible experience. Their accomplishments foreshadow another great season for SaddleBrooke Swim Club starting in the fall.
If you or anyone you know is interested in becoming part of a group full of knowledgeable, supportive, fun-loving, sociable people, please contact head coach Terry Heggy at [email protected].