Every year, some age groups for certain teams in the Jefferson Swim League are just more loaded than others.
This season for the Crozet Gators Swim Team, the 13-14 year old girls are particularly strong, but that doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
“We get records every two years for our relay,” said Crozet’s Anna Corley. “(We can be) pretty tough to beat.”
Over the last four years, members of this group are responsible for a pair of JSL Championship records in the 200-meter freestyle relay. They own the 9-10 year old and 11-12 age group division marks. Elsa Strickland, Alexis Campbell and Anna Corley are three key players in the age group while Carly Witt has also played a major role. Strickland and Witt were on both record setting units in 2006 and 2008 while Campbell and Corley have one record each. Most of the standouts in the group are year-round swimmers who’ve made massive improvements over the last several years with a demanding training regimen. But they all continue coming back to their local club, the Gators, each summer.
“It’s my team—I’ve been here since I was really young, I can’t abandon them,” Corley said.
If they’re going to break another record in the 200 free relay, the 13-14 year old group will have to cut 15 seconds off their time from 2008, which should certainly be possible. The group that appears set to team up at the Championships appears to be Corley, Strickland, Campbell and a relatively new name, Remedy Rule, who swims with SMAC, a year-round club in the Valley. They’ll be looking to knock off a record set in 1995 by a quartet from Fry Springs Beach Club.
Over on Crozet’s Wednesday night foe, Fluvanna Area Swim Team, a couple of younger divisions are improving consistently and making some significant noise.
FAST’s eight and under girls grouping is stocked with tough swimmers including Alexa Owen, a strong swimmer and solid leader for FAST in the group with a lofty goal for the year.
“Every week she’s improving and finishing first in all her events,” said FAST assistant coach Diana Bowen. “So that’s a great goal for her to have, to be one of the highest point swimmers in her division.”
That age division has also made massive strides, with many swimmers earning their first gold times, a coveted standard in the lower divisions that once attained indicates incredible improvement.
Last week, Bailey Dixon earned three gold times in FAST’s meet, her first three gold times ever. Emma DiFazio and Maggie Booz have excelled in the oddstrokes.
“They’ve got gold times in all their events and we’ve got a lot of girls getting gold times for the first time in the backstroke or the butterfly,” Bowen said. “We’ve really pushed the butterfly and breaststroke and it shows.”
Other swimmers like Brin Kuzemka and Abigail Brown, who topped the six-and-under group last season are already making an impact at the 7-8 year old level.
Another fast-rising group for Fluvanna is the 11-12 year old boys. Austen Billingsley, another talented swimmer helps out as a volunteer coach and helps run some workouts. Brian Hynes and David Dixon, national-level swimmers who have been great assets for FAST in the odd strokes, join Billingsley in the age group. In all, 10 swimmers in the age division have gold times, an unprecedented feat for the FAST squad, which was founded just five years ago.
