'A' 2021 SWIMMING PREVIEW

January 7, 2021

 

Note to readers: An additional preview by Scot Heisel, “Polson unleashes new swim team,” is featured in the Th31December 2021 issue of the Lake County Leader, B1
 
Pirate natators take to the pool
by John Heglie, special for the Leader
 
When the current Polson High School first opened its doors the second semester of 1974, rumors circulated about an olympic size swimming pool that had been part of the original plans which were scuttled on account of budget overrun. How much substance lay behind that rumor or whether it was more akin to a local variation of an urban legend is open to debate. But at the very least the vision for an area swim team traces back half a century.
That vision provided much of the impetus behind the fundraising, groundbreaking and eventual completion of the Mission Valley Aquatics and Fitness (MVAF) Center at the Ridgewater Complex in Polson, which was begun in 2003 and completed a decade later in 2013.
Vaulting ahead 47 years to the winter of 2021, Polson High School will finally field its first ever swim team with the addition of the sport to winter athletic offerings. In a collaborative effort between Polson School District and the Polson Parent Swim Club group for an initial five year commitment, the school district agreed to cover program expenses that include travel costs as well as hiring of a coach, while the parental Swim Club group covers operational expenses related to gear, pool rent and associated equipment. The Greater Polson Community Foundation, Donna Rolfson Trust, Lake Seed Potato Fundraiser as well as the parental Swim Club group have each contributed to funding gear and facility usage. The High School itself does not have a pool, so all local competitions will be held at the MVAF Center. 
Shayna Swanson takes the helm as Polson's first swim coach in their inaugural season. A small group of dedicated competitors will comprise the first Pirate swim team, each competing in multiple events somewhat similar to spring track, two individual events along with two relays. Who will be competing in which events remains in a state of flux at this juncture of the schedule. Many members among the nascent Pirate swim team have been competing for several years as part of the Lake Monsters Swim Team in club competitions.
Due to precautionary measures related to the current virus pandemic climate, several meets this season will be of a virtual variety, held at the home pool of each participant with the results then compiled and distributed by the host school. Polson inaugurates their schedule with virtual participation in the Kalispell Invitational with Pirate entries swimming at the MVAF pool.

 

 

 

2018-19 'A' SWIMMING PREVIEWS

November 28, 2018

 

WHITEFISH

The Whitefish swim team will look to build on second-place finishes by both the boys and girls at last year’s Class A State Meet.

Preston Ring, who last year finished fourth in the 100 breaststroke and fifth in the 200 freestyle, will return to lead the boys side, while Annie Sullivan will look to improve on last season’s fifth-place finish in the 500 freestyle.

The team is coached by Emily Von Jentzen.

They’ll open the season at the Summit in Kalispell on Saturday. The meet will start at noon.

 

 

 

 

HOW TO ACCESS A CERTAIN ITEM SUCH AS STANDINGS

December 10, 2017

 

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GREAT FALLS HOSTS SWIMMING MEET

GFH, CMR swim teams host Invitational

Grady Higgins, ghiggins@greatfallstribune.com 9:42 p.m. MST December 17, 2015
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The Great Falls High and C.M. Russell boys’ and girls’ swim teams have started the season with solid performances on the road in Kalispell and Havre.

The Bison and Rustlers get to compete in familiar territory this weekend, hosting the Great Falls Invite on Friday and Saturday.

CMR and GFH welcome Hardin, Havre, Whitefish, and Columbia Falls on Friday starting at 4:30 p.m. at the GFH pool for individual competition before the relay meet Saturday.

The relay meet includes all Class AA schools aside from the three Missoula programs, as well as several A-B teams including Billings Central, which has won five straight girls’ and boys’ A-B titles.

Bison and Rustlers head coach Ed McNamee said the Invite is a good test for his squads because it’s the first two-day meet of the year.

“It’s good always a good opportunity to swim at home,” McNamee said. “And at the same time, it’s important to have back-to-back days of swimming, because when it comes to the state meet, you have to put two days together.”

The relay meet Saturday will provide GFH and CMR with opportunity to see where certain athletes fit in, McNamee said.

“I told the team,” he said, “that this week, particularly for the relays, we’re going to focus on ourselves. We’ve got to have more candidates moving forward for our ‘A’ relays and see who we can expect and who we can move around.

“Those relay spots are pretty coveted. We’ve had some good competition in practice, so hopefully it will translate to this weekend.”

McNamee said he expects some stiff competition in Bozeman and all four Billings teams.

“Bozeman is probably going to be our main competition,” McNamee said. “Coach Will McCallum does a great job with that program. The (AA) Billings schools (West, Senior and Skyview) have come a long way. They had some down years but are rebuilding fast. And Billings Central, with as long as they’ve been around, is a team that you always have to pay attention to.

“It’s a competitive meet but we’ll get a chance to get some kids turns in a big-meet environment and we’ll put our best foot forward and hopefully come out on top.”

The meet is the teams’ last for almost a month, as they pick action back up in mid-January.

“It’s kind of a unique season,” McNamee said. “At the break, you kind of go into ‘fall-camp/two-a-days’ mode, where you kind of go back to the drawing board and see what you really need to work on. So, if we come out and have a good showing and swim hard, that’s the important thing.

“We can set a good tone for the next two weeks heading into the break.”

The CMR girls posted impressive outings in the first two contests of the season, winning the Kalispell and Havre meets.

The Rustlers saw several top-swimmers last weekend in Havre, with junior Olivia Bauman winning both the 100 freestyle and butterfly and seniors Kate Heryla and Tianna Stevens took the 100 backstroke and 200 free, respectively.

The CMR girls also boast some talented underclassmen in freshmen Ayana Gray and Darlene Westie, who both took home victories.

The Rustler boys also took first in Havre, with senior Patrick Brennan earning top times in the 50 free and 100 back. Fellow seniors Andrew Houston and Noah Brennan also swam to first-place finishes for CMR.

The Great Falls High boys came in second in Havre, just 17 points behind the Rustlers.

Freshman Joseph Guter followed up an impressive debut in Kalispell for the Bison, taking the 200 IM and finishing second in the 100 breaststroke.

Brandon Hanlon and Jaydan Elpel also both put up top times for GFH.

The Bison girls are a fairly inexperienced squad but are led by seniors Mackenzie Downard and Stevie McNamee.

Freshman Isabelle Earl highlighted the GFH girls squad in Havre, finishing second in the 50 free.

2015-16 SWIMMING PREVIEWS

Swim team numbers way up, veterans all return to squad

 

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Posted: Wednesday, December 2, 2015 9:45 am


In its second season, the Columbia Falls swim team has more than doubled its numbers. Last year the squad had just seven swimmers, this year there’s 18 total, with 12 boys and six girls on the squad.

 

“Let’s see if we can increase our place at state this year,” said coach Mike Nelson. The Wildcats don’t have too far to go, the boys took second among Class A schools, the girls took fourth.

The team returns veteran swimmers Colton Babcock, Zayne Friar and Karyssa Nelson as well as Hayden Pierce, Ashley Caffrey and Jacob Holman.

Babcock took second as a sophomore 200-yard freestyle and third in the 500-yard freestyle at state, while Friar was fourth in the butterfly. The state meet combines the Class A and AA schools and doesn’t differentiate between the classes for individual results. 

This year the team has some new talent in Morgan Campbell-Queen, Russell Albin, Sam Pierce and Maddy Stoddard, to name a few, Nelson said. Albin, a freshman, was a standout swimmer in the summer leagues.

The team is combined with Whitefish in practices, but competes separately. Whitefish has 16 swimmers this year. It is funded independently, but is a school-sanctioned sport.

The squad opens its season Dec. 5 in Kalispell at the Summit. Competition starts at noon. It has a home meet this year, the Cat-Dog Invitational at the Wave in Whitefish Jan. 16. Swimming starts at noon as well.

SCORES, PICS AND VIDEOS

Please text or email us your scores as soon as the game/match is complete so I can put them on our website, twitter and facebook pages. Text number is 406-471-2263.  Email is tjw@centurytel.net.

Also, email us your pics/videos so we can put them on the website.

Thanks.