AAA's Day 4 Recap

In one of the closest overall team point finishes in recent memory, Pacific Coast Swimming edged out Hyack Swim Club from New Westminster by one hundred and twenty six points.  A full team effort was on display from the Bolts, as they filled A and B Finals with a total of forty-six swimmers on the last night of competition, to hold off Hyack's late charge.  

The Girls 11 & Under 50 Free saw Anastasia Trudel swim to a 5^th place finish in 29.82.  Jessica Luo continued her medal haul as she captured gold in the Girls 12-13 50 Free.  Her time of 26.73 was a full half a second ahead of the competitor in the field.  Pacific Coast Swimming picked up valuable finals points as Kelsey Andrusak placed 7^th in the Girls 14-15 50 Free, and Rachel Sawchuk placed 5^th in the Girls 16-18 50 Free. 

In the Boys 11 & Under 50 Free Nathan Chow placed 6^th, while the Boys 12-13 50 Free saw Michael Schmidt place 5^th in a time of 26.72 and Anthony Gutierrez touch the wall in 8^th with a time of 27.38.  Cale Murdock clocked in at 24.03 in the Boys 16-18 50 Free, good enough for a 6^th place finish.

Hana Edwards found herself on the podium once again, as she placed 2^nd in the Girls 12-13 200 Breast in a time of 2:40.53.  Jordan Andrusak swam to a time of 2:34.63 and a 6^th place finish in the Girls 16-18 200 Breast. Michael Schmidt completed the breaststroke sweep as he touched the wall in a new Pacific Coast Swimming record of 2:29.55, in the Boys 12-13 200 Breast.  Teammates Brendan Fitzpatrick and Dylan Kormendy were close behind, finishing 4^th and 7^th respectively. 

In the 200 Freestyle the Bolts stuffed the finals with twelve swimmers, looking to earn critical points as they worked to create breathing room between them and Hyack heading into the last events of the evening.  Anastasia Trudel touched the wall in 5^th in the Girls 11 & Under 200 Free, while Jessica Luo claimed gold in a time of 2:06.01 in the Girls 12-13 200 Free.  Close behind Luo was Sophie Lorette who improved her prelims placing to finish 4^th. 

The crew of Erin Lawrance, Rachel Sawchuk and Allison Ballantyne swam to 4^th, 7^th, and 8^th place finishes respectively in the Girls 16-18 200 Free.  Anthony Gutierrez claimed silver in the Boys 12-13 200 Free in a three second best time of 2:03.44.  In the Boys 16-18 200 Free, Mathew Fuller and Cale Murdock took care of business as they placed 3^rd and 4^th.  Fuller swam to a time of 1:51.78, while Murdock hit the wall in 1:52.66. 

In her final event of the evening, Jessica Luo was once again golden, winning the Girls 12-13 100 Fly in a new Pacific Coast Swimming record of 1:03.03.  Sophie Lorette joined her teammate on the podium, as she placed third in a time of 1:04.89.  In the Boys 12-13 100 Fly, Keir Ogilvie earned a silver medal, swimming to a best time of 1:02.95. 

PCS Director of Athlete Development, Rod Barratt, commented on the team effort over the four day meet, saying "we are very proud of all of our swimmers, as there was contribution across the board from our youngest club members right on through to our oldest.  Making finals, getting on the podium and cheering each other on over the course of the weekend.  The atmosphere around the team was great."  Barratt went on to comment that "a meet like this doesn't happen without the volunteers, officials, and Saanich Commonwealth Place helping put on a first class sporting event in our backyard - to give swimmers in Victoria the opportunity to compete at the highest level in a world class facility".

Next up for the Bolts is BC Senior Championships, March 12th-13th at the University of British Columbia.  The group heading over to the mainland will consist of UVic Vikes and a handful of PCS senior swimmers.  A younger contingent of PCS swimmers will head to the ManSask Championships in Saskatoon, from March 17th-20th.