Quakertown swim team loses to CB East

Personal Blog

            On Thursday Jan. 6, 2011 the Quakertown girls and boys swimming team faced CB West in their first league meet.  All of their other meets have been out of league.  They have already gone up against Upper Perk, Salisbury, and Saucon Valley High Schools.  Even though Quakertown has tried their absolute hardest, their team has only 15 swimmers, not enough to win a meet.  The girls’ team has 11 swimmers, enough to possibly take a victory, but just not enough.  The guys’ team has only four swimmers which in retrospect does not even take up a quarter of the guys on other teams.  Though, they keep their spirits up and never lose hope of their ultimate goal: districts. 

            How does a team win a swim meet?  The following breaks down the events.  The events start with the 200 medley relay, 200 freestyle, 200 individual medley (IM), and 50 freestyle.  After the 50 freestyle, diving starts.  If your team has divers (which Quakertown cannot because of pool situations) the teams will receive 15 points to split between the two teams.  So already walking into the meet, Quakertown starts to lose.  Next, a short 15-minute intermission followed by 100 butterfly, 100 freestyle, 500 freestyle, 200 freestyle relay, 100 backstroke, 100 breaststroke, and the 400 freestyle relay.  Each swimmer can compete in four events.  Diving counts as an individual event if you compete for both teams.  Each swimmer cannot be guaranteed to swim four events because your coach decides what you swim.  The scoring of events follows below:

Individual events- 1^st place: 6pts.  2^nd  place: 4pts.  3^rd place: 3pts.  4^th place: 2pts.  5^th place: 1 pt.  6^th place: 0pts.     

Relay Events-   1^st place: 8pts.  2^nd  place: 4pts.  3^rd place: 2pts.  4^th place: 0pts.  5^th place: 0pts.  6^th place: 0pts.    

So, one can plainly see the scoring tests the Quakertown team, because they do not have enough swimmers to swim more than one person on every event, making them actually lose points. 

            At Thursday’s meet, the Quakertown boys lost 61 to 26 against CB West.  Each boy did his part to bring their score up and the results follow.  CB West dominated in the 200 freestyle relay, but the Quakertown boys came back in the 200 freestyle where Nicholas Vivian took second place with a time of 2:03.85 and George Claghorn took third place with a time of 2:18.92.  In the 200 IM Parker Vivian took second place with a time of 2:16.19.  Also, Quakertown’s Wayne Hailstone who has been working hard to make districts in his 50 freestyle took second place in his 50 with a time of :25.50.  Sadly, he did not make districts, but his efforts won him second.  After diving concluded, the 100 butterfly went underway where Nicholas Vivian took second place with a time of 1:02.69.  After butterfly, Wayne Hailstone once again took second for the 100 freestyle swimming at a :56.86.  In the 500 freestyle, the longest event, Parker Vivian took second with a time of 5:42.05 and George Claghorn took third place coming in at a 6:07.28.  This helped in the team, in that two boys placed for the team.  Lastly, the 200 freestyle relay took first place.  The swimmers Parker Vivian, George Claghorn, Wayne Hailstone, and Nicholas Vivian had a time of 1:46.52.  Unfortunately, the boys did not have enough swimmers for the final three events and CB West took home the gold.

            The girls’ team came closer to a victory than the guys’ team, but still lost with a score of 66 to 32.  Each girl pushed herself and overall the Quakertown girls looked well in the water.  The results follow.  The 200 freestyle relay swum by Hannah Susavage, Cheyenne Kressley, Sarah Renn, and Megan Renn won this event with a time of 2:04.16.  Sarah Renn also came away with a victory in the next event, the 200 freestyle with a time of 2:11.29.  The 200 IM was a tougher event for the Quakertown girls, but Leah Kaighn grabbed third place swimming at a 2:43.42.  Megan Renn then brought the Quakertown girls back for a win in the 50 freestyle with a time of :26.33.  She has been working hard to make districts for this event.  The qualifying time Megan would need, :26.30 which one can see she came extremely close to.  After diving, came the 100 butterfly and Sarah Renn took second place with a time of 1:07.01.  In the 100 freestyle Megan Renn took second place with a time of :59.32.  Next the 500 freestyle, where Cheyenne Kressley walked away with a win swimming a 5:44.26, her best time of the season so far. 

In the 200 freestyle Quakertown took second and third.  The second place team of Megan Renn, Alex Kluger, Sarah Renn, and Cheyenne Kressley came close to districts with a 1:48.89.  Districts time however comes in at a 1:48.00.  The third place team of Rachel Haywood, Rebecca Waddell, Alicia Keller, and Mara Ims-Donnelly had a time of 2:01.31.  In the 100 backstroke, Cheyenne Kressley came in third place with a time of 1:07.39.  In the 100 breaststroke Rebecca Waddell came in third place with a time of 1:26.06.  Finally, in the 400 freestyle relay the Quakertown girls Mara Ims-Donnelly, Sara Reigh, Hannah Susavage, and Leah Kaighn came in third place with a time of 4:28.37.  Overall, the girls pulled out a meet with amazing times and should be proud to swim on the Quakertown team.

Even though swimming can be tough for this high school team, they never give up.  I, Cheyenne Kressley, am proud to be a part of it.  I know our team seems small, and I know sometimes we have to try harder than most, but that’s what makes us better.  Our passion for swimming keeps us moving.  I get to watch our team grow every day.  I see the struggles, like Megan Renn’s quest for districts or even my own relay team who tries hard and comes close.   Anecdote and Nut Graph:

I remember that day, our relay stepping up to the block.  We patiently wait, Megan Renn taking her rightful place on the block.  The starter blows the whistle, and Megan gracefully dives into the water.  Her flip turn coming out beautifully, then she continues her way back to the block.  Next, I see Alex Klugar maake her way onto the block, and when Megan’s hands touch the wall, she dives in.  She splashes and fights her way down the lane, water hitting our already cold faces, while Sarah Renn takes her place on the block.  Alex swerves after her flip turn to regain her pace back down the lane.  Her hands finally hit the wall, and Sarah makes her dive.  She races to the wall and back, while I step up onto the hard bumpy feeling block.  Sarah touches the wall, and I dive in.  The water envelopes me, while I make my way to the wall.  I flip, knowing districts means everything.  I come back and finish hard.  I look up at the clock, seeing the disappointing time (1:48.89); knowing districts just missed our reach.  We knew how close we came, but there would be other chances.  I wish people saw that when we walk by.  I want them to see a team, who yes has trouble winning meets, but ultimately has heart.     

*All times and places were found in The Intelligencer in the local sports section on Friday, January 7, 2011. 

Swimming butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle correctly




Strong Opinion

            When swimming any stroke competitively, the most important rule would to focus on your stroke and technique.  Without a good stroke, your whole race could fail.  Your chances of winning can greatly slim down if not swum correctly.  Most swim each stroke individually, but most do not know they can swim them together also.  When swum all together, swimmers call it an Individual Medley, or IM.  So, it is important to swim with good technique while swimming butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. 



            Butterfly can be the toughest stroke if not swum correctly.  The leg and arms movement take time to learn, so the importance of technique comes into play.  The first movement one needs to nail down when starting butterfly are the legs.  Just like a dolphin, your legs and hips need to move in an up and down motion, while staying pinned together.  The important part to remember about the kick, to not stop moving, a continuous motion will help in the long run.  Next, the arms need to be added.  The pull needs to a good pull, or the stroke will not be easy.  The arm movement takes the longest time to learn in the butterfly stroke.  First, take one kick.  Then pull your arms down in the shape of a key hole.  Finally, take another kick and your arms should float around in a circular motion.  Do not become discouraged if this does not come naturally to you, because butterfly takes the most difficulty.  It will take a lot of practice, but it will eventually come to you.

            Backstroke, along with freestyle, takes the easiest time to learn.  Backstroke takes the basics of freestyle, (which will be taught later on) and puts it on your back.  First, when swimming backstroke take time to learn how to float on your back in water.  Once you get comfortable with this, the stroke will come naturally.  Though, if the slightest bit of your body does not completely float on top of the water, it can slow you down.  After you can float, kick your feet in what swimmers call the flutter kick.  This becomes achieved by taking each foot individually and kicking one up and down opposite of the others movement.  This will help propel you down the pool lane.  Next, add in your arms.  Take one arm and point it up to the sky, when arm levitates up in the air your thumb should rotate up first.  While your arm levitates up in the air, turn your palm outwards so that your pinkie finger renters the water first.  Then, your other arm should do the same motion.  Each arm will enter and exit the water after the other has finished.  With backstroke, the most important part, the pull underneath the water.  If your pull does not pull hard enough, then your stroke will not suffice.

            Breaststroke, like butterfly, also takes a longer amount of time to learn.  Many people think breaststroke looks easy, but few can actually perform well at this stroke.  The kick for breaststroke differs than all of the other strokes.  This stroke’s kick can be looked like a frogs kick.  Both legs will move at the same time like in butterfly.  First, take both legs and bring your heals to your butt.  Next, split the legs outward like an “L” shape.  Your legs should be in opposite directions.  They should look like this: JL.  See how the “J” sticks out to the left and the “L” sticks out to the right.  The arms should start out over your head.  On hand should be on top of the other.  Next, pull your arms in a circular motion underneath your body.  Your hands should be at your chest in a “T” position.  Your hands then should push out and will end over your head again.  Just like in backstroke, the pulling motion of breaststroke has high importance.  To put the whole thing together, do a kick and then your pull.  It takes awhile to get used to, but eventually your will ability to do the without thinking will help the stroke come together.

            Freestyle, like backstroke, takes an easy amount of time to learn.  According to ehow.com, “Most swimmers chose to swim front crawl (freestyle) during freestyle competition because it is the fastest technique. For individual freestyle competitions, however, a swimmer can use any stroke they want, but during medley competitions they cannot use the breaststroke, butterfly stroke or backstroke.”  The kick motion stays like the backstroke kick, except this time you will be on your stomach.  While kicking the flutter kick, you can bring one arm up your body and form an upside down “V” with your arm.  Your elbow should stay high up in the air.  This will help you stay steady and straight down the lane.  Next, your arm should reenter the water, make sure not to slap the water, but instead gracefully push your hand back down.  Your other arm should then do the same motion.  Make sure to cycle through each arm while kicking.  Just like every other stroke, you need to pull your arms through the water.

            When starting to swim competitively, the strokes start hard especially if you see other good swimmers.  Do not become frustrated.  Try and stay calm, all of the strokes will come to you eventually, but it takes time.  The important thing to remember when swimming: technique.  Without technique, the harder it takes to improve when swimming in meets, races, and practice.



Butterfly- Wikipedia



Backstroke- Wikipedia





Breaststroke- Wikipedia



Freestyle- Wikipedia

















Performing flip turns for each stroke

Extra Topic

When it comes to flip turns in the swimming world, they become the most important part of your race.  If a flip turn not performed correctly, does not meet good technique then you will lose time and most likely lose your race.  According to ehow.com, the flip turn will shave time off of your race and help you burn extra calories along the way.  Take the extra time to learn how to do each flip turn for each stroke, because you will need to perform them perfectly. 

The butterfly and breaststroke flip turns stay exactly the same, the only difference between them: the stroke swum into the wall.  The most important thing in a flip turn: to make sure that both hands touch the wall equally!  If they do not, an official can disqualify you from your event for swimming the stroke illegally.  Once your hands touch the wall, take your non-dominant arm and push your elbow outwards towards the other side of the pool.  Your arm should look like a sideways “V.”  While your non-dominant arm pulls backwards, your dominant hand should come up to your ear and finish back around into the water.  Both your hands should finish over your head, while you swim outwards towards the other wall.  On the team, we call this motion “Elbow your brother or sister, and call your mother.”  We call this move that because, the motion resembles elbowing your sibling and calling your mother when the turn finishes.  Remember to keep in mind that only the butterfly and breaststroke turns differ and not the turn.     

Freestyle and backstroke turns stay virtually the same, but the approach differs.  Let us start with backstroke.  With backstroke, of course you start on your back.  The flags above the lanes will help you.  First, start at the flags and count how many strokes it takes until you touch the wall.  Once you know this, the flip turn becomes easier.  Take the number of strokes, and subtract one.  Take your new count and take that many strokes to the wall.  Next, take your last stroke by flipping over onto your stomach.  Make sure that when you flip over onto your stomach and take a stroke that you only take one stroke!  If you take more than one stroke, an official can disqualify you.  At first, you might be too close or too far away from the wall, so take some time to play around with it.  When you take your last stroke, make sure to stay on your stomach.  Next, take your leading arm and pull it into your stomach and flip.  Keep your head tucked into your chest this should cause your whole body to flip over, and your feet should hit the wall.  At this point, you should be sitting in a chair sideways.  Next, push off of the wall towards the opposite wall.  Make sure that your arms stay above your head and that you stay on your back that way, you can start right into your stroke again.  For freestyle, you do the exact same flip turn, except you go in on your stomach and come out on your stomach.

Ehow.com also says that flip turns become a fundamental part of competitive swimming.  So when performing your flip turns, make sure that you follow all of the steps.  If any part of the turn looks incorrect, an official can disqualify you for an illegal flip turn.  So, make sure to follow all directions and focus on each part of the flip turn.



Freestyle and Backstroke flip turns- Wikipedia



How to perform dives for each stroke

Extra Topic

Diving, along with flip turns, also becomes one of the most important parts your race.  The strokes all each subtly change once you dive into the water, but three of the four strokes perform the same dive off of the block.  Though one differs from the others, and posses more difficulty.  When racing a long race like the 500, your dives importance declines, but when you swim a short race like the 50 your dives importance sky rockets.

Freestyle, butterfly, and breaststroke all perform the same dive.  Most people probably think swimmers dive off of a diving board, which all swimmers will deem incorrect.  The people who call them diving boards, have the right idea, but the “diving boards,” real name: the block.  A block does not contain springs, but merely a block with a step up to the top and two handles underneath.  The handles come into play for backstroke, but the other three strokes will stay on top of the block.  When the starter blows the whistle to start the race, you will step up onto the block.  Now you need to make a decision.  How will you place your feet?  You can choose a track start or a straight start.  In a track start, place on foot in front of the other.  In a straight start, both of your feet will stay positioned next to each other.  Choose the one that feels most comfortable to you.  According to ehow.com you should, “Practice diving with and without a diving block to find a dive you prefer,” and to, “Never try to dive in shallow water because you will hurt your head and neck and possibly suffer further injuries.”  Next, the official will say take your mark.  At this point, bend down so that your hands attach to the bottom of the block.  Make sure you hold on tight, and bring your head down to look in between your legs.  You should see everything behind you. Hold your body over the water, but not too far because you do not want to fall in.  When the buzzer sounds, your legs should explode, and your arms should push off of the block.  Since your arms push backwards, you need to pull them up over your head while you float through the air.  When you enter the water, you need to begin kicking.  For butterfly, you will start the dolphin kick.  For freestyle, you will do a flutter kick.  For breaststroke, you will do an underwater pull out, which consists of one pull and one kick underwater before starting the full stroke.  After the dive, start your stroke and win the race. 

Backstroke, consists of more than a dive off of the block.  Since you need to start on your back, you will need to dive onto your back.  So, you need to use the handles located underneath the block.  When the starter blows the whistle, enter the water.  Next, grab a hold of the handles and get ready to place your feet.  When the starter says place your feet, take both feet and place them just below the water line.  Next, the starter will say take your mark.  Now, pull your body up towards the block.  You need to pull yourself far up towards the top of the block.  When the buzzer sounds, throw your arms backwards and arch your back.  You want to throw yourself up and out of the water and land hands first back into the water to start your backstroke kick.  Also, make sure that nothing drags in the water, because it will slow you down. 

The backstroke start posses the most difficult, but with practice, it can turn into the easiest.  Just stay focused with each start, and each will come naturally.  Do not become frustrated with your first try, because naturally everything takes practice.         



Freestyle, Breaststroke, and Butterfly dives- Wikipedia





Backstroke dives- Wikipedia