Sault swimmers 'rip it up' during first weeks of competition

NEWS RELEASE
SAULT SURGE AQUATIC TEAM
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Sault Surge Aquatic Team was back in the pool Sept. 16 after summer break came to an end, and the swimmers have already begun competing! A solid month of training culminated in the Sault Surge Pentathlon held Oct. 18-20 at the John Rhodes Community Centre.

Of the 85 swimmers in the club, 57 flooded the pool deck donned in purple to open the competition season with a bang! Teams from Elliot Lake, Kirkland Lake, and Thunder Bay joined Surge for the weekend season-opener meet that focused on having all swimmers compete in all four competitive strokes: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. Swimmers as young as 7 and as old as 19 represented Sault Ste. Marie in grand fashion, many for the first time ever. Of this meet, swimmer Alexander Orazietti said, “Surge is rippin’ it up!”

The following weekend, a group of eight Surge swimmers joined forces with other teams in the northeastern Ontario region (NEOR) to face off against the Laurentian Voyageurs and the Waterloo Warriors in a university meet in Sudbury. Incredible efforts by all northeastern swimmers led the women’s team to victory over both university teams in attendance. In addition to the meet, swimmers from NEOR had two major training sessions with Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club head coach Dean Henze during the weekend, which speaks volumes to their accomplishments considering the athletes were more fatigued than the other teams competing.

The first weekend of November saw another group of Surge swimmers in Sudbury, this time for the first of four NEOR Development meets planned for this season. Surge had the edge on the competition from the get-go, having competed already in our home pool two weeks prior. Sure enough, our athletes came away with handfuls of ribbons and new best times in multiple events.

Additionally, six new club records have been set within the last three weeks:
    •    Mikhaela Johnson - 5 and over girls 100 butterfly: 1:06.50
    •    Mikhaela Johnson - 15 and over girls 200 butterfly: 2:33.49
    •    Paige Banton - 15 and over girls 100 individual medley: 1:09.13
    •    Ethan Haas - 11/12 boys 200 breaststroke: 3:04.57
    •    Ethan Haas - 11/12 boys 100 individual medley: 1:18.85
    •    Cameron Hutton - 13/14 boys 100 individual medley: 1:13.88

Nov. 7-10 will be the final of four meets in a row for local swimmers, with seven heading to Etobicoke to compete at the Age Group International short course meet. This competition will be stiff, with teams from all over southern Ontario sending their best. Surge swimmers have proven time and again they’re equal to the task, and we’re confident we will come away with stories of success to share with the rest of the club and the city.

To follow the action, follow us on social media! We take new swimmers throughout the year, get in touch if you’re interested in learning more or doing a free two-week trial!

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