{"id":7646,"date":"2020-01-22T18:58:12","date_gmt":"2020-01-22T18:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/setonswimming.org\/?p=7646"},"modified":"2020-01-22T21:08:50","modified_gmt":"2020-01-22T21:08:50","slug":"seton-swimmers-do-more-than-they-thought-possible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/setonswimming.org\/seton-swimmers-do-more-than-they-thought-possible\/","title":{"rendered":"Seton Swimmers Do More Than They Thought Possible"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was a very busy weekend for Seton Swimming with six (6) of our top girls at Loyola University in Baltimore for the National Catholic High School Championship, <\/strong>and the rest of our team at Seton\u2019s annual Winter Invitational<\/strong> at Freedom.\u00a0 Squeezing it all in between the March for Life on Friday and an important business trip for me to Israel made the weekend feel even busier last year.<\/p>\n

I continue to be amazed by our parent volunteers who help make it all possible.\u00a0 Even with several of our key volunteers in Baltimore, we ran our annual Seton Winter Invitational with 205 swimmers without missing a beat.\u00a0 I continue to be most impressed with how Bill Dealey<\/strong> just handles all of the entries and scoring with no intervention from me at all.\u00a0 Thank you to Paul Fifield<\/strong> who is stepping up to learn the computer systems that we use to make everything run so smoothly.\u00a0 \u00a0Welcome to the team Paul!<\/p>\n

I am a big believer in developing swimmers who can swim any stroke and any distance, so one of my goals for each season is to get as many kids as possible to swim all eight events.\u00a0 Because all of the remaining Varsity meets are championship meets, this weekend is always the last chance to get that done.\u00a0 So, when I did the entries, I simply took the spreadsheet with what everyone has swum so far this season and tried to fill in as many blanks as possible.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve done this long enough that I should no longer be surprised at the results, but I was surprised once again.\u00a0 The magnitude of the Personal Records was breathtaking in so many cases.\u00a0 Even more exciting for me was watching so many of our younger swimmers swim events like the 200 Free, 500 Free, 200 IM and 100 Fly for the very first time and conquer their fears.\u00a0 For others, even a 100-yard event for the first time was a real accomplishment.<\/p>\n

I try to tell each of you that, in your life, there is always going to be a long line of people waiting to tell you that you cannot do something.\u00a0 Never jump to the head of that line!<\/strong>\u00a0 So often, our biggest obstacle to overcoming a challenge is ourselves.<\/strong>\u00a0 The 500 Free is a perfect example.<\/p>\n

In all my time coaching, I\u2019ve never seen anyone die swimming the 500 Free.\u00a0 In fact, I\u2019ve never seen any who started the race not complete it.\u00a0 We swim much farther than that every day in practice, and many of you swam 10 times that far for the Cystic Fibrosis Swim-a-thon.\u00a0 So why do I always I hear \u201cI\u2019m going to die\u201d or \u201cI could never do that\u201d?<\/p>\n

One of the greatest lessons of swimming is that you can always do more than you think you can do.<\/strong>\u00a0 A lot of young swimmers learned that lesson well on Saturday.<\/p>\n

There have been countless stories of how kids have learned this lesson, but one of my favorites is Jonathon Rosato<\/strong> \u2013 or \u201cCharlie Bucket\u201d as his friends at the time called him.\u00a0 You can find his story on Seton Swimming\u2019s All-Time Greatest Swims YouTube channel<\/strong> which has a link under the \u201cAbout\u201d menu on the home page \u2013 or you can click here<\/a>.\u00a0 Make sure you click \u201cShow More\u201d below the video to read the whole story.<\/p>\n

And if you want to see what confidence can do for a young man in his life, check out Jonathan Rosato in 2013 here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Final Scores<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

For this one, I was not at all concerned with the final scores, particularly on the girl\u2019s side where six (6) of our top girls were up at National Catholics at Loyola University in Baltimore.\u00a0 As I said, this one was about individual swimmers stretching themselves by swimming events they were not accustomed to swimming.<\/p>\n

In spite of that, we won every meet in which we were engaged.\u00a0 Here\u2019s the way the meet scores turned out for Seton:<\/p>\n

Boys<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 151\u00a0\u00a0 Christchurch\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0115<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 172\u00a0\u00a0 Covenant\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a082<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 173\u00a0\u00a0 Wakefield School\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a093<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 192\u00a0\u00a0 TC Williams High School\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 55<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 211\u00a0\u00a0 Middleburg Academy\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 28<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 212\u00a0\u00a0 Fresta Valley Christian\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 20<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Girls<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 167\u00a0\u00a0 Christchurch\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 98<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 166\u00a0\u00a0 Wakefield School\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 86<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 166\u00a0\u00a0 TC Williams High School\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 83<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 171\u00a0\u00a0 Covenant\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a063<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 184\u00a0\u00a0 Fresta Valley Christian\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 71<\/p>\n

Seton\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 207\u00a0\u00a0 Middleburg Academy\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a013<\/p>\n

Conquering Fears and Expanding Horizons<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Last year, I vividly recall getting so excited by what I was seeing in this meet, that I resolved to find a way to write a 4,500-word research paper from economy seats in two airplanes and restaurant tables in two different airports on my way to an important business meeting in Israel \u2013 and it is SOOO worth it. \u00a0\u00a0This year, I\u2019m just as excited, but I fortunately get to write this from the comfort of my office.<\/p>\n

There were many anxious young swimmers on deck when I arrived at the Freedom Center from Baltimore on Saturday.\u00a0 They were anxious because they were swimming events like the 500 Free or 200 IM for the very first time, and they were concerned that they could not do it.\u00a0 I even had one swimmer e-mail me in advance because his mother was concerned that I had made a mistake on his entries.\u00a0 Nope, I didn\u2019t make a mistake.\u00a0 You gotta trust me ladies \u2013 your babies are not babies anymore.<\/p>\n

Young Chris Arnold (7)<\/strong> summed it up his experience in the 500 Free best when he told one of the Captains, \u201cThat was fun!\u201d<\/strong>.\u00a0 Yes, I\u2019ve heard that before.\u00a0 I also commonly hear from kids who have just completed the 500 Free for the first time, \u201cCan I do that I again?\u00a0 I think I can do better next time.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before I highlight all the kids who successfully conquered their fears while learning a valuable life lesson, let me tell you about first-year swimmer, Elena Morano<\/strong>.\u00a0 Elena is a senior and has never swum competitively.\u00a0 She decided to join the Seton Swim Team this year anyway.\u00a0 That made me very happy.<\/p>\n

What made me even happier was when Elena noticed that we had an empty lane in the Girls 500 Free and asked, \u201cCan I try it?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHeck yeah you can try it Elena!\u00a0 Go get your cap and googles!\u201d.\u00a0 After a brief pause, I added, \u201cAnd make sure you do all 19 flip turns.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doubting whether she should have brought this whole idea up in the first place, she said with obvious concern, \u201cI don\u2019t know if I can do flip turns when I\u2019m tired.\u201d<\/p>\n

I thought about that for second and then I told her, \u201cElena, this is probably the last time you will ever have to get a chance to compete in the 500 Free in an official meet.\u00a0 You don\u2019t want to be laying in bed tonight thinking that you could have done 19 flip turns but only did 18.\u00a0 Do all 19 flip turns.\u201d<\/p>\n

And she did.\u00a0 Elena dove in and studiously applied all she had learned about how to swim an efficient freestyle.\u00a0 The whole experience gave me 10:34.18 seconds of some of the greatest joy I had experienced in the entirety of the busy swimming weekend.<\/p>\n

I am so proud of you Elena Morano<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Here are the 24 other Seton Swimmers who learned the all-important life lesson that they can always do more than they think they can do:<\/p>\n