Seals, YMCA foster swimming talent

Swimmers from three Garland County high schools recently competed at the state swimming championships in Bentonville boosted by training and support provided by the Hot Springs Family YMCA.

Lakeside High School sent six swimmers to the state competition, two students represented Hot Springs World Class High School and another Lake Hamilton High School student competed.

All are members of the Hot Springs Family YMCA Seals swim team.

“If I was not on the Seals, I definitely would not be here now as a state champion,” said Lakeside sophomore Mason Vondenstein. “I think finding the Seals, finding that team, training with them every day and finding out my love for swim was really important to my life. The Seals have done a lot for me.”

“It builds up as your second family,” said Lakeside junior Nicole Burek. “You get to really know everybody. That helps you gain confidence at your competitions. You know there is always going to be somebody there cheering you on, and that helps you do better in the pool.”

Burek and Vondenstein are among the Seals’ qualifiers for this weekend’s USA Swimming Central Zone sectional, sponsored by Speedo, in Columbia, Mo. The Central Zone includes 15 states and the sectional competition is among 11 to take place across the country this month.

Students can begin participation with the Seals as young as the age of 6. The Seals are coached by Jim Norman, aquatic director for the Hot Springs Family YMCA.

“He definitely knows what he is talking about,” said Lake Hamilton sophomore Noah Smith. “I really like working with him.”

Smith had a head start on many of the other team members, starting with the Seals in second grade. Many of the swimmers joined the Seals in late elementary school ages or in early middle school.

Norman lends decades of experience and knowledge about the sport to members of the team. He is assisted by Payten Frunzi, a 2016 graduate of Henderson State University and a former member of the Reddies’ swim team.

“They are both great coaches and I trust them with what they tell me to do,” Vondenstein said.

“Without the coaches, I would not know what to do to get better,” said Hot Springs junior Reiter said. “Without the pool, it would be really hard to access somewhere to train. The next closest pool is probably in Benton.”

Jordan Jones, of Little Rock Christian, broke Vondenstein’s record time of 2:12.74 in the 200-yard individual medley he set last year as a freshman. Unfortunately for Jones, who finished the Class 1A-5A state swimming championships with a time of 2:11.44, Vondenstein swam a time of 2:05.85 to set a new record.

The state high school championships were held Feb. 24 at the Bentonville Community Center. Participants were able to practice in the facility the day before the competition for the first time.

Vondenstein outpaced another record-breaker in the 100-yard backstroke. Heston Coon, of Mountain View, swam a time of 0:55.83 to break last year’s record of 0:57.54 set by Bryson Horn, of Haas Hall Academy. Vondenstein took first place in the event with a second state record at 0:55.55.

“I did about as good as I could do,” Vondenstein said. “Next year, I will try to drop more time and win some more.”

Sophomore A.J. Navarro placed seventh in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 0:56.76. He also placed ninth in the 50-yard freestyle at 0:25.25.

Ram swimmers competed in 10 events at state and placed in the top six to earn spots on the winners’ podium

in seven out of the 10.

Burek earned fifth place in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 0:27.11 and senior Sarah-Marie Linneman placed fifth in the

100-yard backstroke at 1:07.65. Burek and Linneman swam with junior Britney Loy and sophomore Lydia Cevela to place fourth in the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 2:13.78 and fifth in the

200-yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:58.16, their best time to date according to Lakeside coach Brad Launius.

Burek made the podium for the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:11.99 to place sixth. Linneman just missed out on another podium finish with a seventh-place time of 2:34.40 in the 200-yard individual medley.

“Next year, I am going to focus on technique and weight training to help me improve,” Burek said.

Swimmers can only participate in up to four events per meet, two individual events and two relays. Some athletes are unable to compete in all of the events for which they qualified.

Reiter placed 10th in the both the 100-yard backstroke and the

50-yard freestyle.

“I am happy with what I did, but I wish I could have gotten a little bit higher so that I could make the podium, but I have my senior year to improve,” Reiter said. “We are going to have new swimmers, so we are going to hope to be in the top five teams in 1A-5A.

“I’m just going to try to improve my times instead of worrying what place I get.”

Hot Springs freshman Emma Campas participated in two events in her first year of high school eligibility. She placed eighth in the 100-yard backstroke and competed in the 200-yard individual medley.

“I was pretty happy just to be at state,” Campas said. “I feel like I could have done better, but I was pretty proud.”

Smith qualified for five events and chose to compete in the

200-yard individual medley and the 500-yard freestyle in the 6A7A championships. He was seeded eighth and seven, respectively, but placed fifth in both events in his first appearance at state, finishing several seconds ahead of his seeded times.

“It was a really good way to end the season,” Smith said. “I dropped some really good time.”

“It was definitely a really good day,” Smith added. “I just made sure I stayed really focused. It was a good meet.”

The Seals team members saw the benefits of the countless hours they dedicate in the pool. Swimming is a year-round sport with a short course season September through March and a long course season April through August. Seals coaches recommend at least four days of practice each week, with some, including Burek and Vondenstein, practicing as many as six days per week.

“It is important to go every day, because every day that you don’t go somebody else is getting more practice than you,” Burek said. “If you don’t go to practice, you kind of lose the work you have done.”

“It helps me improve a lot and some are better swimmers,” Campas said. “It keeps me up, and coach Jim really motivates me a lot. It helps.”

Low participation in numbers affects the perception of the sport.

“In high school, they do not realize how many people are actually in it,” Burek said.

“It is a decent size,” Smith said. “At other schools and teams from Little Rock and Conway, some bigger towns, it is a pretty big community there. You get to see a lot of other people.”

Participants often forge a number of relationships and acquaintances through the large numbers of fellow swimmers and supporters they frequently see at school and USA Swimming meets.

“We are kind of a close-knit community,” Reiter said. “Every year, there are a lot of swimmers at the meets, especially from Conway, Little Rock and up north. We don’t really see it as a small sport. It is a big community, surprisingly.”