By Arv Koontz, The Tribune, Seymour, Ind.
Jul. 10–Noah Bullard said he looks forward to making new friends when he competes this weekend in the 18th annual Seymour Coca Cola Swim Invitational at the Shield Park swim pool.
“My event is probably the 50 free,” he said. “I like the pool here at the park. I usually make new friends at every meet.”
Mallory Thias and Mallory Nierman both swim at the dolphins level. They both swam in the Invitational last summer, and both said the breaststroke is their favorite event.
Thias said she appreciates how the coaches work with the swimmers to try and help them go faster in the water. “The breaststroke is my favorite event, and I like how the coaches are really nice.”
Nierman said, “I just like swimming.” She said she became interested in swimming because of her older sister, Makayla, who is a member of the team
Andrew Rodriguez said his favorite event is also the 100 breast, and he is hoping to get the state cut time in that event so he can compete in the state meet at the Natatorium in Indianapolis later this summer.
Katie Turner said she likes swimming in both the outdoor pool and the indoor pool at the high school. “I like this (Shields) pool and I like swimming the butterfly. I want to get a state cut time.”
Dave Boggs, head coach of the Seymour team, said 58 members of the Seymour team will be among the 600 swimmers that will compete. “This is the last meet they have to get their ‘cuts’ (qualifying times) for the state meet coming up in a couple of weeks.”
Boggs has made a few changes over the years. “It’s more organized. We have better things. We’ve learned a little bit by trial and error. We’ve got things more streamlined, we’re more efficient. It’s a big meet for us, for the kids, for our program. It gives Seymour a lot of notoriety around this part of the state in the swimming community.
“The Seymour Park and Recreation Dept. has been great in helping us get things ready to make this a special event.”
Boggs said members of his team lost some practice time due to cold water and pool renovation at the high school, but “We’ve had a good turnout this summer. I’ve been pretty pleased with their effort physically and mentally.”
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