The last weekend in January was a good one for FUAC. This may be an understatement based on what transpired over the weekend. The Blue Devils sent 24 swimmers down to an invitational at Radford University. When the waves settled the team walked away with an incredible nine meet records,12 first place finishes, an additional 61 top ten finishes, 24 team records and 77 personal best times!
According to Head Coach Jim Bocci, "This was a coming of age meet for FUAC. We love swimming at Radford University, and with over 400 swimmers competing in the meet, I knew it was going to be a great competition. They've worked so hard for this, and it's great to see them reach their goals as a team and individuals...it's the most rewarding part of being a coach."
Standouts for the Blue Devil girls included eight year old Lindsay Price (meet records in the 25 yard freestyle, 25 yard butterfly, 25 yard breaststroke, 50 yard breaststroke and 100 yard individual medley events), eight year old Lydia Reynard (2nd place in the 25 yard breaststroke), nine year old Stephanie Nardone (meet records in the 200 yard individual medley, 50 yard butterfly, 50 yard backstroke and 100 yard freestyle), 10 year old Harper Campbell (1st place finish in the 200 yard individual medley), 14 year old Morgan Reynard (7th place finish in the 100 yard breaststroke), 15 year old Kasey Hartman (4th place finish in the 200 yard backstroke, and two 6th place finishes in the 200 yard freestyle and 200 yard breaststroke events), 15 year old Michelle Caron (2nd place finish in the 200 yard freestyle), and 17 year old Laura Neelley (7th place finish in the 1000 yard freestyle distance event).
Standouts for the Blue Devil boys included eight year old Mark Brumbaugh (4th place finishes in the 50 yard freestyle and 50 yard backstroke events, and 5th place finishes in the 200 yard freestyle, 50 yard breaststroke, 25 yard freestyle and 25 yard butterfly events), 10 year old George Brumbaugh (2nd place finishes in the 200 yard individual medley, 200 yard freestyle and 100 yard freestyle events), 11 year old Lucas Reynard (7th place finishes in the 50 yard breaststroke and 100 yard freestyle events),12 year old Luke Knisley (4th place finish in the 50 yard freestyle), and 13 year old Sito Arroyo (4th place finishes in the 100 yard breaststroke and 200 yard butterfly events, and a 5th place finish in the 200 yard breaststroke).
Also, this past weekend 10 FUAC swimmers participated in the Jefferson District High School Championship held at FUMA. The results were equally impressive. The following swimmers qualified for the HS Region Champs to be held at FUMA, February 2nd: Maria Arroyo, Bailey Bingler, Michelle Caron*, Kasey Hartman*, Johnnie Hineman, and Laura Neelley. (*State Qualifier) Great job Blue Devils!
Next up FUAC will travel to Roanoke for the USA-Swimming District Championship on February 15th - 17th. "It will be another excellent opportunity to showcase the talent of our Fluvanna County swimmers", said Bocci.
