7th Graders swim at UT Pool

Wilson County Swimmers Compete at the UT Pool

May 11, 2005……Two Wilson County 7^th Graders got to experience what it is like to swim at the University of Tennessee Aquatics Center in Knoxville this past weekend. As part of the Excel Aquatics Club swim team, Bradley Gillilan and Austin Barnes participated in the 17^th Annual Volunteer Invitational Swim Meet. The format of the meet was Long Course Meters, the same distance swam in International and Olympic Competitions.

Gillilan, a 7th Grader at West Wilson Middle School, had significant time drops in 8 of his 9 events. Gillilan’s most impressive swim was in the 400 Meter Freestyle, dropping over 19 seconds in time. He easily obtained a Southeastern Swimming Long Course Qualifying Boy’s 13&14 Year Old Cut with a time of 4:50.37, and is only 5.28 seconds away from a 15-16 Year Old Cut, even though he is just 12 years old. This is the fastest recorded 400 Meter Free time among any Wilson County resident over the past 4 Long Course Seasons.

Barnes, a 7^th Grader at Carroll-Oakland in Lebanon, had time drops in all 6 of his events. Coach Andreea Ianoli-Mitrofan noted that “Austin has very good techniques; with growth he will become stronger and faster.”

Both swimmers train with “Coach Andreea” who has solidly established herself as the new Coaching Gold Standard in Youth Swimming in the Wilson/Sumner County Sub-Region. Coach Andreea, a former Romanian National Champion, has trained more local swimmers to Southeastern qualifying standards than any other local coach this past year. The next meet for Wilson County swimmers will be the Excel Aquatics' Stars and Stripes Meet being held May 27th through May 29^th in Brentwood. Joining Excel Aquatics at the meet will be Nashville Aquatics Club, Pilot Aquatics Club Knoxville, Memphis Tiger Swimming, as well as many other teams. With 4 of the top 5 teams from last years SES LC Championships in the meet, it is going to be a highly competitive meet that will give good insights into what the competition will be like at this years' SES LC Championships at the end of July. For more information about swimming in Wilson County, visit www.SwimWilsonCounty.com.