Gillilan Swims at Junior Nationals!

Gillilan Moves Up at Junior National Swim Meet

3/18/09 Orlando FL.....More than 1,500 swimmers from across the nation are participating in the National Coaches Swimming Association (NCSA) Junior National Swimming Championships. Lebanon High School junior Bradley Gillilan qualified for the meet, and is representing Excel Aquatics.

Gillilan's first event was on Tuesday the 17th, and it was the 1,000 Yard Freestyle. Gillilan entered the meet seeded 81st for the event.

Gillilan took out the swim strong in the first half, turning a 1:50.20 in the first 200 yard split, and hitting 4:42.32 at the 500 yard split.

"That 4:42 was a legal best split time for Bradley, and it beat his previous best time in the 500 by over three seconds", Excel Aquatics coach and Lebanon resident John Barnes noted. "When a swimmer does a best time in a split like that, we know something good is going to happen in the rest of the race."

Gillilan's second 500 of the race came in at 4:53.24, for a final time in the 1,000 of 9:35.56. It was a best time for Gillilan, a 12.00 second drop in the event; and good enough for a 58th place finish.

"Bradley moved up 23 spots between his seed placement and his final placing", Barnes commented. "It was a great swim, and it sets the stage for the rest of the week."

The time by Gillilan also was a USA-Swimming (USAS) Short Course Junior National qualifying time for the 1,000 Yard Freestyle. USAS Junior Nationals are the next step in the progression of swimmers after the NCSA Junior Nationals. The USAS Short Course Junior National Meet will be held December 10-12, 2009 in Columbus, Ohio.

"There is a tremendous upside in Bradley for any college team that pursues him. He is the top distance swimmer with Excel Aquatics, and the top 1,000 Yard Freestyle swimmer in Middle Tennessee. He has accomplished this without having touched weights, nor has he done two-a-days with his practices. We teach more strategy in our training compared to others, and Gillilan has understood and implemented the focus on each set in practice."

Gillilan will swim in the 1,500 Meter Freestyle on Saturday, the 21st.

For more information on swimming options in Wilson County, visit www.SwimWilsonCounty.com.