Junior Olympians cap off Wrangell's first swim season

Wrangell Swim Club sent four of its junior swimmers to the Alaska Junior Olympics last weekend.

Nearly 500 swimmers in 27 teams from around the state made their way to Anchorage's Bartlett High School for the meet. Among them were Kayla Meissner, Jack and Renee Roberts, and Nikolai Siekawitch from Wrangell, all of whom together qualified to compete in 22 different events.

Swim coach Bruce McQueen explained the Junior Olympics is the state's foremost championship for teenagers and younger swimmers. In order to participate, swimmers have to qualify with speedy finishes at various meets held during the regular season.

Only in its first year, Wrangell's club outpaced its own expectations, attending several meets at the regional level and having swimmers qualify for higher competition. While the rest of the team concluded its season in Ketchikan last month, the four young Olympians accompanied coach Jamie Roberts to the Anchorage meet to push themselves yet further.

The youngest Wrangell swimmer to qualify for the meet, Meissner placed ninth in both the 100- and 200-yard freestyle for the Girls 10 and under age group. She also took 11th in the 50-yard butterfly and 12th in the 50-yard freestyle.

McQueen recounted that Meissner had some added technical hurdles to overcome. During her first swim she was disqualified due to readjusting her stance before the start. A scoreboard malfunction during her second event caused her to do it over.

"Despite a ragged start for the meet she composed herself and went on to swim three personal best times," McQueen said. "Sometimes the greatest accomplishment can be developing the composure to recover from a misstep and still better your best."

Jack Roberts competed with two dozen other boys in the 11-12 year bracket. He finished in second place in the 50-yard butterfly event, logging a personal best time. Competing freestyle, he took ninth in the 500-yard, 10th in the 200 with a personal best time, 12th in the 50 and 13th in the 100 free.

McQueen noted that Roberts was among the youngest in his group, but that had suited his competitiveness. "Every 10 year old looks forward to a birthday, but for Jack it meant 'aging up' at the end of March."

Sister Renee Roberts was seeded at 32nd of 56 girls in the 100-yard freestyle, but still cut three seconds from her personal best time to finish in 12th at 26.64 seconds.

"In doing so she became the first Wrangell Swim Club swimmer to go 100 yards in under a minute," McQueen noted.

She also finished the 50-yard freestyle in ninth place, was 10th in the 100-yard butterfly, 16th in the 100-yard backstroke and 22nd in the 200-yard freestyle. Every one had been achieved with a personal best time.

Nikolai Siekawitch competed in seven swim events. He finished third in the 400 Individual Medley, in which one swimmer completes four laps in four different strokes. He place fourth in the 50-yard breaststroke, fifth in both the 50-yard free and 100-yard breaststroke, sixth in the 100 Individual Medley, eighth in the 50-yard backstroke, and 10th in the 100-yard backstroke.

"Nikolai himself would probably point out that his third-place finish was third of three, but that actually doesn't do his performance justice," McQueen said. "There are a number of reasons 25 boys in his age group swam the 50-free and only three swam the 400IM. The 400IM is tough, both physically and mentally. It requires speed, stamina and extreme focus. One-hundred yards of each stroke, starting with butterfly, with seven different turns, all with judges hovering over your lane ensuring that your every movement complies with the rules."

McQueen felt the swimmers' performance had done justice to the effort they had put in over the season: "Their performance was a credit to their hard work and ability, and the experiences these swimmers gained through this competition will make it much easier for other Wrangell swimmers to follow in their footsteps in the years to come."