The final dual A meet of the year ended with a 366-420 loss at the hands of the first place Potomac Woods team. The visitors fielded outstanding swimmers in nearly every event and even established two new pool records. The Dolphins look forward to a rematch at the Divisional meet this coming Saturday. Winning three of five dual meets in Division F is a great achievement for a team that was in Division I last year and Division M only three years ago. What Division will the Dolphins be in next year? The MCSL computer that calculates team placement is humming away while you read this ...

The last home A meet of the year is always a bittersweet time for acknowledging the contributions of the graduating seniors on the team. During the intermission, Dolphin swimmers and family members thanked three Dolphins for being part of the team for many years: Alex Kinnaird, Sydney Smith, and Assistant Coach Ramzy Suleiman. Many of us have enjoyed watching them grow up. We will all miss their swimming but wish them the best in their future endeavors. Perhaps Alex will be persuaded to return for his final year of eligibility.


SWEEPS
The 11-12s managed the only sweeps during the hard-fought Potomac Woods meet. Callie Fosburgh, Elizabeth Fosburgh, and Madeline Alagia swept in freestyle and fly. Callie and Elizabeth were joined by Elena Palermo in sweeping girls 12-and-under individual medley. And congratulations to Ryan Chitwood, Alex Spigler and Peter Metz for their fine swims in their sweep of the boys's 11-12 breaststroke.


ALL STAR TIMES
We extend very special congratulations to Max Palermo, who produced his first-ever All-Star performance, in boys 8-and-under breaststroke. Way to go, Max!

Nine other Dolphins produced All-Star times this week in 21 other outstanding performances. These included Callie Fosburgh in IM, freestyle, breaststroke and fly, Elizabeth Fosburgh in freestyle, back and fly, Elena Palermo in freestyle, breaststroke and fly, Danielle Schulkin in IM, freestyle and fly, Malena Lair in IM, freestyle and backstroke, Pieter Fosburgh in backstroke and fly, Nicky Schulkin in backstroke, and Hannah Melrod and Ryan Chitwood in breaststroke. Congratulations, one and all!!


NEW RECORDS
The 14-and-under girlss relay team knocked more than a second off the pool record it set three weeks ago. Congratulations go to Elena Palermo, Callie Fosburgh, Danielle Schulkin, and Hannah Melrod. Danielle also sliced 0.26 second from her team and pool fly record in butterfly, and Malena whittled 0.06 second from her pool record in 13-14 back. Great swimming, ladies!


PERFECT MEETS
Four Dolphins won every event they entered in their age groups: Callie Fosburgh and Ryan Chitwood in IM, free, breaststroke and fly, John Janezich in free, backstroke and fly, and Elena Palermo in free, breaststroke and fly. Outstanding!


SPECIAL SWIM-UPS
The Dolphins again benefited from the points earned by younger swimmers courageously swimming in the girls 15-18 events, an age group with the much appreciated Caitlin Rooney as the only true 15-18 girl this past week. Again, 11-year-old Sarah Silberbrandt bravely swam 15-18 back, fly, and IM. Sarah was joined by 14-year-old Corinne Tucker, who swam IM, free, breaststroke and fly. Almost-but-not-quite-15 Corinne thrilled all of us with her almost-but-not-quite-first place finish in breaststroke, a race that was close all the way and ended with Corinne a mere fraction of a second behind the first place Potomac Woods swimmer. Thank you, thank you Sarah and Corinne.


A MEET DEBUT
We welcome Samantha Kline, who participated in her first A meet in the girls 9-10 freestyle event. We look forward to seeing her at many more A meets next year.


TIME DROP AWARDS
Sarah Silberbrandt won the time drop award for the second consecutive week, shedding five seconds in back and 6 seconds in IM. Congratulations, Sarah!

Second place goes to Jessica Kline for dropping 5 seconds in backstroke. Several Dolphins dropped two seconds in at least one stroke, including Kevin Wagman in breaststroke and fly, Caitlin Rooney, Jack Steingass, Nora Harrington, Samantha Kline and Jacob Zeisel in freestyle, Kaili Gregory in backstroke, Dylan Wilson and Peter Metz in breaststroke, Ryan Chitwood in fly, and Matthew Tucker in IM. Hard work does pay off.


WEEK 5 DIVISION F RESULTS: http://mcsl.org/results/2006/week5/Div_F.txt

Don Tucker will also email you meet results if you contact him at DPTuck@aol.com.


DOLPHINS SWIM FAST AT LONG COURSE
What was probably a record number of Dolphin spectators cheered what was probably a record number of Dolphin swimmers (seven) at the annual Coachesï Invitational Long Course meet on July 11. To qualify, a swimmer must be among the eight fastest MCSL swimmers in the corresponding event. Long course events are twice as long as regular events and are swum in a pool twice as long. Although the Dolphins were seeded from first through ninth in the various events, no Dolphin finished lower than fifth, and there were three victories! It was truly a magical evening.

The second event of the night was one of the most exciting races. Callie Fosburgh, seeded second, had a see-saw race in 12-and-under 200-meter IM with the top seed, who passed Callie during breaststroke for a large lead. Nonetheless, Callie slowly surged in freestyle and poured it on near the finish for a dramatic 0.2-second victory. In her next event, Callie was seeded first in the 11-12 100-meter freestyle and swam a commanding albeit tight race for an amazing two victories. Elizabeth Fosburgh, seeded sixth in the freestyle event won by Callie, finished fourth. In the 11-12 100-meter fly, the sixth-seeded Elizabeth finished fifth. The youngest member of the family, eight-year-old Pieter Fosburgh, had a truly wonderful evening. Seeded eighth in breaststroke, Pieter finished third; seeded as an alternate (9th) in fly, he managed to swim when another entrant scratched and finished fifth!

Sadly, Elena Palermo did not enjoy Pieter's good fortune. Elena was an alternate in two different events but did not swim. The other Dolphin victory belonged to top-seeded Hannah Melrod, who seemed to pass about half the field in the final 20 meters to win the 8-and-under 50-meter breaststroke event by a half-second.

The remaining two Dolphins, 14-year-olds Malena Lair and Danielle Schulkin, swam very strongly, finishing fourth and third in their events, the 100-meter backstroke and fly, respectively. This newsletter editor remembers a year not too long ago when there was but one lone Dolphin at the Long Course meet. The large number of Dolphin swimmers who participated in Long Course and their fabulous performances in front of a large crowd of supporters made this one of the great days in the history of the Bannockburn Swim Team.


BLUE and GOLD MEET
Although the July 12 Blue and Gold Meet was cut short by a passing thunderstorm, the youngest Dolphins proudly demonstrated their improved swimming skills to all in attendance. The kickboard and freestyle events were completed to the accompaniment of smiles, cheers and applause from parents, coaches, and senior Dolphins. Unfortunately, some of the more nontraditional events had to be canceled because of the weather. The newsletter editor in attendance was especially looking forward to a demonstration of the whalestroke in the make-up-your-own-stroke event. Perhaps next year.

After the pool emptied, the preteamers collected their trophies and several remained to enjoy the tasty hot dogs and hamburgers quickly grilled in the rain by Mary Conaghan and an assortment of helpers.


TIE-DYE
Dozens of Dolphins tastefully designed and colored tee shirts, socks, and who-knows-what else at the annual tie dye party on Friday. Thanks to Mary Conaghan and her helpers organizing this event and making it run smoothly; the mess and mayhem were noticeably well controlled. Thanks also to the parents who donated supplies, Meris Steele for ordering pizza delivered by a most interesting man, and all the Dolphins who participated.

Special thanks are due to Alison Levine for designing the beautiful banner that was signed by most of the Dolphins in attendance. Those who did not sign it can do so at the B meet on Wednesday.

TALENT NIGHT
Several Dolphins displayed their musical skills performing in front of an appreciative crowd at the annual Talent Night. We thank them for their willingness to perform on the Dolphin Stage; many Dolphin swimmers are truly multitalented. We did notice that most of the nonperformers in attendance possess a talent for eating pizza.


COACH'S CORNER--Sam Brownell
Congratulations to all for a great dual meet season. Finishing with a winning record of 3-2 after moving up three divisions is more than I could have ever hoped for. Add to that second place in the Relay Carnival, seven swimmers making the Long Course meet, six wins and a number of close calls in the Relay Carnival, and a myriad of best times each weekend and with your hard work, you have made this season even more successful than last season.

It is very important to check the board out front of the pool to see if you are swimming in the Division Meet; the line-up is already entered with the Division so I will not be able to make any changes until Saturday morning. Please let me know if you have had a change of plans ASAP.

The most important aspect of getting ready for a championship meet is to get rest. Practices will be getting easier with more emphasis on sprinting and stroke technique so swimmers will start to feel more energized. DO NOT take this as an excuse to go out and play. Stay inside, drink plenty of liquids, and let your body rest and recover. Everyone will be ready to swim fast this weekend and rest will only make it better. SWIM FAST AND HAVE FUN.


SWIMMING TIP of the WEEK
Make sure to press your chest in BOTH Breaststroke and Butterfly as this encourages your weight to stay forward over your chest and your hips to ride high and in your body line, instead of dragging and creating resistance.

RAINED-OUT B MEET RESCHEDULED FOR JULY 19 (TONIGHT) Don't forget! the B meet with Old Georgetown that was rained out is rescheduled for this Wednesday, July 19 at Bannockburn. Dolphin warm-ups will be at 5:00.

Parents, if your swimmer is swimming, you should provide some food for this event. Please email Karen Tucker (karensue3@aol.com) or sign up on the pool bulletin board to bring something yummy. Wrapped baked goods, fruit and salads are especially needed at this point. Thanks.


PANCAKE BREAKFAST
A great Divisional Meet begins with a great breakfast the previous day. The annual Pancake Breakfast will be held on Friday, July 21, at approximately 9:30 am at the Bannockburn Clubhouse. All swimmers are invited; the event will begin as soon as morning practice is over.


EARLY START FOR DIVISIONAL MEET
The divisional meet will be held at Darnestown this coming Saturday, July 22. Because there are two heats in all non-relay events, it is a long meet, so long that the starting time is a full hour earlier, i.e., the first event is at 8:00. Warm-ups are at 7:15. Please be at poolside by 7:10. And please allow extra time for the long, long drive to Darnestown.


BANQUET
The annual swim team banquet will be held on Saturday July 22, at 6:30 pm at a new location: Concord/St. Andrew's Church. It is located at the corner of River and Goldsboro Roads. Food assignments are as follows: 8-and-under, main dish; 9-10, main dish; 11-12 large salad; 13-14, dessert; 15-18, main dish or salad. We thank the Steele family for their hard work in banquet preparations.


ALL-STAR RELAY SEEDINGS
Seedings for the annual All-Star relay meet have just been posted by MCSL at http://www.mcsl.org/results/2006/asr-ipshy.pdf. Despite competing against the upper half of the league this year, two Dolphin teams are seeded first: the 14-and under girls medley team and those totally awesome 8-and-under boys. Incredible!


PARENT REMINDERS
Parents are again reminded to notify coaches if their children will not be available to swim at the Divisional Meet on July 22 and, for those swimmers who qualified, the Relay All-Star Meet on July 29. This is so that a replacement can be located.


PARENT CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations to Larry Wagman for his sixth-place finish among 310 entrants in this year�s Great Chesapeake Bay 1-Mile Bay Challenge, held on June 16.


A SAD FAREWELL
Dolphins and their families bid a fond farewell to the Harrington Family. Nora and Meg have earned lots of points for the Dolphins in recent years, and parents Tim and Anne have assisted with timing, head timing, and several other volunteer activities. Although we can understand that some people may think that New England is a better place to live in during the summer heat, we still have a difficult time parting with them. We do hope that Meg and Nora find a way to swim with us again next year. Regardless, we wish them the best in their exciting move north.


SWIM TEAM COMMITTEE MEMBERS NEEDED
As the season draws to a close, the Swim Team Committee asks any parent interested in participating more actively in the Team to consider joining the Committee. The purpose of the Committee is to organize the meets and social events, insuring that all Dolphins enjoy their swimming while practicing teamwork and good sportsmanship. The Committee meets approximately six times per year and is always looking for new ideas. As at least one of us will attest, the ability to swim is not a prerequisite for inclusion on the Committee. If interested in joining, please speak with one of the current members: Lynn Brownell, Dave Chitwood, Mary Conaghan, Patricia Ferrari, Abbie Fosburgh, Penny Mitchell, Sandy Spigler, Lynne Steingass, Karen Tucker, or Larry Wagman.