02/23/2025
These Harlem Boys Came To Work! They put it all together and most of the boys completed their season, swimming super fast at the sectional meet today. Boden Shields did it again and will be swimming in the IHSA State Meet for a 3rd year in a row. The goal today was to finish the job. I asked that they give their best effort, compete, and then stand back to admire their progress and be proud of their final product. And Proud They Should Be!
Our only senior, Russell Schmitt, finished his high school swim career, turning in some great times. He selected events that were challenging. In the 200 IM, he dropped 14.28 seconds to go 2:22.98, placing 7th. In the 500 free, he blasted through the 6:00 barrier, dropping 14.97 seconds to go 5:47.67, also for a 7th place finish.
Bo Shields had a day to remember. He challenged last years sectional champion in the 200 IM to a rematch and this year Bo was victorious. Bo dropped 2.43 seconds from his conference title race, going 1:58.38 and bringing home the sectional title as well. He qualified for the IHSA State Meet with this swim. And his work wasn't done as he'd top that race later in the meet in the 100 Breast. He dropped .84 seconds from his NIC-10 title swim, going 58.98, winning the sectional title for the 2nd year in a row. With this swim, he was the only swimmer today at our sectional to beat the IHSA State Qualifying Time. He also rebroke his school record. Bo will be competing in the IHSA State Meet next week.
Dylan Beatty competed in the most yards today. He chose the 200 Free and 500 Free and competed on 2 relays. He put in some major work today. He dropped 3.36 seconds in the 200 Free, going 2:20.76 placing 15th. In the 500 Free, he dropped 5.22 seconds going 6:26.62 and placing 11th. He also pulled off best time in his 50 free relay splits going 27.86 and 27.70.
Brackyn Massie saw his best times of the year, swimming the 50 Free and 100 Back as well as 2 relays. In the 50 Free, he got his best time, dropping 1.46 seconds to go 28.15, placing 16. He followed this swim up by dropping even more time in the 100 Back. He was able to beat his previous best by dropping 4.04 seconds to go 1:12.07, placing 13th.
Nevin Lobos had a great day today. He seemed to have hit a wall the last couple meets, but that didn't stop him from putting in the work and trusting the process. And the results he earned today were amazing. He raced in the 100 Free and dropped 12.28 seconds to go 1:09.27, placing 18th. He then swam his specialty, 100 Breast. He was able to break a the 1:20 barrier that we were going after all season, going a 1:19.64, placing 12th. That is a season time drop for him of 21.32 seconds.
Prince Norris gave it his all today and finished up a season that has seen a lot of positive momentum. He chose the 50 Free and gave it his best effort, turning in a time of 35.58, which is right in line with a personal best. His season drop in the 50 Free is 8.57 seconds, which is a great feat. Next year we will be working towards the 30.0 mark. He also swam the 100 Back and swam near his best time, going 2:13.87, placing 19th. In his 2nd year of high school swimming he has dropped 70.88 seconds in this event.
Our 2 relays consisted of Boden Shields, Russell Schmitt, Dylan Beatty & Brackyn Massie. Each swimmer swam best split times in both relays. The 200 Medley Relay dropped nearly 2 seconds from their NIC-10 swim to get 7th place, moving up 1 position and barely missing the podium. The 200 Free Relay dropped .76 seconds to place 7th.
I am very proud of the boys progress, work ethic and the way that they stepped up to the challenges throughout the season. The future is bright and I can't wait to see what they'll accomplish with another season of work.
