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Swimming: LAC competes at Pro-Am Meet
From staff reports
On Friday and Saturday, three local students and Lakeside Aquatics Club swimmers competing for North Texas traveled to Minneapolis to compete against the world’s top swimmers.
However, when the swimmers arrived, they were met with frigid conditions as the campus of the University of Minnesota was covered in 10 inches of snow.
Fortunately for LAC, their events took place indoors. And while the temperatures outdoors continued to drop, LAC was able to heat up the pool inside.
The Minneapolis Pro-Am is the first event of the 2010-2011 Grand Prix Series conducted by USA Swimming and is a circuit that features the world’s fastest professionals and college swimmers, as well as other qualified amateurs. Included in this year’s field was national champion and world record holder Ryan Lochte, gold medal winner Ricky Berens, Olympic medalist Christine Magnuson and national champion Michael Alexandrov.
Shelbi Ragsdale, Alex Sellers and Ryan Cooper, members of Flower Mound’s Lakeside Aquatic Club, achieved the qualifying times and earned the opportunity to compete. Along with head coach Mike Yearwood, the trio traveled to Minneapolis, excited about the opportunity to participate.
“To get to this level and compete with world class athletes is quite an accomplishment, and a great learning experience for our swimmers,” Yearwood said.
The drama reached its highest point for North Texas members during the women’s 400-yard individual medley.
Logging a time in the preliminary heats of 4:29.19, Ragsdale qualified for the finals in the event and was position in lane 1 while Sutton was in lane 5. The horn blew and the field of eight shot off the blocks. By the end of the first 100 yards (the butterfly portion), Sutton had established a lead of nearly two seconds. However, Ragsdale was holding her own. At the turn, after the second 100 yards (backstroke), Sutton had increased her lead to more than four seconds. But next up was the breaststroke and behind the strength of a smooth stroke, Ragsdale made up more than two seconds in the first 50 yards and continued to gain ground. Ragsdale eventually pulled ahead slightly half way back and the two continued neck and neck to the end of the third leg. At the turn to begin the final 100 yards (freestyle) the swimmers were in a dead heat. Only nine one-hundredths of a second separated the two competitors. But coming down the wire, Sutton turned on the jets leaving Ragsdale and the rest of the field several seconds behind. Ragsdale finished fourth and 13th overall.
“What a great race,” Ragsdale said following the race. “Swimming against Chloe Sutton and hanging with her … it was awesome. It felt like everyone in North Texas was supporting me. I’m so grateful for all the encouraging notes and text messages.”
Ragsdale wasn’t done, however, qualifying and competing in the finals of the 200 IM, finishing 20th. Ragsdale also narrowly missed the finals in the 100 and 200 breaststroke.
“This was our first time to compete at this level,” Yearwood added. “Exposing our swimmers to this type of event and competition definitely helps drive the quality of Lakeside Aquatics and North Texas Swimming as a whole. We’re really proud of the progress of all of our swimmers and I’m looking forward to bringing a larger group back next year.”
Other competitors from North Texas included Ryan Cooper in the men’s 100 and 200 back, 100 free and 200 IM and Sellers in the women’s 50, 100 and 200 free.
In December, LAC will welcome five-time Olympic medalist Josh Davis to the Flower Mound facility for a clinic.
LAC is a year-round swimming club that serves swimmers of all skill levels in four facilities in Flower Mound, Keller, and The Colony. For more information, go to swimlac.org.
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