Cross Plains Meet 6.18.11

The Baraboo Riptide Swim Team felt the sting of last year’s Conference Champions, the Cross Plains Stingrays, on Saturday in their second dual meet of the year at Cross Plains, falling 476-186. “This was a tough loss,” said Head Coach Lynn Keeling, “we had some strong individual swims. But the score does not really reflect how the whole team swam. I thought the kids swam really well, there were some great races, and a lot of the races were close.”

The 8 & Under Boys won three events, with Luna Larson winning blue ribbons in the backstroke and long-freestyle, and the freestyle relay team of Ethan Klinenmeyer, Max Statz, Aaron Kamla and Luna Larson taking first in their last race of the day.

Hannah Vittengl raced to first in the breaststroke for the 9-10 Girls team, while Sophia Oettinger took home two blue ribbons for the 11-12 Girls team in the Individual Medley and long-freestyle races.

For the 11-12 Boys, Noah Larson placed first in three of his individual events, the Individual Medley, breaststroke, and butterfly, while the freestyle relay team of Devin Fichter, Ian Baird, Paul Hainz and Paddy O’Rourke ended the meet with a first place finish.

Laken Murphy won three races for the 13-14 Girls, taking first in the Individual Medley, breaststroke, and long-freestyle. For the 13-14 Boys, Sean Cormican placed first in the freestyle, Brian Cormican took first in the backstroke and breaststroke, while Spencer Shuman took first in the Individual Medley and long-freestyle.

The Riptide team hosts the Spring Green Dolphins Wednesday night starting at 6:00 p.m. at the Outdoor Pool.

Baraboo Riptide v. Spring Green Dolphins 6.22.11

The Baraboo Riptide Swim Team roared to a victory over the Spring Green Dolphins Wednesday night, winning 389-273. It was an animal-themed meet, with swimmers and coaches dressing up like animals. “It was a lot of fun to see all the kids and coaches in their animal outfits,” said Head Coach Lynn Keeling, “They swam like animals and had some great races. They kids are getting the hang of it, we had much fewer DQs.”

The Riptide and the Dolphins were tied after the Medley Relay events, with five of the races won by Riptide teams of 8 & Under boys Cole Brantner, Luna Larson, Ethan Klingenmeyer and Max Statz, 9-10 girls Sarah Anderson, Ellie Hennessy, Hannah Vittengl and Wren Benson, 11-12 girls Chloe Zick, Abby Hennessy, Grace Deering and Alison Krug, 11-12 boys Devin Fichter, Connor Grogan, Noah Larson and Ian Baird, and 15-18 boys Ryan Mathers, Jacob Hackbarth, Kody Mjelde and Matthew Garcia.

After the Freestyle events, it was still a tight race with the Riptide leading the Dolphins by only two points, 81-79. Points are awarded for only first, second and third places, and earning points for Riptide in the Freestyle were Maria Vittengl, Cole Brantner, Ethan Klingenmeyer, Sarah Anderson, Sophia Larson, Grace Deering, Noah Larson, Hannah Mueller, Claire Paul, Sean Cormican, Cooper Kohlman, Emily O’Rourke, Kara Smiley, and Matt Garcia.

The Riptide stretched the lead by ten points after completing the Backstroke events, with a score of 130-120. Blue-ribbon winners in the Backstroke were Chloe Zick, Connor Grogan, Spencer Shuman, Emily O’Rourke and Ryan Mathers. Also earning points in the Backstroke were Natalie Gneiser, Cole Brantner, Luna Larson, Sarah Anderson, Josef Kohlman, Kaden Montpas, Allison Warming, Devin Fichter, Sydney Rabata, Grant Rabata, Kara Smiley, and Logan Rabata.

The Riptide didn’t lose their momentum for the rest of the meet, next winning seven of the eight Individual Medley events. First-place swimmers were Hannah Vittengl, Alison Krug, Noah Larson, Laken Murphy, Spencer Shuman, Gemma Pillsbury and Kody Mjelde.

The 8 & Under girls swept the top three spots in the Breaststroke, with a first place finish by Natalie Gneiser, Maria Vittengl in second, and Grete Engels taking third. Ellie Hennessy, Noah Larson, Laken Murphy, Gemma Pillsbury and Jacob Hackbarth all took home blue ribbons in their Breaststroke races.

In the Long Freestyle, the 15-18 boys showed their animal strength, also taking the top three spots with winning swims by Ryan Mathers in first place, followed by Jacob Hackbarth and Matt Livingston. The other top finishers in this event were Hannah Vittengl, Abby Hennessy, Connor Grogan, Laken Murphy, Spencer Shuman and Gemma Pillsbury.

In the last individual event of the night, the 9-10 girls Hannah Vittengl, Wren Benson and Charlie Cochrane took the top three spots in their age category, with additional Riptide wins by Sean Cormican and Kody Mjelde.

The Riptide capped off their late-night meet winning seven of the ten Freestyle Relay events, with winning swims by the 8 & Under teams of Claire Huebsch, Natalie Gneiser, Maria Vittengl and Jasmine Shepherd, and Ethan Klingenmeyer, Max Statz, Aaron Kamla and Luna Larson, 9-10 girls Isabella DuBray, Ellie Hennessy, Sarah Anderson and Wren Benson, 11-12 girls Abby Hennessy, Chloe Zick, Grace Deering and Alison Krug, 13-14 teams Hannah Mueller, Catherine Livingston, Claire Paul and Laken Murphy, and Sean Cormican, Cooper Kohlman, Spencer Shuman and Jesse Leatherberry, and the 15-18 boys Ryan Mathers, Jacob Hackbarth, Matt Garcia and Kody Mjelde.

“All the kids swam well,” commented Assistant Coach Raegen Trimmer. “The older kids pulled out some really great swims. We have a lot of meets left and they’ll keep improving.”

The Riptide Team will next race the Gators in Mt. Horeb on July 2nd.

Baraboo Riptide v. Mount Horeb Gators 7.2.11

Almost. The Baraboo Riptide Swim Team lost a close meet at Mount Horeb against the Gators on Saturday July 2nd, with a final team score of 341 to 321. Swimmers, coaches, and fans wore red, white and blue to celebrate the 4th of July Holiday at a meet with many close and exciting races.

“This past week I kept getting more and more notices about kids who
couldn't swim the meet,” said Head Coach Lynn Keeling. “After the last family pulled out I thought there was no way we were going to stand a chance against a team like
Mt. Horeb. Our swimmers really surprised me. We were behind after the
Medleys but came fighting back winning 8 out of 10 free relays at the
end....that is often our weakest event! Our top swimmers just excelled.
Hannah Vittengl won her IM and 100 free against one of their best
swimmers. She also brought the free relay from way behind to victory,
shocking everyone who watched. Laken Murphy(13) swam up an age-group and
beat last year's 15-18 conference champ in the breaststroke. Noah Larson
always impresses winning his races with no one even close to him. We are
lucky to have senior Emily O'Rourke swimming(& coaching) this season,
winning the back against another one of their top swimmers. The
Cormican brothers, Brian & Sean, newcomer Spencer Shuman, 15-18 leaders
Jacob Hackbarth & Gemma Pillsbury have really showed dedication to our
team this season. Sophie Oettinger(12) & Cole Brantner(8) are also just
stand-out swimmers. As frustrating as it was to lose that meet, we have a
lot of shining stars that can help bring us around for conference.”

Winning the first event were Medley Relay teams Alex Statz, Rowan School, Noah Larson and Paddy O’Rourke (11-12 Boys), Hannah Mueller, Claire Paul, Laken Murphy and Elizabeth Wech (13-14 Girls), Spencer Shuman, Brian Cormican, Sean Cormican and Grant Rabata (13-14 Boys), and Michael Prochaska, Jacob Hackbarth, Logan Rabata and Matthew Garcia (15-18 Boys).

In the 25 Freestyle, 8 &Under boys Cole Brantner, Max Statz, and Ethan Klingenmeyer had the top three times in their age group for, while Riptide swimmers Sean Cormican and Emily O’Rourke also won their 50-yard Freestyle races.

In the Backstroke, Luna Larson, Alex Statz, Brian Cormican, and Emily O’Rourke took home blue ribbons. In the Individual Medley races, the 11-12 Boys won all points possible, with Noah Larson, Rowan School and Paul Hainz taking the top three spots, and Hannah Vittengl, Laken Murphy, and Spencer Shuman also winning their IM races.

Riptide swimmers Mitchell Hamm, Rowan School, Rachel Anderson, Brian Cormican, Laken Murphy and Jacob Hackbarth won six of the next ten races in the Breaststroke event, followed by another six of ten races won in the Long Freestyle event, with winning swims by Hannah Vittengl, Michael Wech, Sophia Oettinger, Noah Larson and Spencer Shuman, including 13-14 Girls Hannah Mueller, Elizabeth Wech and McKenna Quandt taking the top three times in their age group.
In the last individual event of the day, the Butterfly, Riptide swimmers Sophia Oettinger, Noah Larson, Sean Cormican and Logan Rabata swam to first-place finishes.

The Riptide continued to fight hard, winning eight of ten races in the last event, the Freestyle Relay, with winning swims by the 8 & Under boys team of Ethan Klingenmeyer, Luna Larson, Max Statz and Cole Brantner, and 9-10 teams Cecilia Oettinger, Ellie Hennessy, Wren Benson and Hannah Vittengl, and Anthony Sorci, Josef Kohlman, Joshua Hackbarth and Michael Wech, 11-12 boys Paddy O’Rourke, Rowan School, Paul Hainz and Alex Statz, 13-14 teams Hannah Mueller, Claire Paul, Elizabeth Wech and Laken Murphy, and Cooper Kohlman, Jesse Leatherberry, Grant Rabata and Sean Cormican, and the 15-18 teams of Amaya Larson, Jamie Hoelter, Emily O’Rourke and Gemma Pillsbury, and Matt Garcia, Logan Rabata, Michael Prochaska and Jacob Hackbarth.

The Riptide Team hosts the Sun Prairie Piranhas today starting at 8:00 a.m. at the Baraboo Outdoor Pool.

Baraboo Riptide v. Sun Prairie Piranhas 7.9.11

It was another close meet for the Baraboo Riptide Swim Team on Saturday, as they lost to visiting Sun Prairie Piranhas, 340-322. “Our times were fast across the board,” said Head Coach Lynn Keeling. “Once again, we started out behind after the medley relays; if two of those relays would’ve gone our way, we would’ve won the meet. We ended the meet awesome once again, winning eight out of ten free relays. Our spirit is strong and enthusiasm is high, which should turn us around for our end of season conference meet.”

In the Medley Relays, three Riptide teams took home blue ribbons: 8&Under Boys Luna Larson, Mitchell Hamm, Ethan Klingenmeyer and Cole Brantner, 11-12 Boys Connor Grogan, Noah Larson, Paul Hainz and Ian Baird, and 15-18 Boys Ryan Mathers, Jacob Hackbarth, Marek Sokolowski and Kody Mjelde.

Winners in the Freestyle races were Jasmine Shepard, Cole Brantner, Alison Krug, Noah Larson, Hannah Mueller and Jacob Hackbarth. Backstroke winners were Chloe Zick, Noah Larson, Brian Cormican and Kody Mjelde.

The Riptide had strong swims across the age groups in the Individual Medley races with winning times by Isabella DuBray, Sophia Oettinger, Noah Larson, Spencer Shuman, Audra Riem and Kody Mjelde.

Blue-ribbon swimmers in the Breaststroke were Ellie Hennessy, Annika Swallen, Audra Riem, and Kody Mjelde, and in the next event, the Long Freestyle, Giselle Riem, Sophia Oettinger, Connor Grogan, Catherine Livingston, Spencer Shuman, and Ryan Mathers
had first-place finishes.

In the last individual event of the day, the Butterfly, Riptide swimmers Sophia Oettinger and Sean Cormican won their races.

The Riptide came on strong in the final event, winning eight of ten Freestyle Relay races, with winning swims by the 8 & Under boys team of Ethan Klingenmeyer, Luna Larson, Max Statz and Cole Brantner, and 9-10 girls Isabella DuBray, Sarah Anderson, Cecilia Oettinger and Giselle Riem, 11-12 teams Sophia Larson, Abby Hennessy, Grace Deering and Alison Krug, and Ian Baird, Paul Hainz, Alex Statz and Connor Grogan, 13-14 teams Catherine Livingston, Annika Swallen, Emma Grogan and Hannah Mueller, and Spencer Shuman, Jesse Leatherberry, Grant Rabata and Sean Cormican, and the 15-18 teams of Amaya Larson, Jamie Hoelter, Emily O’Rourke and Kara Smiley, and Ryan Mathers, Jacob Hackbarth, Daniel O’Rourke and Kody Mjelde.

“The kids have been working so hard,” said 8 & Under Coach Emily O’Rourke. They have so much energy and enthusiasm, and their times have been dropping every week. They will be more than ready for the conference meet.”

On Saturday, the Riptide Team will travel to Sauk Prairie to swim against the Pool Sharks.

Baraboo Riptide v. Sauk Prairie Pool Sharks 7.16.11

The Baraboo Riptide team fired up the pool in Sauk Prairie this past Saturday in a dual meet against the Pool Sharks, with a win of 430 to 218. “It was great to get a win after the past two meets being so close,” said Assistant Coach Michael Prochaska. “The team deserves a win after practicing so hard. They know they can do well and beat the other teams at conference – this win is a great boost for their confidence.”

The Riptide started the meet with a surge of wins in the first event of the day, the Medley Relays, winning eight of the ten races, to give the Riptide a lead of 56-14. Winning teams were 8 & Under boys Luke Stelling, Nicholas Warming, Jake Laux and Oliver Scanlan, 9-10 girls Isabella DuBray, Ellie Hennessy, Hannah Vittengl and Caroline Schick, 11-12 teams Chloe Zick, Abby Hennessy, Sophia Oettinger and Alison Krug, and Connor Grogan, Noah Larson, Paul Hainz and Paddy O’Rourke, 13-14 teams Claire Paul, Annika Swallen, Catherine Livingston and Hannah Mueller, and Spencer Shuman, Brian Cormican, Sean Cormican and Cooper Kohlman, and 15-18 teams Emily O’Rourke, Gemma Pillsbury, Natalie Krug and Amaya Larson, and Michael Prochaska, Jacob Hackbarth, Marek Sokolowski and Daniel O’Rourke.

In the short freestyle races, Riptide swimmers Asia DuBray, Max Statz, Cecilia Oettinger, Hannah Mueller, Sean Cormican, Emily O’Rourke and Daniel O’Rourke took home blue ribbons, followed by eight first-place swims in the backstroke races by Naomi Pelland, Luna Larson, Chloe Zick, Ian Baird, Claire Paul, Brian Cormican, Emily O’Rourke and Michael Prochaska.

In the Individual Medley races, the 11-12 girls stacked up another 9 points, with Sophia Oettinger (1st), Alison Krug (2nd) and Chloe Zick (3rd), winning the top three spots, followed by first place wins by Noah Larson for the 11-12 boys and Spencer Shuman for the 13-14 boys.

With a lead of 209 to 104 at the halfway point of the meet, the Riptide didn’t look back, winning six of the Breaststroke races, including nabbing all points in the 9-10 girls race with swims from Hannah Vittengl (1st), Ellie Hennessy (2nd) and Cecilia Oettinger (3rd), and blue-ribbon swims by Natalie Gneiser, Abby Hennessy, Annika Swallen, Brian Cormican and Jacob Hackbarth.

Assistant Coach for ages 13-18, Katie Baird, was thrilled with the kids’ swims, “Their times are really dropping. They are getting ready and excited for conference, you can see it in their practices.”

The Riptide won eight of the ten Long Freestyle races, with first place swims by Jasmine Shepard, Luna Larson, Hannah Vittengl, Sophia Oettinger, Catherine Livingston, Spencer Shuman and Gemma Pillsbury, and ending the event with the 15-18 boys taking the top three spots: Jacob Hackbarth (1st), Daniel O’Rourke (2nd) and Matthew Livingston (3rd).

The 8 & Under girls also took home all the points in their Butterfly race, with Natalie Gneiser taking first, Asia DuBray second, and Zoe Deering third. Also winning the Butterfly in their races for the day were Ethan Klingenmeyer, Caroline Schick, Grace Deering, Noah Larson and Catherine Livingston.

The Riptide ended the meet on a high note, winning nine of the ten Freestyle Relay races, with winning swims from the 8 & Under teams Asia DuBray, Naomi Pelland, Kiersten Leatherberry and Jasmine Shepard, and Ethan Klingenmeyer, Luna Larson, Max Statz and Aaron Kamla, 9-10 teams Isabella DuBray, Cecilia Oettinger, Caroline Schick and Hannah Vittengl, and Joshua Hackbarth, Josef Kohlman, Jasper Swallen and Michael Wech, 11-12 teams Abby Hennessy, Sophia Larson, Grace Deering and Alison Krug, and Paddy O’Rourke, Ian Baird, Alex Statz and Paul Hainz, 13-14 girls Hannah Mueller, Annika Swallen, Elizabeth Wech and Claire Paul, and the 15-18 teams of Amaya Larson, Julia Baird, Emily O’Rourke and Gemma Pillsbury, and Matthew Garcia, Jacob Hackbarth, Daniel O’Rourke and Michael Prochaska.

The Riptide will battle the Barracudas in Mazomanie this Saturday in their last dual meet of the season.

Baraboo Riptide v. Mazomanie Barracudas 7.23.11

The Baraboo Riptide Swim Team ended its dual meet season on a high note Saturday with a win of 447 to 206 over the Barracudas in Mazomanie. Assistant Coach Raegen Trimmer was very happy with how the kids swam, “We had some really good times on Saturday, Annika Swallen had an amazing day. We are tapering for conference, so some of the times are slower, which is frustrating to the kids, but they are more than ready for conference and getting really psyched.”

The Riptide took first in eight of the first ten Medley Relay races, with first-place swims by the 8 & Under boys team of Luna Larson, Mitchell Hamm, Ethan Klingenmeyer and Max Statz, 9-10 teams Isabella DuBray, Ellie Hennessy, Caroline Schick and Sarah Anderson, and Josef Kohlman, Jasper Swallen, Joshua Hackbarth and Michael Wech, 11-12 girls Chloe Zick, Abby Hennessy, Grace Deering and Alison Krug, 13-14 teams Claire Paul, Laken Murphy, Catherine Livingston and Emma Grogan, and Spencer Shuman, Brian Cormican, Sean Cormican and Grant Rabata, and 15-18 teams Amaya Larson, Audra Riem, Natalie Krug and Gemma Pillsbury, and Michael Prochaska, Matthew Garcia, Logan Rabata and Daniel O’Rourke.

In the short freestyle races, 11-12 Boys Connor Grogan, Paddy O’Rourke and Ian Baird, and 15-18 Girls Gemma Pillsbury, Jamie Hoelter and Julia Baird scooped up all the points with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places swims, respectively, while Annika Swallen, Sean Cormican and Michael Prochaska also won their Freestyle races.

Assistant Coach for 8& Under Sarah Livingston said “it is very exciting to see how much practice will pay off in the conference meet. The 8 & Unders are strong and will be ready.”

The Riptide dominated in the next event, the Backstroke, winning nine of the ten races with blue ribbons for Natalie Gneiser, Luna Larson, Isabella DuBray, Josef Kohlman, Amaya Larson and Michael Prochaska, and Riptide cleaning up all the points in three of the age-groups, with Paddy O’Rourke, Ian Baird and Alex Statz taking 1st, 2nd and 3rd for the 11-12 Boys, Claire Paul, Lara Riem and Catherine Livingston for the 13-14 Girls, and Brian Cormican, Spencer Shuman and Grant Rabata for the 13-14 Boys.

In the Individual Medley races, the 13-14 Girls Lara Riem, Claire Paul and Annika Swallen and the 15-18 Girls Gemma Pillsbury, Audra Riem and Natalie Krug pulled in nine points in both their age categories, winning the top three places, while Isabella DuBray, Jasper Swallen, Alison Krug and Spencer Shuman each won their Individual Medley race.

In the Breaststroke races, Riptide winners were Mitchell Hamm, Ellie Hennessy, Jasper Swallen, Brian Cormican and Matthew Garcia, and, swimming the top three times in their age groups were Laken Murphy (1st), Annika Swallen (2nd) and Rachel Anderson (3rd) for the 13-14 Girls and Audra Riem (1st), Natalie Krug (2nd) and Julia Baird (3rd) for the 15-18 Girls.

The Riptide showed its depth again in the Long Freestyle races, with three age groups swimming the top three times, including Laken Murphy, Catherine Livingston and Lara Riem taking first, second and third, respectively, for the 13-14 Girls, Spencer Shuman, Sean Cormican and Cooper Kohlman for the 13-14 boys, and Gemma Pillsbury, Audra Riem and Jamie Hoelter for the 15-18 Girls. Isabella DuBray, Grace Deering, and Connor Grogan also took first in the Long Freestyle.

Winners in the last individual event of the day, the Butterfly were Riptide swimmers Ethan Klingenmeyer, Caroline Schick, Catherine Livingston, Sean Cormican, Sharri Waldron and Logan Rabata.

The Riptide ended the meet on a high note, winning seven of the ten Freestyle Relay races, with winning swims from the 8 & Under Boys Ethan Klingenmeyer, Luna Larson, Max Statz and Aaron Kamla, 9-10 Boys Joshua Hackbarth, Josef Kohlman, Jasper Swallen and Michael Wech, 11-12 Boys Ian Baird, Paul Hainz, Alex Statz and Paddy O’Rourke,13-14 teams Emma Grogan, Claire Paul, Annika Swallen, and Laken Murphy, and Cooper Kohlman, Jesse Leatherberry, Rowan School and Grant Rabata, and the 15-18 teams of Amaya Larson, Julia Baird, Sharri Waldron and Jamie Hoelter, and Nicholas Konen, Logan Rabata, Matthew Livingston and Daniel O’Rourke.

The Riptide will finish their season this weekend swimming in Baraboo at the Indoor Pool at the Tri-County Conference Swim Meet, hosted this year by the Wisconsin Dells Dolphins. “The energy level has never been better,” said Head Coach Lynn Keeling, “the kids are ready for the Conference meet.” After their morning practice on Tuesday, Sydney Rabata and Natalie Krug said “we are really excited for conference, it is so much fun. Our team has so many great swimmers with a passion for swimming. We are there to win.” Individual event preliminaries will be on Saturday, with finals for both individual and relay races on Sunday. The public is welcome to attend.