By Matt Phelps
The Midlakes swimming season is heating up with just two more regular-season meets remaining.
A new change this season is the Mercer Island Beach Club moving to the Division II level. One thing that hasn’t changed is the dominance of the Mercerwood Shore Club. The team isn’t looking to share the Midlakes regular-season title as it did last year — this year it’s looking to blow everyone else out of the water with record after record.
The team improved its record Thursday with a 437-275 win over Samena. The biggest meet of the year, so far, came against Fairwood on June 23. The Shore Club won 448-258 and set nine individual records.
The Shore Club also took first, second and third in nine other races.
Alex Seidel, Angela Riggins, Mia Chasen and Lacy Herman broke a record previously set in 2000 in the girls 100-meter 8-and-under medley relay. That same team broke a second relay record late in the meet, this time smashing the 1994 record in the 8-and-under freestyle relay by 3.39 seconds.
Sam Peterson, Jarid Adams, Michael Goodwin and Stuart Pomeroy broke the 2001 record in the boys 10-and-under medley relay by 1.49 seconds.
In the boys 14-and-under medley relay, Murray Longbotham, Kevin Goodwin, Kyle Schaeffer and Devon Morris broke the 2003 record by 6.51 seconds. That same team also broke the 1999 record in the 10-and-under 200-meter freestyle relay by 2.35 seconds.
Rachel Godfred continues to be one of the Shore Club’s best swimmers as she broke her own 2004 record in the girls 13- and 14-year-old 100-meter individual medley by 0.66 seconds.
Seidel also broke her own 2004 record in the 8-and-under 25-meter backstroke by 1.59 seconds. Seidel broke a record from 1991 in the 8-and-under 25-meter butterfly, besting it by 0.84 seconds.
Chasan, who placed second, also swam faster than the 1991 time, by 0.31 seconds.
Hannah Godfred, Jenny Mohler, Rachel Godfred and Katie Schaeffer broke a 1999 record in the 15-and-under 200-meter freestyle relay, by 0.55 seconds.
The Shore Club coaches this season are Alice Godfred, Daniel Seetin, Wil Vicik and Jesse Riebe.
The Mercerwood Shore Club will travel Thursday to Edgebrook to take on last year’s Division II champion.
“We expect this meet to be very exciting,” said Seetin. “Both teams have had comparable performances thus far against the other teams of the division. Regardless of the outcome, the Midlakes Summer League is all about the kids having fun. Our guess is that this is going to be one of the most fun and electrifying dual meets of the season.”
The Shore Club defeated the Mercer Island Country Club to start the year 416-289.
While the Country Club swim team continues to rebuild, the club’s diving team began the year with a victory over the Seattle Tennis Club on June 29, 52-48. The team was led by Patrick Nielson with a score of 62.6, Conner Nielson 122.4, Peter Mahoney (93.33), Peter Mahoney (93.33), Loreal Camp (199.85), Ben Hedrick (189.95), Amanda Dawson (161.30) and Michael Camp (210.90), who all took first place in their respective divisions. Alexandra Chapman (92.9) took third in the girls 10-and-under B level.
The Country Club dive team will host the Shore Club team Thursday at 5 p.m.
