Seattle Metropolitan Aquatic Club Wins WA Age Group Champs

2022 Washington Age Group State Championships

• March 18-March 21, 2022
• Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center, Federal Way, Washington
• Results (PDF)

The Seattle Metropolitan Aquatic Club (SMAC) took home top honors at the 2022 Washington State Age Group Championships, winning overall as well as placing 1st on the men’s and women’s side. 

The meet, which was held in Federal Way from March 18 to March 21, featured swimmers ages 11 to 18. In terms of event wins, SMAC shone in the 13-14 girls meet, winning all but three events. The team also had several wins in the girls 15-18 meet.

Top 10 Teams:

1. Seattle Metropolitan Aquatic Club: 4103 points
2. Bellevue Club Swim Team: 2745.5 points
3. Olympic Cascade Aquatics: 1829 points
4. Cascade Swim Club: 1419 points
5. Issaquah Swim Team: 1236 points
6. King Aquatic Club: 988 points
7. Pacific Dragons Swim Team: 757.5 points
8. Wave Aquatics: 701 points
9. Valley Aquatics: 607 points
10. Chinook Aquatic Club: 484 points

Girls’ Meet

The 15-18 girls’ meet featured fierce competition, with only two multiple-event winners: Issaquah’s Keaton Canaday and Tri-City Channel Cats’ Paisley Walkley.

Sixteen-year-old Canaday won the 200 free (1:58.14) and the 200 IM (2:13.72). The 200 free was Canaday’s best time, though her current best time in the 200 IM is 2:12.07, from 2019.

Walkley, also 16, won the 500 free (4:10.38), the 1650 free (18:07.03), and the 400 IM (4:48.41). Walkley’s 500 and 1650 times were personal bests.

SMAC swept the 15-18 relays, winning the 200 free (1:41.71), 400 free (3:42.85), 200 medley (1:53.11) and 400 medley relays (4:06.95).

In the 13-14 meet, Sophie Pham won four individual events, swimming best times in the 100 back (56.43), 200 back (2:03.95, Futures cut), 100 fly (56.16), and 200 IM (2:07.72, Futures cut). The 13-year-old also swam on the winning 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, and 400 medley relay. She swam fly in both of the medley relays.

Pham’s teammate, Kaitlyn Vu, swept the breaststroke events, swimming a 1:08.12 in the 100 breast and a 2:27.82 in the 200 breast. 

Elayne Chen, also from SMAC, was the other multiple-event winner in the meet, winning the 200 free (1:53.70) and 500 free (5:03.72, Futures cut, personal best).

SMAC utilized these three swimmers, as well as individual event winners Lane Gooding and Hailey Weiner, to win three of the four relays. SMAC won the 200 free relay (1:39.27), 200 medley relay (1:47.83), and 400 medley relay (3:54.40).

Though SMAC led in the 13-18 age range, Olympic Cascade Aquatics (OCA) showcased its talent in the 11-12 range. Twelve-year-old Emma Nowakowski won five individual events and swam on three winning relays. Nowakowski’s win spanned the gamut, from the 500 free (5:30.09) to the 200 breast (2:33.26). She swam best times when she won the 100 fly (1:01.46) and 200 fly (2:15.55).

OCA’s 12-year-old Neve Chene also won five individual events, sweeping the back events and winning the 200 IM (2:16.71) and 400 IM (4:49.44). Chene swam personal bests when she won the 200 IM, 50 back (29.29), and 100 back (1:02.47). Chene also swam on three of the winning relays.

In addition to Nowakowski and Chene, three other individual event winners swam for OCA. The team’s depth in this age range allowed them to win the 200 free relay (1:45.59), 400 free relay (3:49.33), and the 400 medley relay (4:14.13).

Boys’ Meet 

In the boys’ 15-18 age group, three swimmers won multiple individual events. Fifteen-year-old Connor Colloton, swimming for SRST, swept the distance free events, winning the 500 (4:54.95) and 1650 (16:55.00). Colloton’s 1650 time was a personal best. Colloton has swum some of the fastest times in SRST history in long-course distance events, and he led the way at Age Group State Champs.

King Aquatic Club’s Cameron Alexander, 17, also won two individual events: the 100 fly (53.35) and 200 fly (1:59.41). Both times were personal bests.

SMAC’s Ben Scott, 15, won the 200 breast (2:14.12) and 400 IM (4:21.53), swimming personal bests in both events. His teammate, Kyle Vu, also won an event, the 100 back (54.21).

Much like in the 15-18 age group, the boys’ 13-14 age group had swimmers winning no more than two individual events each. Aiden Hammer, Evan Angeline, Terry Lee, Cota Clise, and Kjell Cady all won two individual events. Clise and Hammer swam on three of the four winning relays, while Lee swam on the other winning relay.

Hammer and Clise both swim for King Aquatic Club. Hammer won the 200 free (1:42.76) and 500 free (4:34.25). His 500 free time was a personal best as well as a Futures cut.

Clise won the 100 breast (59.33) and 200 breast (2:05.81, Futures cut). Clise swam a personal best in both events.

Hammer and Clise both swam on the winning 400 free relay (3:14.90), 200 medley relay (1:39.45), and 400 medley relay (3:36.83). Dylan Heikkila and Andrew Coombs, who each won an individual event in their own right, rounded out the team who competed on all three relays.

IST won the 200 free relay with a time of 1:32.13. The team consisted of Tyler Lewis, Lee, Cole Canaday, and Aaron Bell.

In the 11-12 age group, WEST’s Syunta Lee, 12, won six individual events, closely followed by SMAC’s Charlie Cancelmo, who won four individual events.

Lee swam a best time in four of the events he won–the 100 back (55.16, tying his personal best), 200 back (1:58.19), 100 free (51.13), and 200 IM (2:02.26). Lee swept the IM events.

The only other person to sweep a stroke was Cancelmo, who swept the fly events in addition to winning the 50 back. All four of his times were personal bests.

Alexander Zhao and Isaac Yeung of Bellevue Club Swim Team won three and two individual events, respectively. Zhao and Yeung also swam on all four of the winning relays. They were the only two on all four relays, and they were joined by Jack Tidwell, Skyler Cheng, Zizi Song, and Ender Ramsby in various relays. 

Bellevue won the 200 free relay in 1:40.43, the 400 free relay in 3:39.35, the 200 medley relay in 1:50.06, and the 400 medley relay in 4:02.02.