PCST Finishes 19th at Junior Nationals! Duderstadt Breaks SES Records!

Ratliff and Duderstadt Bring Home Top 20 Team Finish From USA Swimming Junior Nationals!

One thing we learned this week is that you do not have to have a ton of swimmers to make a big splash on a national scale.  For years I've been teaching our swimmers, parents and community members about everything else that is out there in the swimming world beyond Bay County.  Elite level competitions like Sectionals, Junior Nationals, US Nationals and Olympic Trials are all levels that our Tsunami swimmers and families are experiencing with regularity now!  I cannot tell you how happy that makes me!  :)  To see our community transform behind the hard work of so many swimmers, coaches, parents and volunteers has been an amazing site.

For some programs, the incredible swims we had at the USA Swimming Junior National Championships last week would be the climax of their organizatoin.  That would be the peak of what they can achieve.  I'm here to tell you, as I have been saying for years, that WE ARE JUST GETTING STARTED!  Two of our hardest working Tsunamis, Jonathan Ratliff and Michael Duderstadt, competed with so much passion at the nation's 18 & Under National Championship Meet, that they have left all of our swimmers believing they too can reach such levels and beyond.  I bet many of you thought Olympic Trials and Olympics were as good as it gets.  You will soon find out over the next few years that there is much more out there in the form of winning these national level meets, Southeastern Records, National Age Group Records, National Select Camps, National Junior Team, etc.  That's where the elite of the elite go.........and that's where we are heading Tsunamis.

If you would like to read the daily blog about the amazing accomplishments of Mr. Ratliff and Mr. Duderstadt, please check out the "Junior Nationals Daily Blog" that I have posted on the front page of the website. 

For now though, I would simply like to take this opportunity to congratulate Jonathan and Duder on making our entire community so proud.  Neither of you are perfect............and I love that.  But you both strive to be so on a daily basis and at a relentless pace.  Each of you have had meets or swims that didn't go the way you wanted (as the rest of us have), but what has set you apart is your ability to push forward and work even harder for the next opportunity.  This is something I strive to teach every swimmer that comes through our program, so thank you for becoming a living breathing example of just how great you can be if you believe in yourself and consistently work hard.

 Here are some highlights from the USA Swimming Speedo Junior National Championships in Knoxville, TN.

PCST Boys Finish 19th Overall!
It wasn't that long ago that PCST was not even finishing in the Top 20 at the Southeastern Championships!  And now, here we are with a Top 20 finish at Junior Nationals in the men's division.  And while we did not have any points on the girl's side, we actually finished with the 36th highest point total among all teams ...............in the COUNTRY!  How amazing is that?  Over the summer we finished 50th in the men's division, which was our first time ever scoring points and receiving a team ranking.  So 19th is not too shabby!

Duderstadt Makes Three Finals Championships and Breaks Two Southeastern Records!
Let's call it like it is.................Duder was spectacular!  And the best part about his meet is that he's got even better swims coming later this season.  :)  It's a beautiful thing when you can swim lights out and still have things you can improve upon.  And guys.......his two Southeastern Swimming records are the first two SES records any PCST swimmer has EVER broken!!  That means he is the fastest 100 and 200 Breaststroker for the 17-18 boys to come out of the Florida Panhandle, the state of Alabama, and the state of Tennessee! (And yes, that includes college freshman at Auburn, Alabama and Tennessee!)  So amazing!  Check out below just how terrific each of his swims were.  So proud of you Duder!

Thursday
200 IM 1:49.08 (finished 6th overall in finals)
50 Free 21.26 (only 5 minutes after his 200 IM, finished 36th overall)

Friday
100 Breast 54.56 (finished 2nd overall and was only 0.10 out of 1st, as well as only 0.18 off the all-time Junior National Record!
**17-18 Boys Southeastern Swimming Record!!!  (Breaking Curtis Lovelace 54.88 from 2008)

Saturday
200 Breast 1:59.15 (finished 3rd overall)
**17-18 Boys Southeastern Swimming Record!!! (Breaking Tristan Slater 1:59.26 from 2008......yes, a college swimmer!)

Ratliff Makes A Great Debut At First Ever Winter Junior Nationals!
Jonathan is only the second swimmer in PCST history (along with Duder) to have an opportunity to gain experience at the Winter Junior Nationals meet the year BEFORE their senior year.  Already is Mr. Ratliff proving that he is only a blink away from not just getting finals swims at Juniors, but top level finals swims!  He had many of his 2nd or 3rd best swims ever over the week, including some of his best morning prelim swims ever.  And guess what??  When you swim right on your best time, you move UP in the rankings at these national level meets.  And that's exactly what Jonathan did.  Well done boy!

Thursday
500 Free 4:38.27 (finished 59th overall) .........and that's overcoming the early onset effects of a migraine

Friday
200 Free 1:42.19 (finished 56th overall)..........moved up from 90th seed, only 0.20 off best!
100 Fly time trial 52.73 (only 0.18 off best)

Saturday
200 Fly 1:53.25 (finished 50th overall)..............moved up from 62nd seed, only 0.51 off best!
100 Free time trial 48.43 (only 0.27 off best)

So as you can imagine, it was a pretty darn fun week!  PCST already had some recognition on the national level before with some of our great swims over the previous 2-3 years.  But now.............swimmers know.................coaches know..............teams know..................that the Panama City Swim Team is one of the premier teams in the country, and we're here to stay!

CATCH THE WAVE!

Coach Jonathan