The Woodford Club Tritons and Falling Springs Hammerheads faced off July 8 at The Woodford Club, bringing together local swimmers ranging from some of the youngest competitors in the sport to teenagers with years of experience.
While the wins went back and forth between the two programs, the experience and laughs gained in the pool were the biggest wins of the night.
For The Woodford Club’s coach Charlie Gatewood, coaching the Tritons has given him a different perspective on a sport he has spent years enjoying as a swimmer.
“I love it,” Gatewood said. “That’s probably the most fun I’ve had in all of my years swimming. It’s a lot different being a coach than being a swimmer. It’s a lot of fun.”
The wide range of ages on a summer swim team presents challenges, but Gatewood said the different groups often help one another.
“Honestly, the age difference makes it more entertaining and also they help each other,” said Gatewood. “The older kids can help out the young kids, obviously, and the younger kids keep the older kids entertained. It’s a lot of fun.”
Falling Springs assistant coach Addy Warthman has also watched the Hammerheads continue to work as practices have become more difficult later in the summer.
“Oh my goodness, they work so hard every single practice,” said Warthman. “Of course, as we get later in the season, we’re giving them harder practices and more distance. They’ll kind of roll their eyes a little bit, but they’re still going to try their absolute best in everything that they do.”
Warthman said the fun of summer swimming remains more important than the results.
“They have so much fun,” Warthman said. “That’s really what summer swim is about. I remind them, ‘Hey, this isn’t the type of sport where you come in and you have to win every race. I just want you to go out there and try your best.’ And that’s what they do. They’re so good at it.”
The age range can create a unique coaching challenge. A swimmer’s age does not necessarily determine his or her experience level, and Warthman said coaches have to find the best way to communicate with each swimmer.
“You have a lot of people who come in at different ages, so it’s figuring out the pacing, especially in practice,” said Warthman. “Where do you need to put them? What are we trying to learn now?”
Some swimmers arrive with no previous experience, which can put children of very different ages at similar stages of development.
“A lot of the time, we have kids who come in and they’ve never swam before,” Warthman said. “So you have a 10-year-old kid swimming with a 5-year-old kid, and they’re both at the same pace. It’s trying to figure out how I can communicate based on their age, how to teach them to swim, how to get them to figure out what to do with their strokes and how to swim effectively.”
Gatewood said his favorite moment of the Tritons’ season came in a victory over Danville and the celebration that followed.
“That was the meet we won,” Gatewood said. “We always have a tradition where we push the coaches in if we win. That was definitely the most fun I’ve had this season.”
In the medley relays, Falling Springs won the mixed 8-and-under 100-meter race in 1:50.52, followed by Woodford Club in 2:12.03 and Falling Springs in 2:15.68.
Falling Springs won the mixed 9-10 100-meter race in 1:23.90, followed by Woodford Club in 1:27.14 and Falling Springs in 1:31.71.
Woodford Club won the mixed 11-12 200-meter race in 3:05.86, followed by Falling Springs in 3:08.27 and 3:38.23.
Falling Springs took the top two spots in the mixed 13-14 200-meter race in 2:30.70 and 2:42.92, while Woodford Club was third in 2:55.36.
Falling Springs won the mixed 15-18 200-meter race in 2:40.84.
In the freestyle, Woodford Club’s Walker Redwine won the boys’ 6-and-under 25-meter race in 36.83, followed by teammate Henry Miller in 37.78 and Falling Springs’ Cole McCarty in 40.41.
Falling Springs swept the girls’ 6-and-under 25-meter freestyle, with Blair Bailey first in 37.24, Athena Oakley second in 41.72 and Naomi Hart third in 49.97.
Woodford Club’s Grayson Geiser won the boys’ 7-8 25-meter freestyle in 26.03, followed by Falling Springs’ Hank Jackson in 26.15 and Gabriel Goins in 26.86.
Falling Springs’ Kynleigh Sutherland won the girls’ 7-8 25-meter freestyle in 21.37, followed by Woodford Club’s Cora Farris in 21.49 and Falling Springs’ Ellie Downs in 23.72.
Woodford Club took the top two spots in the boys’ 9-10 25-meter freestyle, with Luke Miller winning in 20.00 and Bowen Lyster second in 20.03. Falling Springs’ Ashton Banks was third in 20.10.
Woodford Club’s Harley Conners won the girls’ 9-10 25-meter freestyle in 17.45, followed by Falling Springs’ Ella G. Wadsworth in 17.59 and Ayla Oakley in 19.19.
Woodford Club swept the boys’ 11-12 50-meter freestyle, with Wyatt Farris first in 33.25, Owen Rodman second in 43.78 and Oscar Tricarico third in 43.91.
Woodford Club’s Charlotte Wiley won the girls’ 11-12 50-meter freestyle in 38.17, followed by Falling Springs’ Hailey Wiedo in 39.00 and Laney Davis in 43.59.
Falling Springs swept the boys’ 13-14 50-meter freestyle, with Gannon Goins winning in 31.57, Sam Oates second in 37.62 and River Mitchum third in 37.84.
The Hammerheads also swept the girls’ 13-14 50-meter freestyle, with Gentrey Moore first in 34.04, Sydney Moore second in 34.39 and Daisy Peterson third in 34.74.
Falling Springs’ Ella Coyle won the girls’ 15-18 50-meter freestyle in 31.09, followed by Grace Elder in 34.17.
In the 8-and-under 50-meter freestyle, Falling Springs’ Hank Jackson won the boys’ race in 58.77, followed by Gabriel Goins in 1:04.89 and Palmer Cobb in 1:17.45.
Sutherland won the girls’ 8-and-under 50-meter freestyle in 50.67, followed by Farris in 53.54 and Falling Springs’ Laura Wiedo in 59.14.
In the backstroke, Redwine won the boys’ 6-and-under 25-meter race in 40.09, followed by Miller in 42.10 and Woodford Club’s Briggs Boyd in 43.69.
Falling Springs swept the girls’ 6-and-under 25-meter backstroke, with Oakley first in 43.16, Bailey second in 43.25 and Hart third in 46.16.
Woodford Club’s Jacob Metzger won the boys’ 7-8 25-meter backstroke in 29.04, followed by Jackson in 31.28 and Falling Springs’ Palmer Cobb in 31.90.
Sutherland won the girls’ 7-8 25-meter backstroke in 24.53, followed by Falling Springs’ teammates Caroline Watts in 26.05 and Downs in 26.90.
Falling Springs’ Avett DotThe Woodford Club Tritons anson won the boys’ 9-10 25-meter backstroke in 25.09, followed by Lyster in 25.31 and Falling Springs’ Deacon Jaggers in 25.93.
Wadsworth won the girls’ 9-10 25-meter backstroke in 20.49, followed by Conners in 21.23 and Falling Springs’ Hannah Watts in 21.60.
Farris won the boys’ 11-12 50-meter backstroke in 39.02, followed by Falling Springs’ Caleb Marlowe in 51.11 and Tricarico in 55.43.
Wiley won the girls’ 11-12 50-meter backstroke in 44.33, followed by Wiedo in 48.94 and Davis in 49.49.
Falling Springs swept the boys’ 13-14 50-meter backstroke, with Goins first in 37.63, Mitchum second in 45.83 and Oates third in 51.09.
The Hammerheads also swept the girls’ 13-14 50-meter backstroke, with Gentrey Moore first in 39.28, Peterson second in 39.60 and Danilee Kallin third in 39.94.
Coyle won the girls’ 15-18 50-meter backstroke in 35.64, followed by Elder in 40.41.
In the butterfly, Jackson won the boys’ 8-and-under 25-meter race in 45.23.
Farris won the girls’ 8-and-under 25-meter butterfly in 26.56, followed by Sutherland in 28.45 and Downs in 32.70.
Falling Springs’ Owen Denton won the boys’ 9-10 25-meter butterfly in 25.01, followed by Miller in 25.42 and Lyster in 29.20.
Conners won the girls’ 9-10 25-meter butterfly in 19.42, followed by Wadsworth in 19.49 and Oakley in 21.55.
Farris won the boys’ 11-12 50-meter butterfly in 42.76, followed by Marlowe in 57.66 and Tricarico in 58.37.
Wiedo won the girls’ 11-12 50-meter butterfly in 41.69, followed by Wiley in 51.21 and Davis in 54.98.
Goins won the boys’ 13-14 50-meter butterfly in 35.09, followed by Mitchum in 48.10.
Falling Springs swept the girls’ 13-14 50-meter butterfly, with Kallin first in 37.74, Ava Moore second in 38.19 and Gentrey Moore third in 39.49.
Coyle won the girls’ 15-18 50-meter butterfly in 35.85, followed by Elder in 42.13.
In the individual medley, Banks won the boys’ 9-10 100-meter race in 1:58.25, followed by Miller in 1:58.57 and Lyster in 1:59.49.
Wadsworth won the girls’ 9-10 100-meter individual medley in 1:35.59, followed by Conners in 1:38.32 and Peyton Downs in 1:48.98.
Farris won the boys’ 11-12 100-meter individual medley in 1:28.92, followed by Marlowe in 1:54.53 and Rodman in 1:55.03.
Wiedo won the girls’ 11-12 100-meter individual medley in 1:35.38, followed by Wiley in 1:37.27 and Woodford Club’s Brinkley Humston in 1:53.81.
Falling Springs swept the boys’ 13-14 100-meter individual medley, with Goins first in 1:23.13, Mitchum second in 1:44.27 and Oates third in 1:46.09.
The Hammerheads also swept the girls’ 13-14 100-meter individual medley, with Peterson first in 1:25.41, Kallin second in 1:25.47 and Gentrey Moore third in 1:28.75.
Coyle won the girls’ 15-18 100-meter individual medley in 1:16.97, followed by Elder in 1:27.37.
In the breaststroke, Woodford Club’s Bennett Taylor won the boys’ 8-and-under 25-meter race in 32.34, followed by Goins in 33.73 and Jackson in 34.01.
Downs won the girls’ 8-and-under 25-meter breaststroke in 30.36, followed by Sutherland in 30.73 and Watts in 36.99.
Miller won the boys’ 9-10 25-meter breaststroke in 25.41, followed by Banks in 25.57 and Dotson in 25.59.
Conners won the girls’ 9-10 25-meter breaststroke in 24.43, followed by Wadsworth in 25.55 and Peyton Downs in 26.68.
Farris won the boys’ 11-12 50-meter breaststroke in 49.29, followed by Rodman in 59.97 and Falling Springs’ Galvyn Goins in 1:00.23.
Wiley won the girls’ 11-12 50-meter breaststroke in 49.80, followed by Humston in 55.22 and Wiedo in 56.96.
Falling Springs swept the boys’ 13-14 50-meter breaststroke, with Gannon Goins first in 48.77, Oates second in 56.31 and Mitchum third in 56.73.
Woodford Club’s Teagan Tormey won the girls’ 13-14 50-meter breaststroke in 46.69, followed by Kallin in 46.75 and Peterson in 47.47.
Coyle won the girls’ 15-18 50-meter breaststroke in 39.63, followed by Elder in 46.19.
In the freestyle relays, Falling Springs won the mixed 8-and-under 100-meter race in 1:45.36, followed by Woodford Club in 1:57.74 and Falling Springs in 2:02.69.
Falling Springs won the mixed 9-10 100-meter race in 1:17.31, followed by Woodford Club in 1:19.11 and Falling Springs in 1:26.07.
Woodford Club won the mixed 11-12 200-meter freestyle relay in 2:49.03, followed by Falling Springs in 3:05.27 and 3:29.62.
Falling Springs took the top two spots in the mixed 13-14 200-meter freestyle relay in 2:16.53 and 2:30.08, while Woodford Club was third in 2:43.20.
Falling Springs won the mixed 15-18 200-meter freestyle relay in 2:26.48.