HASA competes at Short Course Championships
The Hudson Area Swim Association (HASA) sent 10 athletes to compete in the Minnesota State Short Course Swimming Championships in Rochester March 16-18 and came home with a second place finish in the “A” team division.
- HASA swimmers at the Minnesota State Short Course Swimming Championships
The Hudson Area Swim Association (HASA) sent 10 athletes to compete in the Minnesota State Short Course Swimming Championships in Rochester March 16-18 and came home with a second place finish in the “A” team division.
The format of this meet was different from every other meet this year in that the events for the 8-and-under age group and the 9/10 age group were all finals events, and the events for the 11/12 and the 13/14 age groups were prelims and finals. If the swimmer finished in the top 16 in the preliminaries, they then returned that evening for the finals.
Shane Blinkman, 11, posted personal best times in all seven of his events, setting seven new HASA team records and earning the third place overall trophy for the boys 11/12 year age group.
He took first in both the 50 and 100 breaststroke, second in the 100 and 200 individual medleys and the 100 and 200 freestyle races, and sixth in the 50 butterfly.
Shane Blinkman holds four Minnesota State swimming records for 9/10 boys.
Cale Blinkman, 11, achieved personal best times in all seven events he competed in. He took 16th in the 100 breaststroke finals, 10th in the 100 backstroke finals, ninth in the 200 backstroke finals, seventh in the 50 breaststroke finals, and 11th in the 100 individual medley finals.
He also set new HASA records in both the 50 and 100 backstroke events, and is a Minnesota State swimming record holder in the 50 backstroke in the 9/10 age group.
Zach Aherns, 12, swam in seven individual events and had personal best times in all seven. He reached the finals in the 100 breaststroke and finished 12th, the 50 butterfly, where he placed 14th, the 50 freestyle, where he took 12th, and the 50 breaststroke, where he was ninth.
Brian Hause, 12, joined Aherns and Cale and Shane Blinkman in four relays. They set new HASA team records in the 400 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay by finishing eighth and ninth, respectively, and also placed ninth in the 200 freestyle relay and tenth in the 200 medley relay.
The youngest to represent HASA, was 9-year-old Grace Johnson, who swam the 100 yard individual medley, 50 and 100 freestyles, 50 breaststroke, 50 backstroke, and had two personal best times.
Rachel Baker, 10, swam in six individual events — the 50 and 100 butterfly, 100 individual medley and the 50, 100, and 200 freestyles, and tallied up five new personal best times.
Ella Stein, 10, swam both the 50 and the 100 breaststrokes, where she achieved personal best times and placed 31st and 19th, respectively.
The three girls, plus Hannah Alwin, 10, combined for two relay events, the 200 freestyle relay and the 200 medley relay, where they finished 28th and 30th.
Maria Blinkman, 12, swam in four individual events — the 50, 100, and 200 freestyles, and the 50 butterfly. She reached the finals in the 50 butterfly, where she finished 10th, and the 50 freestyle, where she placed 12th.
Emilia Reynolds, 13, swam in the 50 freestyle and finished 89th out of 121 swimmers.
HASA trains year round at the Hudson Middle School and competes throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin. The spring session begins April 2. For more information, go to www.hudsonswimteam.org or contact tomfritchen@hudsonswimteam.org.
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