Bangor, Old Town swimmers competing in YMCA Nationals

While their classmates enjoy the rest of April vacation, seven student-athletes from Bangor and Old Town have joined five from Mount Desert Island to compete in the YMCA national swimming championships at Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Bangor’s Amy Walls, Cate Splane and Ellie Edson have joined Old Town’s Brett Stoyell, Trina Smith, Shannon Smith, and Debbie Godsoe in “Spring Break City” from Tuesday through Friday.

Instead of spending all of their time working on their tans and checking out members of the opposite sex at the beach, the Maine athletes will compete with 2,000 other swimmers representing 400 teams from throughout the United States.

The group will meet with another group from the Mount Desert Island YMCA and stay at the same hotel. The swimmers are paying their own expenses. The MDI swimmers conducted various fund-raisers to pay for their trip. The groups will be chaperoned by a few of the swimmers’ parents.

The YMCA Nationals are open to YMCA members who have competed in at least two YMCA dual meets and a state or regional championship meet during the recent season. Swimmers must also qualify for their events.

Swimmers must be at least 12 to compete. There is no maximum age, but the meet is not open to current or former collegiate swimmers.

This year marks the first time the meet is being held in the two new outdoor Olympic-size (50-meter) pools at the Swimming Hall of Fame Pool.

“This is the largest meet for swimmers under 18 in the country,” said Jim Willis, Old Town YMCA coach and coach of the Bangor High School girls team.

Although the Bangor-Old Town contingent is not expected to win any team trophies or contend for the top 10 places, Willis is optimistic about the chances of two of the squad’s relay teams.

“We’re very strong in relays. Our 200 freestyle relay team of Trina Smith, Amy Walls, Cate Splane and Debbie Godsoe could make the top 16,” said Willis. “And our 200 medley relay team of Shannon Smith, Splane, Godsoe”And our 200 medley relay team of Shannon Smith, Splane, Godsoe, and Walls has an outside chance to place.”

Individuals finishing in the top 16 places are recognized as YMCA All-Americans.

The team finished 35th among 400 teams last year, but Willis does not expect his group to match or improve on that effort. “We’ll have trouble beating that. We have a good team, but we lost a couple of big point scorers last year,” he explained.

Trials take up most of the meet’s first two days. The finals will be held Thursday and Friday.

While some of the swimmers are new to the meet, others, like Splane, are veterans of the Nationals. This is her third trip. “I was only able to swim in relays the first two years,” Splane said, “so I’ll really get a chance to do more this year.”

Although the meet, and the preparation, cuts into most of her vacation, Splane said she enjoys participating. “I look forward to this every year,” she said. “You get to see some of the best swimmers in the country compete. Some of them we may even see in the Olympics.”