Barracudas returning to national ‘Y’ swim meet

For the first time in five years, the Barracudas of the Bangor YMCA-YWCA will have representation at the National YMCA Short Course Swimming and Diving Championships this week.

John Quinn and Cammi Howard, who both compete for the Barracudas, will swim in the four-day meet which runs Tuesday through Friday at the Fort Lauderdale Swimming Complex in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Canoe City Swim Club of the Old Town-Orono YMCA is sending three swimmers to Florida. The Piscataquis Regional YMCA of Dover-Foxcroft and Penobscot Bay YMCA of Rockport are each sending one swimmer, while Long Reach Swim Club of the Bath YMCA is sending a six-swimmer team and the Greater Portland YMCA team is sending down two swimmers.

More than 1,300 swimmers are expected to attend.

The top 16 finishers in each event will earn awards, which doesn’t leave much of a shot for any Maine swimmers to score in the meet – Long Reach’s Matt Johnson is seeded 29th in the 200-yard backstroke, which is the highest seed of any Maine swimmer – but there’s still plenty of value to attending the meet.

“I think I’m seeded 123rd and up through 50 or something there’s maybe a half a second. So it’s just how fast you race on that day,” said Quinn, who attended the smaller YWCA national championship meet last year. “And it’s a really good experience. … It’s a big step up for me.”

Quinn will compete in the 50 freestyle. Howard has qualified in five events – the 100 and 200 backstroke, the 50 and 100 free, and the 200 individual medley.

Because swimmers can only compete in four events, Howard will have to pare down her list.

Quinn and Howard are the first Barracuda swimmers to attend YM nationals since Eric Palmer in 2000.

“I think it’s really good for the program,” said Quinn, a Bangor High senior who has narrowed down his college choices to Syracuse and the University of Maine. “Having swimmers go to nationals will attract [other swimmers to the team].”

Canoe City will be represented by Erin Thomas, Jacob Shanley and Mo Nazmy.

Thomas will be competing in the 100 and 200 back events and the 100 and 200 free. Shanley, who also competed for Old Town High School, will appear in the 100 and 200 back, the 200 IM, and the 100 breaststroke.

Orono High’s Nazmy qualified in the 200 breaststroke.

Marley Clark will represent the Piscataquis YMCA in the 50 free, while Penobscot Bay’s Tyler Bowen will compete in the 100 back.

Long Reach is sending by far the biggest group of swimmers including Johnson, Spencer Hallowell, Lucky Trafton, Niall Janney, Pedro Egues and Colin Flaherty. The Bath team has also qualified for five relay starts.

Brian Agro and Doug Endrizzi, who both swim for the Greater Portland YMCA, also qualified.