Friday, June 30, 2017

Meet Results Posted: SPRA (H)

The results from the SPRA at Welch meet have been posted on the team site.

Two records were broken at the meet!
  • Coach Ben Gingher broke the Welch 15-18 Boys 50-yard Breaststroke Record with a time of 26.89 seconds
  • Noah Witt broke the Welch 15-18 Boys 50-yard Backstroke Record with a time of 25.79 seconds
Congratulations to Ben and Noah on great swims!

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Important Updates for the Week of June 26th

New Records: Ben Gingher and Toby Van Dyke
Coach Ben broke the Welch 50-yard butterfly record at last Tuesday's meet. He broke his own record with a time of 24.10 seconds! 
Toby Van Dyke broke the Welch 50-yard freestyle record at last Tuesday's meet with a time of 22.11.
Make sure you congratulate them on their great swims!

Penns Valley Meet Cancelled
Last Thursday's meet at Penns Valley has been cancelled and will not be rescheduled. Penns Valley was unable to find a day that would work for their pool to host our meet again, so they have forfeited the meet.


Ice Cream Social
Come join us on Monday, June 26 from 6-8pm at Spring Creek Park (901 Houserville Rd, State College) for some ice cream, games, and time to play in the creek! The team provides ice cream and toppings. Feel free to bring some outdoor games. Sign up here. There will be no Monday evening practice.

Tie-Dye - DROP OFF BY THURSDAY
We will be making tie-dye shirts on Friday during practice. Shirts should tied at home and then dropped off at practice no later than Thursday.  You can bring your shirts to practice any day this week. We will apply colors together during practice on Friday. See details here. 

Home Meet with SPRA - Thursday Evening
Sign-up for SPRA Meet
The sign-up boards will be available Monday through Wednesday for Thursday's home meet against SPRA. The sign-up deadline is Tuesday at the end of practice (9:45am). 
  • Arrive at 4:45pm for warm-ups
  • Team Pictures will follow warm-ups at 5:35pm on the hill behind the pool
Parent Volunteer Sign-up
Our parent volunteers help with getting kids ready to swim, timing events, helping with concessions, and more. Please sign-up to help with the SPRA meet using the links below. A description of each volunteer position is available on the blog:
Flavor Ice at Thursday's Practice
The team will supply Flavor Ice for all the swimmers after their practice time on Thursday! See you then!

Spikes Night - DEADLINE MONDAY
Our swim league (CPSL) coordinates an evening at the Spikes! This year we will be going to the game on Sunday, July 9th at 6:05pm. Tickets are $7 and include admission and a meal voucher. The deadline to sign-up is Monday (June 26th). Checks should be made out to Welch Swim Team. Please put your money in an envelope marked with the number of family members attending the game and place your envelope in the team drop box. Tickets will be available at Will Call on the day of the game. We need lots of Sharks to outnumber the Frogs, so bring the family!!

Champs T-shirts - DEADLINE FRIDAY
You'll start to see some communications about League Championships (Champs). They are for everyone! All swimmers are invited to participate. Please mark your calendars for Tuesday, July 25th (11 and up) and Thursday, July 27th (10 and under). Champs t-shirts are available for order. Order forms are due by Friday, June 30th.

Team Gear
Team sweatshirts and t-shirts will be sold during Friday practices -- just let one of the coaches know what you would like. Items will be sold cash-and-carry.

Pickup Suits
If you have not picked up a team suit that you ordered, make sure to contact Kathryn Witt at luopawitt@hotmail.com to setup a time to meet.

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Meet Results Posted: Park Forest (H)

The results for the Park Forest meet have been posted on the team website. It was a very close meet, and we are so proud of each swimmer!

Sign-ups for the Penns Valley meet will be available at practice on Wednesday (June 21). We will also be running a modified practice schedule on Wednesday:
  • 5-8 year olds: 9:20–9:55am
  • 9-10 year olds: 8:45–9:30am
  • 11-18 year olds: 8:00–8:45am

Sunday, June 18, 2017

Important Updates for the Week of June 19th

Thank you to everyone for a successful Black and Gold Meet! This is one of the busiest weeks of the season with two meets and lots of team activities. Please read through all the items below to make sure you don’t miss any important announcements!

Meet Sign-ups
Sign-up for Tuesday’s Park Forest home meet by the end of practice on Monday (9:45am). This is an important meet, and we want to make sure that all swimmers are signed-up! Arrive at 4:45pm for warm-ups. Thank you for your concession stand donations!

Sign-up for Thursday’s Penns Valley away meet on Tuesday or Wednesday during practice. The sign-up deadline is Wednesday by 9:45am. Arrive at 5:15pm for warm-ups. Directions/GPS coordinates for the Penns Valley pool in Millheim (as well as all league pools) are available on the team website.

IMPORTANT: Only swimmers who have registered through CRPR are eligible to participate in the meet.

Parent Volunteer Sign-up
Swim meets would not be possible without most parents taking an active volunteer role at each event. Our parent volunteers help with getting kids ready to swim, timing events, selling concessions, and more. Please sign-up to help with the Park Forest and Penns Valley meets using the links below. Descriptions of volunteer positions are available on the team website.


Meet Event Order Change
Attention 8 and unders! Your 100 Freestyle Relay is right after the big kids swim butterfly! Parents - please make sure you get your swimmers to the record board at home meets or Coach Marion's white canopy at away meets to join up with the other swimmers in their relays by event #54!

Free Stroke and Turn Training
Each team provides stroke and turn judges for meets. These volunteers ensure swimmers are following the stroke guidelines properly during races. If you are interested in becoming a stroke and turn judge or would like to know more about the proper rules for each stroke, you can attend a free clinic at Park Forest Pool this Wednesday evening from 8-9pm (June 21st).

Monday/Wednesday Evening Practices for 11+
Evening practices are available for swimmers ages 11 and over on Monday and Wednesday evenings from 8:00-9:00pm. These practices will begin this Monday (June 19th).

Bagel Day at Thursday’s Practice
The team will provide bagels for all swimmers after their practice times on Thursday!

Friday – Modified Practice
For the rest of the season, each Friday will follow this schedule:

  • 11-18 year olds: 8:00–8:45am
  • 9-10 year olds: 8:45–9:30am
  • 5-8 year olds: 9:20–9:55am

Ice Cream Social – Monday, June 26th from 6-8pm at Spring Creak Park
We will gather to enjoy ice cream together and play some games! The team will provide the ice cream and toppings. Please bring some outdoor games. Sign up online by Friday, June 23rd.

Spikes Baseball Game
Our swim league (CPSL) coordinates an evening at the Spikes! This year we will be going to the game on Sunday, July 9th at 6:05pm. Tickets are $7 and include admission and a meal voucher. The deadline to sign-up is next Monday (June 26th). Checks should be made out to Welch Swim Team. Please put your money in an envelope marked with the number of family members attending the game and place your envelope in the team drop box. Tickets will be available at Will Call on the day of the game. We need lots of Sharks to outnumber the Frogs, so bring the family!!

Sunday, June 11, 2017

Happy Last Week of School! Regular Practice Begins Thursday!

Regular Practice Begins on Thursday
Our first regular practice will be Thursday morning (June 15th). Practice times are listed below. The coaches would like to invite any 10-12 year old swimmers who also swim on a winter swim team to come to the early morning practice. These swimmers can join practice at 7:00am to give the big kids a head start. Please talk to Coach Marion if this is an option for your family.

Practice Schedule:
  • 13-18 year olds: 6:45-8:00am
    • Evening practice on Mondays and Wednesdays: 8:00-9:00pm
  • 9-12 year olds: 8:00-9:00am
  • 5-8 year olds: 9:00-9:45am
Team Swim SuitsKathryn Witt will be at practice on Thursday, June 15th for the final suit try-on and to pass out suits that have already been ordered. Try-on suits will be available before each practice time. You must pick up your swim suit from Kathryn Witt by June 20th for our first meet!

Black and Gold Meet: Saturday, June 17th @ 7:30-10:00
All swimmers should attend this inter-squad, sprint meet. All races will be 25 yards.  Coaches will collect times at the meet -- it's also a great opportunity for parents to learn about the volunteer positions needed for each meet. You can sign-up online to be a timer for the Black and Gold meet (no prior experience needed!).

Meet with Park Forest on Tuesday, June 20th (home)
Our first league meet will be here soon! There are a few important notes to get you ready for this meet:
  • Sign-up by Monday, June 19th - The sign-up boards will be available Thursday through Monday during practice. The sign-up deadline is Monday, June 19th at the end of practice (9:45am). This is an important meet, and we want to make sure that all swimmers are signed-up. IMPORTANT: Only swimmers who have registered through CRPR are eligible to participate in the meet.
  • Parent Volunteer Sign-up - Unlike many other sports, swim meets would not be possible without most parents taking an active volunteer role at each event. Our parent volunteers help with getting kids ready to swim, timing events, helping with concessions, and more. Please sign-up to help at the Park Forest meet using the links below. A description of each volunteer position is available on the blog:
  • Collecting Food Donations – Each family is asked to donate food items that are sold in the concession stand at all home meets. Please drop off donations during practice times by Monday, June 19th. Please refer to the list on the general information tab for the food item you should purchase and donate (one item per family).
Activities Donation/Welch Car Magnets
Each family is asked to donate $10 per swimmer to cover the expenses of team activities and gifts (e.g., ice cream social, tie dye, team brunch, coaches’ gifts). When a swimmer has donated their $10, they will receive a Welch Swim Team Car Magnet as a “thank you”!

Share Your Pictures!
We love getting and sharing pictures. If you have pictures of practices and meets, please send them (or a link to your album) to welchcoaches[at]gmail.com.