By Michael A. Cummings
Three days after the fact, they were still excited.
And for good reason, too.
By finishing 10 points ahead of Florence last Saturday in Jasper, Cullman Swim Team won its first Tennessee Valley Conference title since 2001.
So when Scottsboro came to Cullman Tuesday for a head-to-head meet, it wasn’t much of a surprise that all the talk around the new Wellness and Aquatic Center was about the Catfish’s landmark win last weekend.
“Oh yeah, we’re pretty pumped about it,” said first-year assistant coach Jackie Donaldson, who works with Cullman’s 9-12-year-old swimmers.
There was plenty to be pumped about, even disregarding the team’s breakthrough after seven years of frustration. While the team came out on top, there were also individual records set at the meet.
Michelle Pilcher beat her own team record in the 13-14 girls 50-yard breaststroke with a time of 34.19 seconds. She took first place in the event.
Bennett Glasscock set two team records, beating his own mark in the 13-14 boys 50-yard backstroke and setting a new standard in the 13-14 boys 50-yard butterfly. He won the backstroke and took second in the butterfly.
But while individual records are nice, first-year assistant coach Alison Norris said it’s all about the team’s performance.
“You always want your individuals to do well,” said Norris, who works primarily with 9-10-year-olds. “But there are only five teams and they’re our rivals, so you want the team to win.”
Cullman had already defeated its biggest rival once after a tight win over Jasper last Tuesday. While that win was a mild surprise — Jasper’s team has been able to train year-round for several seasons — it was the first-place finish at the TVC meet that was borderline shocking.
“I think we all thought it was going to be close,” said Norris. “But we had a lot of our good scorers out of town, so we figured it would be a really good meet if we won it.”
Turns out it was an outstanding meet. While Cullman narrowly edged Florence 715-705, the Catfish easily outscored the rest of the field. Jasper finished third with 685 points, Sheffield followed at 508.5 and Oneonta was fifth at 252.5.
According to Donaldson, two of the keys to winning the meet were the performances of the younger swimmers and a strong showing in the relays.
“With the younger kids, we focused on doing everything legal,” she said, pointing to strong fundamentals at the start and finish of every race. “You can pick up a lot of points that way.”
The Catfish also picked up points in the relay section of the meet, picking up wins in the boys 11-12 200-yard medley and the boys 11-12 200-yard freestyle. Cullman also had several second-place finishes in relays.
“That’s a good way to pick up points at a meet,” said Donaldson.
But the performances of the youngsters and the relay teams weren’t the only reasons Cullman picked up its first TVC crown since most of its current members were too young to be on the team.
According to parents and coaches around the team, the completion of the Wellness and Aquatic Center will give the Catfish a boost in the coming seasons — and apparently already has.
With the new facility in place since April, Cullman — like its rival Jasper — now has the ability to train year-round.
“It’s got to help, being able to swim starting in April,” said Norris.
The Catfish have several more big meets left this season. On Thursday they travel to Arab, and they host Guntersville next Tuesday. From July 9-11, Cullman will compete at the Alabama Recreation and Parks Association (ARPA) District II meet in Boaz. The Catfish will then host the ARPA state meet July 23-25.
But even with all the big meets left to go, Donaldson said the biggest of all might already be in the past.
“This was probably our biggest meet,” she said of the TVC championship. “At district we let the kids choose what events they want to do, but this one is all about the team.”
‰ Michael Cummings can be reached by e-mail at michaelc@cullmantimes.com or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 258.
