Magnificent seven: Club Wolverine wins 2020 Michigan 12 and Under Short Course State Championships
Club Wolverine did what Club Wolverine does best – work hard, have fun and win.
The popular and successful Ann Arbor swimming and diving club won the 2020 Michigan 12 and Under Short Course State Championship meet on March 6-8 at the EMU Natatorium. Club Wolverine hosted the event under the organization of the Club Meet Director Josh Wood along with tireless contributions from the amazing Club Wolverine families.
Speaking of amazing. This wasn’t Club Wolverine’s first rodeo. CW has won the 12 and under Michigan Short Course State meet 10 times in the past 13 years including the last seven in a row.
The short course season, which begins in September and ends mid-March, competes in a 25-yard pool. This meet is a culmination of the desire and dedication that these swimmers and their families have demonstrated for the past six months.
“When it comes to our young swimmers, our goals don’t include winning championships,” says WC Head Coach Gunnar Schmidt. “We are simply trying to build a lifelong passion for swimming, develop each young athlete to their fullest potential, and teach them they are a part of a great team.
“Winning a meet like this is simply a result of our amazing coaching staff and hard-working team.”
Laura Cowley, the club’s Head Age Group Coach and Associate Head Coach, has been with Club Wolverine for 12 years.
“The meet was so impressive to witness,” she said. “There were so many amazing swims from teams across the state. As a coach, I love to see how the sport is growing with these younger swimmers. It raises the bar with the quality of athletes we are developing and speaks volumes about the passion of the USA swimming coaches in Michigan.”
Both Schmidt and Cowley were proud of their swimmers.
“It is fun to watch the confidence in doing what they love to do grow,” says Cowley. “I feel that the success of our program is linked to our positive team environment that begins with our passionate coaches and dedicated members. Our coaching staff engages our swimmers in the development of perseverance, confidence in daily effort and creating life skills.”
Club Wolverine had 42 swimmers qualify for the meet and they all contributed to win the 2020 State Championship meet with 1,969 points. With 91 top 8 individual swims and nine relays, CW won by more than 600 points over the second-place team.
Club Wolverine had 10 swimmers who were top 8 point scorers for the meet: 10 and under swimmers: Charlie Knoepp, first; Issac Adanin, second; Tony Spiewak, seventh; Juna Sakamoto, fifth; Jayla Kuzak, seventh; 11-12 swimmers: Bridgette Kamara, third; Sophia Lickman, fourth; Jillian Kinnard, fifth; Henry Baumhover, fourth; Eshan Patel, fifth.
