Another small turnout for the Marlins

BY JOHN DECOSTE

The Advertiser/NovaNewsNow.com

The Kentville Marlins have had trouble all summer getting all – or even most – of their team together at the same meet.

With just two weeks remaining before provincials, it remained a problem, with just nine of the Marlins’ more than 30 swimmers present to represent the club at an Aug. 9 meet hosted by the Colby Sailfish in Dartmouth.

The younger, less-experienced Marlins – Olivia and Cameron Crooks, Trevor and Maggie-Jane Kalkman, Dominique and Danielle Dawson, and Hannah Taylor – all swam well, but their results weren’t fast enough to crack the top-10 in any of their races.

Head coach Shauna Manning -- who missed the meet due to commitments in Fredericton , where she will begin university next month -- remains unconcerned as long as the younger swimmers in particular are continuing to improve their times.

Manning acknowledged that though attendance at meets is down from last year -- due mainly to a lot of people being away at camp or on vacation -- “the swimmers who attend the meets are doing very well” in terms of improving their times.

“It doesn’t matter about the place, it matters about the swim,” she said. “I’m glad my swimmers are improving all the time and really doing a great job.

“We may not score a lot of team points at meets, but we get a lot of amazing swims in,” she said. “A lot of our younger swimmers have very little swimming experience, but they are doing so well and I’m very proud of them.”

Rachel Mader continued what has been a breakout season for her, inching ever closer to the top-10 with a 12th-place finish in the 50-metre freestyle, as well as placing 15th in the 25-metre butterfly and 17th in the 25-metre breaststroke.

Mader also teamed up with Olivia Crooks, who moved up a division, Maggie Kalkman and Hannah Taylor to place sixth in the 9-10 girls’ 100-metre medley relay.

Angus Morgan, 17, made a rare appearance of the summer season for the Marlins a strong one, finishing third in the 200-metre freestyle, tied for third in the 50-metre butterfly and fourth in the 100-metre breaststroke.

Morgan, along with Justin Aalders and Rhianna Nicholson who were unable to compete at this meet, stand as solid medal possibilities for Kentville at provincials.

The Marlins had one meet remaining -- this past weekend at St. Margaret’s Bay -- prior to provincials this coming weekend, Aug. 22-24, hosted by the Waeg Waves in Halifax.