Another summer season is in the books for the Iola-Scandinavia Thunderbird swim team.
While her teammates were competing at the July 27 meet in Iola, 9-year-old Tayler Carlson was representing the T-Birds at the USA Wisconsin State Swimming Meet in Brown Deer.
She placed 15th out of 74 9- and 10-year-old girls in the 100-meter breaststroke and also placed 17th in the 50-meter breaststroke. She also competed in the 50-meter freestyle and in two relay events.
“Tayler is a super young swimmer,” coach Dick Wright said. “She is talented, motivated and a really hard worker. At the state meet, she was the fourth-best 9-year-old in the state. If she keeps working hard, she’s going to be something special.”
She is the daughter of Kelly and Chris Carlson of rural Waupaca.
The team also held an awards banquet at the Iola Old Car Show grounds after the open meet. Each of the 78 swimmers on the team received an award certificate, as well as team and individual photos.
Special awards went to:
Ages 8 and under: Most Outstanding: Cassidy Kostuch and Matthew Glodowski; Hardest Worker: Ryan Bred and Sara Breed; Most Improved: Shane Sutheimer and Brian Williams.
Ages 9-12: Most Outstanding: Carlson and Dylan Kostuch; Hardest Worker: Alexa Shulfer and Matthew March; Most Improved: Nolan Struble and Karina Lisogor.
Ages 15-18: Most Outstanding: Morgan Glodowski and Mitch Glodowski; Hardest Worker: Katherine Leaf, John Faldet and Jake Struble; Most Improved: Megan Struble and Daniel Parks.
“This was a great season for our whole team,” Wright said. “We won the Wittenberg and Plymouth invitationals and finished third at Green Bay against a lot of big-city teams, as well as winning all three of our home triangular meets.”
Swimmers recorded several team records during the season. Abe Konick set new records in the boys’ 100 backstroke, 200 Individual Medley and 500 freestyle; Morgan Glodowski set new marks in the 100 butterfly and 100 breaststroke; Leaf set a new record in the 500 free; and Konick, Zach Shulfer, Mitch Glodowski and Faldet teamed up to set new records in the 400 freestyle and 200 medley relays.
The T-Birds are a competitive team for area boys and girls ages 5-18. The winter season will begin the Monday after Thanksgiving and end in early February. Contact Wright at 715-258-2697 or the aquatic center at 715-445-2411, ext. 317, for more information.