Scottsdale Aquatic Club on the national scene

SCOTTSDALE – The Scottsdale Aquatic Club, whose home pool is at Cactus Park under a sponsorship agreement from the City of Scottsdale, completed its summer season ranked 29th in the country among more than 2,000 swim clubs.

SAC emerged as Arizona’s highest ranked swim club and among the country’s elite, according to the Toyota Virtual Championships program of USA Swimming, which every evening logs in performances from USA Swimming‑registered swimmers and tabulates the strength and depth of a team under a power point system,

The club recently sent six swimmers to Short Course Nationals in Atlanta, home of the 1996 Olympics. Robert Barrett, Annika Jonsson, Lindsey LaPorte, Kacey Milligan, Tyler Pennington and Erica Stock competed against a field that included several former Olympians such as Michael Phelps, Gary Hall Jr. and Natalie Coughlin. The SAC swimmers will be trying to make Olympic trial cuts for trials to be held June 2008 in Omaha, Neb.

SAC has had a history of success locally by winning the Arizona’s Age Group Championships for the last 10 summer seasons and last seven spring seasons. Head coach Kevin Zacher was recently named the American Swim Coach Association’s 2007 Arizona Age Group Coach of the Year. During the most recent high school championships, SAC placed many state champions.

SAC currently has more than 230 swimmers and places most of its senior athletes under college scholarships. The senior athletes sacrifice much of their summer vacations to focus on their training, which includes nine sessions a week for approximately 2‑1/2 hours per session. The rigorous training employed across all age groups results in well‑conditioned athletes, but more importantly, a high level of character and discipline for the youth of Scottsdale.