NOVA News
October 16th, 2023
Swimming is a sport that is dominated by numbers: times, distances, places, stroke counts… etc, you name it, and one of the coaches probably counts it or measures it. But the number I think that says the most about our season is twenty-five, which is the number of consecutive Short Course Age Group Championship Banners we have earned as a team. It shows our history as a team that includes our current senior swimmers who were not part of victory number twenty-five, but who have been a part of some of the two dozen championships that came before this one, and it shows how hard our current age group swimmers worked this season.
If you ask your swimmer, “What was your favorite part of this short course season?” I doubt it will be “25” and doubt their answer involves a number at all. Don’t just focus on the numbers and the times, make sure you include the funny moments, the challenges, the successes and the personal connections as that’s the fuel to continue in the sport.
Congratulations NOVA on an amazing Short Course season!
Wyatt Haas
#ONENOVA
Spring NCSA’s have always been a focus for the NOVA Senior program and this year was no exception. Last week, NOVA traveled to Orlando, Florida for approximately a week with 53 athletes and big goals. As always, the team was looking to bring home the “goods”- championship banners in this case. The swimmers came up big and finished 2nd overall in the combined team scoring and 2nd overall on the men’s side. Over the five days of competition, there were a lot of big swims, new cuts, and a great attitude and toughness from the NOVA athletes. The coaching staff was extremely pleased with the results, effort, and team camaraderie that was exhibited over the course of the meet.
For those not at the meet, it’s hard to put into words how well NOVA swam as a team over the five days of competition. NOVA swimmers consistently swam out front, attacked races, and finished in the top half of their heat. On a daily basis, the coaching staff had a goal of not only going best times, but moving up from their psyche sheet seed. What was really impressive was the amount of swimmers who moved up into scoring position who were not seeded to score points at all. Consistently, NOVA swimmers outperformed the psyche sheet and put swimmers into finals and scoring position. Every single morning session, we put ourselves in position to score between 50-100 points more than the team was projected and seeded to score. Truly impressive results from all NOVA athletes!
Congratulations goes out to everyone who participated in the meet including all of the swimmers, coaches-staff, and chaperones who made the meet successful. I especially want to single out all of our graduating seniors who were in attendance at the meet. They showed great leadership and laid the groundwork for the underclassman down the road. Great job NOVA-I couldn’t be prouder for all that was accomplished over the five days of competition!
Coach Mike
March 19th-23rd - Qualified NOVA Senior swimmers traveled to NCSA Juniors to compete at the Rosen Aquatic Center in Orlando FL swimming against some of the fastest 18 and under swimmer in the USA. NOVA swimmers excelled in the pool, achieving many new best times, new USA winter and summer JR cuts, and qualifying for USA Olympic Trials. NOVA's finished runner up as a team as did the men's team. Congratulations swimmers and coaches!
Senior Dev. Gold, Senior Bronze/Silver, Senior Gold, National
March 21-24 Qualified NOVA swimmers crossed the river the race in the Shamrock Showdown. In this Prelim/Finals meet NOVA swimmers achieved many new AG cuts, achieved many new time standards, raced hard, and had an amazing time supporting teammates! What an amazing way to sign off the SC season.
March 23-24th- A full slate of NOVA swimmers took to the pool at Regency for the annual Short Course Send off racing teams from all over VA. They said "good bye" to SC with fast swims, lots of cheering and dancing, and many best times. The 12 and unders tackled the duel courses and looked like they were "super profesh". Congrats to all swimmers and coaches!
Novice Bronze/Silver, Novice Gold, Age Group Dev Bronze, Age Group Dev Silver, Age Group Dev Gold, Age Group Bronze, Age Group Silver/Gold, Senior Dev, Bronze, Senior Bronze, Senior Silver
Julie Farney
Next week is NOVA’s Spring Break. Enjoy the time away from the pool, and get ready to come back refreshed and recharged for the Long Course 2024 season! After Spring Break, the Regency pool will be set up for long course practices and meets. This change will cause all NOVA practice schedules to shift.
Please review the Spring Practice Schedule.
After Spring Break, there are many NOVA scheduled events for the entire team. Here is a brief glimpse of all the exciting things happening around the pool deck!
Spring Break: March 29 - April 7. All practices canceled.
NOVA Swim A Thon: Saturday April 20th. Look for details after Spring Break.
Coaches Appreciation Week: April 29 - May 3rd
ALL Team NOVA Awards Ceremony: Thursday May 2nd 6 - 8 pm. Henrico County Sports
Complex 11000 Telegraph Rd, Glen Allen, VA 23059
Graduating Senior Celebration: Sunday June 2nd 3-5pm Sloop John B
We all know life gets busy, but the NOVA Coaches and Staff are hoping to see you and your swimmers at as many of these events as possible!
1,200 Wheelchair Basketball Players
100 Teams from Coast-to-Coast
12 State-of-the-Art Courts
5 Division Championships
1 Unforgettable Experience
The 2024 NWBA Wheelchair Basketball National Championships are coming to RVA for the first time ever - April 5-14 – at the state-of-the-art Henrico Sports & Events Center.
From the clash of metal sports chairs to the smell of burning rubber on the gym floor. From youth players competing on the national stage for the first-time to seasoned Paralympians. We’re serving up an electric atmosphere you won’t want to miss.
Wear your Sportable orange and blue and cheer on your hometown Sportable Spokes and Sportable Rim Riders when they go head-to-head with 100 teams competing for national titles.
Secure your seats for only $5.00 when you use promo code NOVA now at Sportable.org.
