The Sedona Race Pace Club sawfive swimmers qualify for the USA Swim Arizona State Meet held on Saturday, March 9.

“Everyone improved in one way or another since the start of the year,” coach Sean Emery said. “Two of our top three made finals in places where it was their first chance due to age groups, which was great.”

Emery and assistant Lauren Robinson have been coaching Sedona Race Pace since 2014.

Ranae Porteous, 13, dazzled at the event and placed in the top five in five separate categories.

She became the first swimmer in Sedona history to win back-to-back events at state in two different age groups.

Porteous placed first overall in both the 50-yard freestyle [24.91] and 100-yard freestyle [53.17].

“She has swam with me since she was eight and she has the best technique out there,” Emery said. “Ranae’s drive and commitment to perfecting her craft is second to none.”

Porteous also finished third in the 100-yard Butterfly [59.37] and 100-yard Backstroke [59.69] and fifth in the 200-yard Freestyle [1:58.44].

Though Porteous had an injury-plagued season, she still toughed it out and gave an extremely productive
effort for Race Pace.

“[Porteous] dealt with a broken foot and a wrist injury but she still made it work,” Emery said. “She is great at overcoming life’s obstacles through fortitude and perseverance.”

Emery said he believes Porteous’ potential in the pool is limitless.

“She has the potential to be the fastest swimmer to come out of Sedona and the Verde Valley area,” Emery said. “If Ranae keeps at it, she could reach the collegiate ranks and earn a Division 1 scholarship.”

For Emery, this season has been a different as a coach.

“It has been a bit stressful, especially with the weather, but the kids have been resilient all season,” Emery said. “I have swimmers dealing with puberty and the body issues it comes with, so that has been a challenge.”

While the season has had its peaks and valleys, Emery and Sedona Race Pace have taken every hit in stride.

“All of the swimmers really like each other and we have a great group of parents,” Emery said. “They are extremely supportive, so I have really enjoyed our team’s cohesion.”

Bryce Kirk, 13, finished 14th in the 200-yard Butterfly [2:10.01] and 18th in the 400-yard IM [4:43.79].

Sarina McCullough, 12, placed third in the 200-yard Butterfly [2:18.75] and eighth in the 50-yard Butterfly [28.30].

“Though Sarina had been battling an infection, she still earned her first top-three finish,” Emery said. “For her to still perform near the top at state is pretty impressive.”

McCullough also finished ninth in the 200-yard Backstroke [2:19.10] and tenth in the 100-yard Backstroke [1:06.23].
Lucy Spielman, 11, placed 16th in the 200-yard Butterfly with a time of 2:41.72.

Jaxon Oles, 16, went to Senior State and placed 47th in the 200-yard Breaststroke at 2:37.56. Oles also placed 48th in the 100-yard Breaststroke [1:11.43] and 87th in the 100-yard Butterfly [1:04.29].

17-year-old Gavin Earle is Sedona Race Pace newest team member and saw multiple time drops at the Junior Olympic Championship meet one week prior to State.

Earle finished eighth in the 100-yard Breaststroke at [1:11.49] and ninth in the 50-yard Freestyle [24.00].

Sedona Race Pace is the first American swim club in Arizona that utilizes the Ultra Short Race Pace Training, or USRPT, method during all practices.

That is the same method used by Olympic swimmer Michael Andrew.

The club’s team motto is: “We train hard, we have fun and we swim fast.”

For more information, visit www.sedonaracepace.com.