Wilson quarter Excels in Southeastern Meet

NASHVILLE — Wilson County swimmers Madison Blackwell, Luke Blackwell, Bradley Gillilan and Taylor Wallace contributed to Excel Aquatics' third-place finish at the Southeastern Swimming Short Course Championships over the weekend.
Lebanon High freshman Gillilan placed 15th in the 13-14 boys' 1,650-yard freestyle in 18:10.86. He also finished 17th in the 1,000 freestyle, 33rd in the 200 free, 30th in the 100 breaststroke and 31st in the 200 backstroke.
"Bradley had a great meet, dropping time in three of his five events after coming off a short course season where he split his training focus between his natural-distance events and the sprint-focused high school season," Excel assistant and Lebanon resident John Barnes said.
Blackwell, an eighth-grade home schooler from Mt. Juliet, took home a 13th-place finish in the 13-14 boys' 1,650 freestyle in 17:53.49. A 16th-place finish was garneredc in the 1,000 free with a time of 10:42.08, a 37-second drop from his previous try at that distance. He also finished 32nd in the 200 freestyle, 28th in the 200 backstroke, 24th in the 500 free and 23rd in the 100 back.
"Both Bradley and Luke did great in the 1,650, aka 'The Mile'," Barnes said. "For someone not familiar with this sport, swimming that distance is more closely similar to runinng a five-kilometer race, a cross country running distance. Excel Aquatics encourages our kids to swim all the strokes and varied event lengths in swimming in order to find what the correct fit is for them. Over time, things may change, and all of our kids typically continue to develop because of their strong aerobic base."
Blackwell, a sixth-grade home schooler from Mt. Juliet, competed in her first SESCC in the girls' 11-12 category, turning in a time of :32.76 in the 50 backstroke.
"Madison swam lights out in her event," Barnes said. "She really nailed her underwater technique off of the start and turn and once on top of the water, she got her arms moving while maintaining excellent body position in the water."
Wallace, a Mt. Juliet High freshman, swam to a ninth-place finish in the 100 breaststroke and anchored the 13-14 boys' 400 medley relay that attained a national top-16 time during the meet. He also competed in the 400 IM, 200 IM, 50 free, 100 butterfly and 100 free.
Forty-five teams consisting of 872 swimmers from Tennessee, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle competed in the meet.