This past weekend, the St. Croix Dolphins competed at the GSA January Jump Start, and it was a strong and encouraging start to the second half of our season.
Coming off a very fast Puerto Rico meet in December and the Christmas holiday break, our expectations were realistic. Given the timing of the season, the swimmers performed right where—or in many cases better than—I expected, which is a great indicator as we move forward.
Top-24 Finishes
Several Dolphins earned Top-24 finishes in highly competitive fields, including:
- Daryan Maynard – 5th (200 Back), Top-24 finishes across IM, Backstroke, Fly, and Freestyle events
- Nebiyou Von Schilling-Royer – 7th (50 Back), multiple Top-24 sprint performances
- Sawyer Holley – Top-24 finishes in Breaststroke, IM, and Freestyle events
- Scott Roth – Top-24 finishes in IM, Breaststroke, and sprint Freestyle
- Allison Joseph – Top-24 finishes in IM, Freestyle, and relay lead-offs
- Madelyn Donnelly – Top-24 finishes in Freestyle, IM, and Breaststroke
- Cole Cullinan – Top-24 finishes in distance and middle-distance events
- Cameron Cullinan – Top-24 finishes in distance freestyle events
- Kameryn Padgett – Top-24 finishes in IM and Butterfly
Our boys' relays also earned Top-8 finishes, racing aggressively and showing excellent team execution.
Swimmers Who Dropped Time
We saw time drops across multiple events, especially impressive given the point in the season:
- Kameryn Padgett – Time drops in the 400 IM and 200 Fly
- Daryan Maynard – Time drops in the 400 IM, 100 Back, 200 Back, and 500 Free
- Allison Joseph – Time drops in 200 Free, 500 Free, and relay lead-offs
- Madelyn Donnelly – Time drops in 200 Free, 50 Breast, and IM events
- Sawyer Holley – Improvements across 100 IM, 200 Breast, and sprint events
- Scott Roth – Time drops in 200 Breast, 100 IM, and sprint races
- Saidah Banwaree – Significant drop in the 200 Breast
- Nebiyou Von Schilling-Royer – Sprint improvements in Backstroke and Freestyle
- Evan Miller – Best times in 50, 100, 200 FR, 50, 100, 200 BR, 50 BK, 100 IM
- Cole Cullinan – Time drops in 200 Fly, 100 Fly, and distance freestyle
- Cameron Cullinan – Improvement in 200 Back and distance events
- Anna Simon – Time drops in 50 Free and 100 Free
*All time improvements referenced above reflect best actual yard times swum, not converted times.*
Development & Perspective
Not every race is about a lifetime best. Some swimmers used this meet to race through fatigue, experiment with strategy, or gain experience at a higher level of competition. These swims are an important part of long-term development and often set up future breakthroughs.
Dolphin Spirit
The team energy and Dolphin spirit were outstanding all weekend. Swimmers supported one another on deck, raced with confidence, and genuinely enjoyed competing together. That culture continues to be a strength of our program.
I’m proud of how the Dolphins competed and excited about the progress we’re building as training continues.
Thank you for your continued support.
Go Dolphins,
Coach Caleb