Central Zone Top 20 Analysis

Photo Courtesy: Jeremy Brevard - USA TODAY Sports Images

Each week, the USA Swimming zones release their top 20 times. Swimming World will provide a unique analysis of one specific zone each week and a general recap of the remaining zones. Here, you’ll find the zones’ strengths, top athletes, and top times.

USA Swimming Central Zone

LSCs: Arkansas, Illiniois, Indiana, Iowa, Lake Erie, Michigan, Midwestern, Minnesota, Missouri Valley, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ozark, South Dakota, Wisconsin

GIRLS

Top Times: http://www.centralzones.org/cenzone/UserFiles/File/TimeLists/CZ%20LCM%20Top%2020%20Female%20Individual%206-3-2015.pdf

In the Central Zone, the 11-year old girls division is dominated Mariah Denigan of the Northern Kentucky Clippers. Denigan is tops in the zone in the 50, 100, 200, 400, and 1500-meter free as well as the 50-meter back, 100-meter back, and 200-meter IM. She currently holds the top time in the nation in the 11-year old girls’ 400-meter free at a blistering 4:38.47.

For the 12-year old girls, Kaylyn Schoof finds herself atop numerous events, including the 200-meter back, in which she is first in the country. Back is a particularly strong stroke for the Central Zone. Schoof is ranked second in the nation in the 100, while Gabriela Pierobon Mays leads the country in the 50-meter back with a 31.15.

The 13-year old girls division features an array of leaders, with its highest power points coming from the 100-meter back and 100-meter breast.

Grace Ariola headlines the 14-year old girls, where she sits first in the Central Zone in the 200-meter free, 400-meter free, 100-meter back, 200-meter back, and 200-meter IM.

The Central Zone boasts some of the best depth in the nation in the 15-year old girls’ freestyle events. They top the nation in power points in the 50, 100, and 1500-meter free and sit second in the 200-meter free.

In the 16-year old girls division, the Central Zone is at its more competitive in terms of power points. Part of that can be credited to Hannah Kukurugya, who holds the top 200-meter fly time in the nation for 16-year old girls at 2:12.04.

Breaststroke is the irrefutable strength of the 17-year old girls. The Central Zone has the only two girls in the country, Miranda Tucker (1:09.11) and Rachel Munson (1:09.71), under the 1:10 mark. Tucker is also second in the nation in the girls’ 200-meter breast.

Free and back seem to be the strengths of the 18-year old girls divison, where Allie Wooden and Kennedy Goss share a stranglehold on the freestyle events. Goss, however, owns the backstroke races.

Overall, the Central Zone girls may lack depth in comparison to other zones. There’s no doubt, however, that it possesses swimming pedigree. Denigan, Schoof, Tucker, and Kukrugya can attest to that.

BOYS

Top Times: http://www.centralzones.org/cenzone/UserFiles/File/TimeLists/CZ%20LCM%20Top%2020%20Male%20Individual%206-3-2015.pdf

As a whole, the Central Zone falls well behind the other zones in power point rankings. The largest point gaps can be found in the younger age groups, where the Central Zone trails the third place zone by nearly 6000 points in the 11-year old boys division. Despite this, the Central Zone has strong freestylers led by Lance Godard, who is currently unattached.

Black Hawk Area Swim Team’s Dylan Moffat and Southwest Aquatic Team’s Emilio Perez headline the 12 year-old boys. Perez is one of the swiftest backstrokers in the country. He currently holds the top time in the nation in the boys’ 50-meter back.

The 13-year old boys division simply doesn’t match the depth of the other zones, and truly only has strong showings in the 200-meter fly, 400-meter IM, and 50-meter free. Carson Foster of the Cincinnati Marlins leads numerous events and is first in the nation in the 200-meter fly.

The disparity amongst the zones closes in a little bit in the 14-year old boys division. The Central Zone, led by Jake Foster of the Cincinnati Marlins, is strongest in the breast races. Foster has clocked the fastest time in the nation in the 100 (1:05.87) and 200-meter breast (2:20.67). The Foster brothers are a force to reckon with in the Central Zone.

Sprinting seems to be the strength of the 15-year old boys in the Central Zone. The Zone leads the next closest zone by nearly 500 points in the 50-meter free alone. Michael Andrew leads the short distance charge for the Central Zone with the top times in the nation in a multitude of events.

The 16-year old boys division trails the remaining zones mostly due to a lack of depth. The tenth fastest time in the zone is noticeably slower than other zones. That’s exemplified by the 400-meter free, where the tenth fastest time stands at a 4:15.90. No other zone has top ten times over 4:12.

Depth is an issue in the 17 and 18-year old boy divisions as well. The top of the age groups can compete with any other zone, but the lower half of the top ten simply isn’t as deep.

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