Alhambra Swim Team
Team Handbook
Head Coach: Keelan Kirshen
Assistant Coach: Courtney Lazzara
Assistant Coach Max Keifer
Athletic Director: Anthony Ertola
Remind: text @ahsswim24 to 81010 to receive text message reminders & updates.
Alhambra Swimming
Hello Parents & Swimmers,
Welcome to the Alhambra High School Swim Team. I am looking forward to a successful swim season at AHS. Co-curriculars are an important part of the high school experience and I feel that swimming can be a valuable and positive experience for athletes, parents, and coaches. I am excited to start working with all the returning athletes and the new athletes joining the team for the first time.
For those of you who do not know me, let me tell you a little about myself. I have been teaching history at the Martinez Junior High for 27 years. I have been coaching with the Martinez Community Swim Team for over 30 years and have coached both swimming and water polo at Alhambra High School.
Courtney Lazzara is one of two coaching assistants with the program. Courtney coaches the Martinez Community Swim Team spring, summer and fall programs. Courtney is a graduate of Gonzaga University and earned a teaching credential from St. Mary’s College. Courtney has coached the Alhambra Swim Team for 5 years.
Max Keifer will also be helping to assist this season. Max is an Alhambra graduate with a wide depth of swimming knowledge. He has coached spring, summer and fall sessions with MCST for several years.
Whether you are a year round swimmer, a recreational swimmer, or primarily a water polo player, our objective is to create a positive team environment where every athlete can achieve the goals they set through commitment and hard work.
The AHS swim program will include morning and afternoon practice, dryland training, and using a variety of equipment to help swimmers reach new heights in their swimming. This handbook outlines information about our program and hopefully will answer many questions you may have.
Keelan Kirshen
Alhambra Swimming
Our Philosophy of a High School Swimming Program
To provide a positive environment in which each athlete can develop physically, emotionally, and socially.
To set personal goals and work to achieve them through hard work, self-discipline, and commitment.
To appreciate everyone’s contributions to the team: your own, your teammate’s, your coach’s, and your parent’s contributions as well.
To learn as much as possible about the sport of swimming & how to progress to a higher level in competitive swimming.
Team Expectations
Student athletes on the swim team have the following team expectations:
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● Attend scheduled workouts.
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● Attend swim meets. You must warm-up with the team. You must stay until the end of every swim meet.
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● Assist with the setup and teardown of meets & practices as needed & assigned.
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● Respect fellow team members, coaches, parents, volunteers, administrators, and officials.
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● Keep our pool deck and locker rooms as neat as possible.
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● Wear team apparel on designated days and to all meets.
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● Any use of social media which disparages teammates, coaches, other teams, officials, or is vulgar or demeaning will result in substantial penalties and can include immediate removal from the team.
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● Year round swimmers must attend 1 scheduled AHS workout a week. All other team requirements apply to year round swimmers.
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● Communicate with the coaches any conflicts that you have well in advance.
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● Swimmers must follow all Swim Meet Expectations as stated in the team handbook.
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● Missing practices and/or swim meets without prior approval can result in removal from the swim team.
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● Failure to meet Team Expectations may result in removal from the swim team. Being a multi-sport athlete is strongly discouraged & multi-sport athletes who cannot fully commit to the swim team will be dismissed from the team.
Practice Attendance
Attendance is a high priority so we can build a program that improves the quality of the swimmers as well as the success of the team. Workouts are not optional. All swimmers are expected to attend all workouts. Swimmers who regularly skip workouts will be dismissed from the team. Obvious exceptions are illness (not the sniffles) and other significant life events. A swimmer who needs to miss a workout should discuss this in advance, when possible, with the coaches.
We also understand that swimming is not your only activity and that the life of a high school athlete can be demanding and hectic. Please continually check in with Keelan if you have conflicts that cannot be avoided.
Doctor appointments should be scheduled during “non-training” times.
If a student attends school, he/she is expected to be at the pool and in the water.
HOLIDAY TRAINING
The swimming season falls during some holiday periods. The President’s Days and Spring Break are during our swim season. The spring break training period is close to when we taper for our league championship meet. We will be holding some practices during the breaks. Taking days or weeks off in the middle of the season will adversely impact conditioning and meet performance. Swimmers who are in town are expected to attend these workouts. Swimmers who are out of town are encouraged to find a pool and swim some laps.
Lettering Requirements
Obtaining a letter for high school athletics is a notable accomplishment. It reflects your commitment to excellence for your sport and team. Letters are not given for participating with the team or for swimming in varsity swim meets. Letters are earned by following team expectations, participation in meets & participation in practices. Swimmers attending less than 80% of team practices, meets, and events will not be considered for a varsity letter.
Swim Team Eligibility
The basic qualifications to participate on the JV swim team are a dive off the blocks, being able to do a 50 of each stroke, and being able to do a turn for each stroke. Swimmers will be required to swim a set of 10x50s on the 1:00 interval and make the send off by at least 5 seconds each time. It is not extremely challenging, but will ensure that the team is able to train together and warm-up together without swimmers falling too far behind.
PRACTICE EQUIPMENT AND TEAM APPAREL
Dryland: Athletic shoes are to be worn to all afternoon practices. Swimmers must be dressed in clothing that will allow them to participate in running & dryland exercises each afternoon.
Required Practice Equipment: pull buoy, training paddles, swimming fins, goggles, swim caps, practice suit & water bottle. Swimmers will need to provide their own equipment.
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Hand paddles, pull buoy, kickboard & fins can be purchased at Elsmore Swim Shop in Walnut Creek.
Swim Meet Requirements: team suit (order a team suit unless you have one from a previous AHS swim season), an AHS swim team shirt, and an AHS swim team cap.
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See Elsmore online order form for info on team suits, caps, mesh bag, team towel & team shirt options.
Swim Meet Expectations
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Let your coach know a week prior if you cannot attend a meet.
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When you are on deck at practice or meet, you represent your school, your family, your team, and your coaches. Behave accordingly.
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Wear an AHS swim team shirt/jacket/suit/cap to all meets.
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Pick up trash and leave the venue cleaner than when we arrived.
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Sit with the team in the team area & stay on the pool deck area at all times.
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No gum and no jewelry.
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Cheering on deck for teammates is expected.
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Sportsmanship: Win & lose with grace. Shake your opponents hands after each race.
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No swearing in any context. Do not be crude. No inappropriate gestures.
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Pay attention to the event progression. Don’t miss your event.
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Refrain from horseplay in the locker rooms and on deck.
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No displays of affection with boyfriends & girlfriends.
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Stay with your teammates until the end of your relay.
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Missing practices and/or swim meets without prior approval can result in removal from a meet
@Home Meets You are to report to the pool deck as soon as school is dismissed and change for warm up. Missing warm up may result in being pulled from the meet. You are required to stay through the end of the meet to support your team and to clean up.
@Away Meets Report to the AHS pool before the required departure time. If you are late you may be left and if you cannot get a ride with a parent or guardian by the start of warm up, you will be pulled from the meet.
You must travel with the team to and from the meet unless your parents have contacted Coach Keelan in advance. When we arrive at a pool you need to change and prepare to warm up immediately. You are required to stay through the end of the meet to support your team and to clean up.
Parent Volunteers
Just like in recreational swimming and year-round swimming there are a number of tasks that need to be done to operate a successful high school swim program.
Carpools: Parents will need to coordinate carpools to our away meets. If one parent would like to organize this, let me know.
Computer Team: Parents familiar with hy-tec and running the desk of a swim meet.
Registration: Parent familiar with TeamUnify registration software.
Starter: Start the races at our home meets.
Swim Meet Volunteers: We will need each family to work 4-6 swim meets during the season. We will need workers at home meets and at Invitationals/Championships Meets.
Senior Celebration: A parent to coordinate a senior celebration at the final home meet.
Swimming for Water Polo
If you are primarily a water polo player, we are glad you joined our program. As a part of our swimming program, you are taking a big step in making yourself a better water polo player. How much you improve in swimming is up to you and your motivation to be a better water polo player.
How important is swimming to water polo? Brent Bohlender (member of USWP Hall of Fame) said it well: To be a good player you have to be a good swimmer. You CANNOT get around it. It is so logical – you can’t play basketball if you can’t get from one end of the court to the other, and the one who gets there sooner will have more opportunities.
Monte Nitzkowski (Olympic men’s coach): I encourage all young Water Polo players to swim competitively through their high school years. This is a must. You can't improve your swimming ability on your own....It's very difficult to play Water Polo above the high school level without having competed in swimming through the high school years. Competitive swimming improves strength, size, mobility and quickness—all paramount to becoming an outstanding Water Polo player.
If your goal is to be a better water polo player, then swimming on the team will help accomplish that goal. That being said, all athletes must abide by the team rules set forth by the coaches. The swimming program is not an intramural practice or a health club where you can choose when to attend. Attendance at all practices and competitions is a must to remain in good standing on the team.
