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My sincerest apologies to Zia - Swimmer of the Month for Barlow! I accidentally used the wrong photo, so this version of the newsletter has that correction.
Congrats to Zia!
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Hello MHA Swimmers and Families!
Welcome to July!
We hope you're enjoying a fun and fast-paced summer. July is the busiest and most exciting month of our swim season, packed with meets, personal bests, team spirit, and great memories in the making. We are gearing up for our Speedo Sectionals meet July 17-20th where we will have swimmers coming from around the West Coast to compete. From Alaska to Hawaii, Montana to Nevada, everyone will be swimming fast swims and you might even witness a few pre-Olympic times! We also will be hosting our OSI 11 and Over State Championships. We have a large number of our Mt Hood team swimming in both the Speedo Sectionals as well as our State Championship meet.
Mt Hood Aquatic's swim team is a swimming community - every lap counts, every cheer matters and every swimmer shines! Looking forward to an amazing July at Mt Hood Aquatics!
Jenny Pribyl, President
Dennis Baker, Executive Director/Head Coach
| | Welcome Home Senior Swimmers! | | |
Our past seniors are home from their first and second year of college. They all swim in college - and spend their summer swimming for Mt Hood Aquatics.
When our senior swimmers return to practice and meets during the summer, they bring invaluable experience, leadership, and a strong work ethic. Their presence raises the bar for our younger athletes, providing mentorship, motivation, and a reminder of the long-term rewards of dedication. They strengthen team spirit and help maintain the culture of excellence that defines our program.
Returning swimmers bring energy to practice. They share stories and experiences. They share stories of the travel meets they did while swimming in college - even traveling to Hawaii, Las Vegas and Chicago! It is an excitement and dedication that our high school kids can feel. Our past seniors are home - even for a short time.
Welcome home!!
| | | What a Weekend at the Howard Jones Swim Meet! | | Our girls senior team made a Sectional cut time in the 200 Medley Relay! Congrats! | |
We had an amazing weekend at the Howard Jones swim meet! A total of 818 swimmers hit the pool and raced their hearts out, with many achieving personal bests and showcasing incredible effort and sportsmanship.
Meet Highlights:
• A record number of swimmers participated - 818 strong!
• Countless personal bests were set across all age groups.
• The energy on deck was electric, with teams cheering each other on.
• Coaches, officials, volunteers, and families made the meet run smoothly and successfully.
We’re so proud of all of our swimmers and grateful for our coaches and volunteers!!
MHA!!!!! Good luck this weekend at the Seth Dawson meet!!!
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Our 13 & under swimmers had team spirit as they cheered each other on during
the meet! Smiling, laughing and creating amazing memories with
an awesome group of swimmers!
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As we are working our way through long-course season, this is a perfect opportunity to start the registration and on-deck training process at our next meet.
Officials are always needed, and we (MHA) do not have enough to run our own small meets if we wanted to. Having officials also provides more opportunities for our team to swim at other meets since that is something other clubs look for when inviting teams. All of your officiating hours at away and home meets goes towards your volunteer hours. As an official, you will be well taken care of by the hosting teams and have the best seat in the house!
If interested, please email Michael Johnson at MJJohnson1965@hotmail.com for more information.
| | | MHA July Swimmers of the Month | |
Senior Squad Swimmer of the Month
Asher Eggers is 14 years old and a member of the Senior Squad.
Asher is one of the top freestylers in Oregon for his age. He brings a great attitude every day to practice. He has limitless potential. We look forward to him being a big part of MHA in the future. Great job Asher!!
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Silver/Gold Swimmer of the Month
Kamron Brayson is our Gold/Silver swimmer of the month. This spring, he doubled up doing track & field and swimming, often showing up to practice with tired legs just in time to jump in for our kick set! And never complaining. He dropped time in all of his long course events, most notably dropping 16 seconds in his 50 Free, 24 seconds in his 100 Fly, 30 seconds in his 100 Back, and 40 seconds in his 50 Breast! As a Gold swimmer, these are massive improvements and showcase all the hard work he has put into this season. Really impressive Kam, congrats!
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Reynolds Swimmer of the Month
Sebastian Delgado-Diaz, a member of our White Squad, has been a dedicated swimmer for our team here at Reynolds. Since joining, his attendance has been phenomenal - and it’s really paying off! He’s been getting faster and swimming longer distances with ease. His breaststroke in particular has improved astronomically. When he started, his kick needed some work, but now his breaststroke is truly something to see! His hard work on flip turns has also been paying off, making his freestyle even speedier.
Sebastian, congratulations on being Reynolds’ Swimmer of the Month! You’ve been doing an outstanding job, and I can’t wait to see how much you’ll achieve in the future. Keep up the great work!
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Barlow Swimmer of the Month
Zia has been swimming at Barlow for two years, and her love for the sport continues to grow every day. She brings dedication and heart to every practice, working hard both in and out of the pool. What truly sets Zia apart is her courage. Even when she feels nervous, she pushes herself to try new events and step outside of her comfort zone. She always has a positive attitude and encourages her teammates! Congratulations Zia on being MHA’s Swimmer of the Month for July! I’m so proud of you and can’t wait to see what you do next!
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Gresham Swimmer of the Month
Ally Stadler is one of our most dedicated and consistent swimmers in Gresham's White Squad! Every day Ally shows up, she is ready to go and challenges herself. It has been a joy to see her strength and technique improve. Ally loves breaststroke, and it shows with how much work she has been putting into it. I can't wait to see Ally race and continue to improve!
Congratulations Ally on being Gresham's Swimmer of the Month! We look forward to seeing what great things you can achieve!
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I wanted to take time to tell you all why we have our Seth Dawson Swim Meet.
The meet was established to honor the life, passion, and enduring legacy of Seth Dawson, a beloved swimmer and coach for Mt. Hood Aquatics (MHA).
Seth was a cornerstone of the MHA community - first as an athlete, then as a coach - whose energy, dedication, and care shaped the lives of countless swimmers. Seth was a part of MHA for many years and in 2010 he returned to Washington to continue his coaching career for the Valley Aquatics Swim Team and Kentlake High School Swim Team.
In 2012, just before the high school state swimming championships, Seth tragically passed away. The loss was profound. The athletes who had trained under him, inspired by his memory, chose to dedicate that meet to Seth - swimming with everything he had taught them and everything he believed in.
As a team, Mt. Hood Aquatics has hosted the memorial meet not only to remember Seth, but to keep his spirit alive in the pool, on the deck, and in the hearts of every athlete who competes.
Everyone who swam for Seth has grown up and are not currently swimming in our program, but there are a few of us left who were around when Seth was still here. I, Coach Erin, worked with Seth at the Reynolds pool. There were many evenings that we would sit and talk about life, swimming, and how we would conquer the world! Seth wasn’t just a coach - he was a friend, a mentor, and a daily source of inspiration. After all these years, Seth is still the reason I show up every day for my kids. His example taught me how to lead with integrity, compassion, and purpose. He is deeply missed, but through this meet and the community he helped build, his legacy continues.
~ Coach Erin
| | | | Howard Jones was an exceptional and well-loved official for Oregon Swimming for many, many years. He spent countless hours helping out at Mt. Hood Aquatics. He was a wonderful kind-hearted man and we loved him here at Mount Hood. Thus we renamed our main swimming meet in his memory. | | |
As you can see, Mt Hood Aquatics, which was formed in 2009 when two teams joined together, has a rich history of coaches and swimmers. Our mission statement "excellence in swimming, excellence in life" is a true testament to the two coaches that we have honored at our Howard Jones meet and this coming weekend at our Seth Dawson meet. Later in our 2025-2026 swim year, we will introduce you to another special man named Mike Popovich. We will be hosting and participating in a meet in his name as well. Mike Popovich designed, built and managed the Mt Hood pool. He coached swimming in the 1960's!
Our swim team has built a legacy in the water, and now you're a part of our history as we continue to make you a part of our story too!
| | MHA's Travel Team Can Drive | |
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Our Senior Travel Team is already preparing for their December meet in sunny Arizona. This will be our 4th year attending FAST Lights in Tuscan, Arizona. This is such a fun meet for our swimmers and really helps to set the pace for our winter training schedule in preparation for short course State Championships in March.
The team will be collecting cans at our July meets. If you would like to donate cans to this great cause, please let us know. You can ask our coaches or clerk-of-course, or email anyone of us on the Board and we can take those cans off your hands.
Also, coming soon - our Senior team will be hosting a car wash/ can drive at the Dairy Queen in Troutdale (behind Mt Hood Community College).
26814 SE Stark St. Troutdale. Date and time will be announced soon!
We thank you for helping support our Senior Travel Team.
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Happy Birthday Coach Dennis!
This Friday, July 11!
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July 11 - Coach Dennis
July 12 - Eliot, red
July 17 - Elizabeth, white
July 18 - Adelynn, red
July 20 - Aubrey, white
July 25 - Sawyer, silver
July 26 - Sienna, senior elite
July 27 - Elodie, white
July 28 - Jax, white
July 30 - Rosealena, white
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Dennis Baker
bakeswim@yahoo.com
Lara Stone
larastonecoaching@gmail.com
Vicki Antonyuk
truevicktoria1@gmail.com
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Erin Bradley
erinbradleymha@gmail.com
Felipe Mairena-Flores
felipel.mairenaflores@gmail.com
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Jenny Pribyl, President
trixieandlovey@yahoo.com
Nicole Kotsovos, Vice President
nicolekotsovos@comcast.net
Michael Johnson, Officials/Safe Sport
mjjohnson1965@hotmail.com
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Dena Henry, Secretary
henryfam@outlook.com
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Upcoming Events
July 11-13: Seth Dawson Meet
July 17-20: NW Summer Sectionals
July 24-27: LC OSI 11 & Over Championships
August 11th, 4:30-6:30: Swim-a-Thon Pool & Pizza Party
**Please visit our website for more details and to sign up to volunteer.
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Please like & follow us on social media!
Use the buttons below or search @mhaswimteam for our NEW accounts!
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