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New 2011-12 Team Info Posted
Latest Bulletins
- 1/29/12 - **CURRENT QUALIFIERS FOR CHAMPIONSHIP MEETS UPDATED**
We have updated the lists of current qualifiers for the 2012 IL Swimming Regional Championships, the 2012 IL Swimming Senior Championships, and the 2012 IL Swimming Age Group Championships to each respective meet page. Please speak to your group coach if there are any questions or you spot any errors. - 1/29/12 - **FEBRUARY CALENDARS ONLINE**
The practice calendars for all of our practice groups (Aurora & Lewis) for the month of February can be found on the Calendars link above. - 1/29/12 - **RESULTS POSTED**
Results from the NTSC Tri-State Challenge and the 14&U Distance Time Trial have been posted to the TM Online link. You can find these results under the Events/Meets tab above. - 1/11/12 - **ENTRIES UPDATED**
There have been numerous entry updates to a few of our upcoming meets. Check out the meet pages for the HOSC Bee My Valentine Classic & SCST / TYR Chicagoland Championships for complete details. 
12/16/11 - **WELCOME TO OUR NEWEST ACADEMY BULLET**
We have a new member of the Bullets today. We want to welcome Jackson "Jax" Crosby Capen. Jax was born at 9:19am today and weighed in at 7 lbs. 2 oz. Mom and son are doing great. Congratulations to Coach Todd, Coach Kelly, and Brayden on this new addition to their family. We are sure he will be in the water in no time. Feel free to send your well-wishes to Coach Todd and Coach Kelly (todd.capen@gmail.com).- 12/8/11 - **WHEATON CHALLENGE & NIKE CHALLENGE UPDATES**
There have been a number of updates to the Wheaton Team Challenge and Nike Challenge meet pages. Please take a look at the updated warm-up and start times for both meets, particularly in the AM sessions. Feel free to email Coach Todd if you have any questions. 
12/1/11 - **AT&T WINTER NATIONALS BEGIN TODAY**
AT&T Winter Nationals begin today in Atlanta, Georgia. The Bullets have three swimmers competing at the event - Mimi Schneider, Pauline Kaminski, and Molly Coonce. Members of the USA National Team and many collegiate teams will be swimming among the 1000+ athletes at the meet. Good luck ladies and let's swim fast!. You can follow the entire meet the AT&T Winter Nationals meet page, including a live web cast and Live Results.
11/30/11 - **IHSA STATE MEET RECAP**
A recap of the 2011 IHSA Swimming & Diving State Championships has been posted to our News page. Congratulations to all the Lady Bullets on a great season and we are excited to have you back in the water with us.- 11/24/11 - **THANK YOU BULLETS FAMILIES**
As we approach Thanksgiving, the McLaren family would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to the Bullets family. We appreciate all of the support as Eric encounters challenges with his health. It is comforting to know that our boys are surrounded by extraordinary coaches, wonderful friends, and unbelievably supportive parents. Special thanks to all those that contributed to our move to the new house. Our boys have formed lifelong friendships at the pool. On Thanksgiving Day, we will reflect on all of the many blessings we have been given.
Sincerely,
Eric & Kim McLaren - 11/17/11 - **REVISED ENTRIES POSTED**
There were a few errors in our Nike Challenge entry update posted yesterday. Thanks to a few Gold swimmers for pointing them out. The corrected version has now been posted to the meet page. We have also posted the 2011 SCST / TYR Long Course Time Trial entries to it's meet page. 
11/16/11 - **AMY CHAPMAN AT PARAPAN GAMES**
As many of you know, our very own Amy Chapman is competing for Team USA at the Parapan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. Amy was selected to the squad based on her performances last spring. Below are some recaps provided by Team USA of the Event so far. As we get more updates, we will post them here. Keep up the fast swimming Amy!
Update #1 Update #2 Update #3
11/15/11 - **ANOTHER BOY - NEW BULLETS TEAM MEMBER!!**
We want to send a special welcome the newest member of the Academy Bullets Swim Club. Jack Henry Laurich was born today at 1:05pm and weighs in at 9 lbs 1 oz. Both mom and baby are both doing great. Congratulations to Mike, Colleen, Ben, Patrick, and Daniel from all of us on this addition to your family. Feel free to send your well-wishes Coach Mike's way (mlaurich@gmail.com).- 11/3/11 - **WHEATON & NIKE CHALLENGE ENTRIES POSTED**
Entries for both above meets have been posted to the Wheaton Team Challenge and 2011 Nike Challenge meet pages. If there are any changes to the Wheaton entry, you must email Coach Todd prior to 9:00pm on Thursday, November 3rd. If there are any changes to the Nike Challenge, you must email Coach Todd prior to 9:00pm on Monday, November 7th. There were a number of families who selected both events (which are on the same weekend), and therefore were entered into both meets. If you would like to remove one of your meet entries, you must email Coach Todd prior to the entry deadline for that specific meet. Absolutely no changes will be made after the entry deadlines above. Specific event questions must be directed to your group coach. **UPDATE** Entries for both meets have been updated with all changes received as of 8:45am on Thursday, November 3rd.
Wheaton Team Challenge 2011 Nike Challenge - 11/3/11 - **SCST 8&U ENTRIES AVAILABLE**
We have posted a number of entries today. The entries for the 8&U meet have been posted to our 2011 SCST / TYR 8&U Classic meet page. If there are any changes to the entry, such as a swimmer needing to be added or removed from the meet, you must email Coach Todd prior to 9:00pm on Thursday, November 3rd. Absolutely no changes will be made after that time. Specific event questions must be directed to your group coach. **UPDATE** Entries have been updated with all changes received as of 8:45am on Thursday, November 3rd.
2011 SCST / TYR 8&U Classic 
10/31/11 - **HAPPY HALLOWEEN**
Happy Halloween to all Academy Bullets swimmers and families. No Practice tonight for all groups except Senior & Elite Teams (Aurora). Both groups will swim together from 4:00-6:00pm at Marmion Academy. This practice change has been posted to the group calendars above. Be safe and we will see you all on Tuesday!- 10/25/11 - **ILLINOIS SWIMMING AWARDS BANQUET**
The Illinois Swimming Awards Banquet was held on October 8th and recognized the top athletes within Illinois Swimming. Many Bullets swimmers were honored for their accomplishments over the past 12 months. A complete list of Bullets swimmers can be found on the News page. Special congratulations go out to Mimi Schneider on being awarded as the Female Breakthrough Swimmer of the Year. Coaches Todd Capen and Mike Laurich were awarded as the Co-Age Group Coaches of the Year. Way to go Bullets swimmers and coaches! More info can be found on the News page and the Illinois Swimming web site. - 10/25/11 - **CHAMPIONSHIP MEET RECAPS POSTED**
Full recaps on our 2011 long course championship meet season have finally been posted on the News page of the web site. We sincerely apologize for the delay in getting this information posted on the site and will do a better job in the future of posting these recaps in a timely manner. Congratulations to everyone on an outstanding 2011 long course season. 
10/18/11 - **DECK PASS PROGRAM AND APP**
As we sent out to Bullets families last week, we have begun using the USA Swimming Deck Pass program for this season. Swimmers can earn virtual patches for a variety of things. Our first patches were sent out to swimmers this past week who achieved lifetime best times in all their races at the 2011 Speedo Fall Open. Details on the program can be found on the document below. Swimmers and parents should also view the video tour on the USA Swimming Deck Pass page. We hope all the Bullets swimmers take a few minutes to set up their own Deck Pass to be a part of this program. **NEW** The mobile app for Deck Pass is now online. Go to your app store for more info.
Deck Pass Program Information
10/18/11 - **USA SWIMMING SCHOLASTIC ALL-AMERICA TEAM**
USA Swimming recently announced the 2010-2011 Scholastic All-America Team. The Academy Bullets have 5 members of this year's team. Congratulations to Nicholas Bessler, Rachel Burke, Amy Chapman, Molly Coonce, and Katelyn Katsafanas on their accomplishments in the pool and the classroom. The Scholastic All-America Team is made up of high school student-athletes who have a grade point average of 3.5 or higher and who have achieved the required time standard in a single event. For complete details on the program, please visit the USA Swimming web site.
9/20/11 - **BULLETS SELECTED FOR NCSA MEET IN JAPAN**
This past summer season, Mimi Schneider and Sean Lehane were selected as members of the NCSA All-American Team that would travel to Japan to compete against the top 18&U swimmers in their country. Their selection was based on their performances at the USA Swimming Junior National Championships. The meet is being held Sept. 24-25. Sean departed this morning for the 10 day event in Osaka, Japan. Unfortunately, Mimi was unable to travel at the last minute due to sickness. General details can be found on the NCSA Junior Nationals page. We will continue to post more on the meet throughout the week. Congratulations to both of you on this tremendous honor and good luck to Sean in Japan.
9/20/11 - **APPAREL FORMS AND FITTING DATES**
Swimmers Edge, our apparel provider, will be visiting all of our practice locations beginning tonight. All families should have received an email last week with apparel forms and fitting information attached. These forms can also be found below. Swimmers Edge will be at our pools from 5:30-6:30pm on the following dates: Tues. 9/20 at Marmion, Wed. 9/21 at Vaughan, and Thurs. 9/22 at Lewis. Please read through all the equipment and apparel requirements for swimmers and contact your group coach if you have any questions.
Aurora Apparel Form / Lewis Apparel Form- 9/13/11 - **MEET SIGN-UP DEADLINE APPROACHING**
The meet sign-up deadline for the 2011 Speedo Fall Open is fast approaching. Swimmers must be signed up by September 16th. This is a team hosted event, and all swimmers should plan on attending. To register for this and other meets throughout the season, simply click on the Meet Sign-up link on the left hand side of the the home page and follow the step by step instructions. Please Contact Us if you have any questions. - 9/2/11 - **BULLETS TRYOUT RESULTS NOW AVAILABLE**
Thanks to all the swimmers who attended our tryouts over the past week at both our Aurora and Lewis team locations. You all did an amazing job. Complete tryout results can be found on the Registration Information page. All swimmers/families at tryout should have also received an email with this information. Please read through everything carefully and Contact Us if you have any questions.
2011-2012 Bullets Tryout Results - 9/1/11 - **SEPTEMBER CALENDARS POSTED **
The practice calendars for all Aurora and Lewis groups for the month of September have been posted to our Calendars page above. We recommedn families check the practice calendars often for any changes to the regular practice schedule. - 8/31/11 - **2011-2012 MEET SCHEDULE POSTED**
The complete meet schedule for the 2011-2012 swim season has been posted to the Meet Schedule page of the web site. We have also posted a pdf download of this schedule on that page for families. Detailed meet pages for each event should be completed in the next 24-48 hours. As always, this schedule may change depending on our acceptance into these meets from the host clubs. - 8/14/11 - **REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR RETURNING SWIMMERS ONLY**
Registration is now open for returning swimmers from this past LC season. Those swimmers and families that did not compete for the Bullets this summer must attend our tryouts to be placed on the team and your registration will not go thru at this time.
For Returning Families - Please visit our Registration Information page for all details regarding the 2011-2012 season. Recently added items include: General Practice Schedules, Group Placement, Fees & Payment Info, Important Start Dates for Fall 2011, Tryout Information, & Stroke Clinic Information. Please contact your group coach if you have any questions about placement.
- 8/14/11 - **TEAM INFORMATION FOR NEW SWIMMERS**
Any swimmer who did not compete on the Bullets this past summer must tryout for the team. Tryouts will be held at the end of August at both Aurora and Lewis locations. Once tryouts have concluded, those swimmers making the team will be notified and directed through the new swimmer registration process. Complete details on the team can be found on the Registration Information page of the web site. Once there, please visit the New Swimmers section. Feel free to Contact Us if you have any questions. - 8/13/11 - **NATIONAL & JUNIOR NATIONAL RECAP**
A complete recap of the US National and Junior National meets will be coming soon. The Bullets had a memorable week in Palo Alto, California. Hopefully, many of you were able to follow us online via the USA Swimming site, as well as our own Facebook and Twitter pages. The Bullets achieved personal best times, team records, junior national finalists, and even 4 Olympic Trial cuts. Awesome job to everyone! More details coming soon. - 8/11/11 - **AGE GROUP CHAMPIONSHIPS RECAP**
A complete recap of the Age Group Championships (performances only) will be posted shortly. The Bullets had a great showing and finished 2nd overall in the meet. As for the running of the event, there are not enough words of praise to go around. We received numerous emails from clubs applauding the meet and in particular our volunteers. Thank you to everyone for stepping up and making this one of, if not the, most memorable Age Group Championships in history. Way to go Bullets!
- 7/1/11 - **JULY 4TH PRACTICE INFORMATION**
There will be practice for some of our groups on Monday, July 4th. Bronze, Silver I, & Silver II Teams (Aurora & Lewis) will have no practice on the holiday. Gold & Senior Teams (Aurora & Lewis) will swim from 7:00-9:00am @ Marmion. Elite Teams (Aurora & Lewis) and any Senior Team swimmer tapering for Senior Champs will practice from 9:00-11:00am @ Marmion.
- 7/1/11 - **CALENDARS UPDATED**
The practice calendars for all groups have been updated through July 20th. Please speak to your group coach if you have any questions.
- 6/15/11 - **SCST ENDLESS SUMMER ENTRIES POSTED**
The preliminary entries for the SCST meet have been posted to the 2011 SCST / TYR Endless Summer Time Trial meet page. Please look over them carefully. All entry changes must be emailed to Coach Todd prior to 9:00pm on Thursday, June 16th. No changes will be made after that time. 
6/15/11 - **KYLIE SCHALZ WEB SITE INFORMATION**
For those that want to follow the progress of Kylie Schalz, both Bullets families and others, please visit Kylie's CaringBridge web site. A link can be found below. The entire Bullets staff wishes the best for the Schalz family and is rooting for Kylie to get well soon. We all love you very much and want you to know you are in our hearts.
Kylie Schalz CaringBridge Web Site
- 5/25/11 - **WEST CHICAGO PRELIMINARY ENTRIES POSTED**
The preliminary entries for the West Chicago meet have been posted to the 2011 West Chicago Summer Splash meet page. Please review the entries carefully, as there are a lot of swimmer in the meet. Email Coach Todd if there are any changes. Changes must be made prior to 8:00am on Friday, May 27th. **UPDATE** Entries have been updated with all changes received as of 1:00pm on Thursday, May 26th.
- 5/18/11 - **UPDATED DANIEL JAEKEL ENTRIES - PLEASE READ**
We were notified by the host cub on Monday evening that all team's entries must be adjusted to fit within the IL Swimming timeline rules for this weekend's meet. New entries for all swimmers are posted on the 33rd Annual Daniel Jaekel Chicago Classic meet page. Please read through all the information carefully and speak to your group coach if you have any questions.
- 5/16/11- **COLLEGE RECRUITING PRESENTATION TOMORROW**
Our annual college recruitment informational meeting will be held tomorrow evening, Tuesday, May 17th. The meeting will be in the Koch Theater at Marmion Academy. All high school students are strongly encouraged to attend with their parents. We will have a guest speaker, Greg Earhart, at the presentation to talk to families on the recruitment process from a coaches perspective and his web site. Please email Coach Bill if you have any questions. 
4/18/11 - **AMY CHAPMAN MAKES PARAPAN AMERICAN GAMES**
Congratulations to our very own Amy Chapman on being named to Team USA for the 2011 Parapan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico (November 18-28, 2011). This is Amy's first national team. All of the coaches are extremely proud of this accomplishment for Amy. Be sure to congratulate Amy if you see her around the pool.
- 4/13/11 - **BANQUET SIGN-UP CLOSES TOMORROW**
Sign-up for the 2011 Bullets Awards Banquet closes tomorrow, April 14th at 11:59pm. You can still sign-up by visiting our "2011 Awards Banquet Sign-Up" under the Events/Meets tab above. This is a great year-end event to celebrate the accomplishments of all or athletes over the past year. All swimmers are invited and the cost is only $14.00 per person. Food will be provided for everyone and all swimmers in attendance will receive an award. There will special recognition of our Seniors and some team award winners. At the end of the banquet, we will have a number of prizes to raffle off with your speeding tickets. Email Coach Kelly if you have any questions. We hope to see all of you there!
- 4/13/11 - **APPAREL FITTING NEXT WEEK AT MARMION & LEWIS**
There will be an apparel fitting at Marmion and Lewis next week for the Spring Summer season. Swimmers Edge will be at Marmion Academy from 6:00-7:00pm on 4/20 and Lewis University from 5:30-6:30pm on 4/21. Apparel order forms can be found below for both Aurora and Lewis groups. Please notice that there are certain items each swimmer must have for meets and/or practice depending on their group. Contact Coach Mike (Lewis) or Coach Todd (Aurora) if you have any questions.
Aurora Apparel Order Form Lewis Apparel Order Form
- 4/13/11 - **PRACTICE CHANGES FOR THIS WEEK**
There are a few practice changes for some of our groups on Friday and Saturday this week. These practice changes have been emailed out to all families and posted on each group's practice calendar page. Please speak to your group coach if you have any questions. - 4/9/11 - **BULLETS TRYOUT RESULTS POSTED**
Tryout results for our 2011 Spring/Summer season have been posted below and on the Registration Information page of the site. Listed on this sheet are all the swimmers from both Aurora and Lewis that have made our team. Swimmers who have made the team must email Coach Kelly Capen to confirm they plan on swimming this season. Those who have made the team and chosen not to swim should email Coach Todd Capen to inform us of their decision not to participate. Please Contact Us if you have any questions.
Bullets Tryout Results - Aurora & Lewis Included - 4/7/11 - **PRACTICE CALENDARS UPDATED FOR ALL GROUPS**
The practice calendars for each group have been updated through the end of April. We are in the process of re-designing our Calendars section of the web site (adding sections for Aurora & Lewis groups), so there may be slight periods where the Calendar pages are unavailable. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and will try and work on the page during non-peak hours. - 3/28/11 - **SPRING/SUMMER PRACTICE SCHEDULES POSTED**
Our general practice schedules (Aurora & Lewis) for the 2011 spring/summer season have been posted to the Registration Information page of the web site. You can find them under both the "Returning Swimmers" and "New Swimmer Tryout Information" sections on that page. Please note, these schedules are tentative pending facility approval. Contact Us if you have any questions. - 3/24/11 - **NEW ILLINOIS SWIMMING STATE RECORDS**
There were 4 state records set by Bullets swimmers at championship meets this past month. At the Illinois Age Group Championships, Mimi Schneider set new state marks in the 13/14 Girls 50 Free (23.11) and 100 Fly (55.00). Both of these records were over 13 years old. Also at the Age Group Championships, the 13/14 Girls 400 Medley Relay team of Annie Gosselin, Pauline Kaminski, Mimi Schneider, & Kate Canfield set a a new state record (3:52.98) - eclipsing the previous time set by the Bullets last year by over 2 seconds. Way to go girls! During the NCSA Junior Nationals, Mimi Schneider continued her record breaking performances by establishing a new state record in the 13/14 Girls 100 Free (50.41). - 3/24/11 - **NCSA JUNIOR NATIONALS RECAP**
16 swimmers competed for the Academy Bullets at the 2011 NCSA Junior Nationals in Orlando, Florida. The team had a great showing and finished 19th among 200+ teams at the event. A complete recap of the meet can be found on the News page. The TM Online and Records pages have been updated with results from the meet. 
3/24/11 - **BULLETS WIN AGE GROUP CHAMPIONSHIPS**
Congratulations to all the Bullets swimmers who competed at the 2011 SC Age Group Championships at UIC last weekend. The Bullets had a fantastic showing and won their 11th Age Group Team Championship, setting many team and state records in the process. A complete recap of the meet can be found on the News page. The TM Online and Records pages have been updated with results from the meet.
