SPMS Awards
Club Swimmer of the Month Award
Nomination Link
Coaches, use the following link to nominate your swimmers:
SPMS Club Swimmer of the Month Award Nomination link
Selection Criteria
1. The purpose of this award is to give coaches the opportunity on a monthly basis to recognize SPMS swimmers on their team based on the criteria in item 2 below. This is purely a tool that coaches may choose to take advantage of if they feel it would benefit their club and/or swimmers. No coach is obligated to take advantage of this opportunity.
2. The criteria for the award are as follows:
a. The individual was a member of local swim club and SPMS during the month under consideration.
b. The swimmer accomplished something outstanding in the opinion of the coach either at swim workouts or a swim competition. Examples could be a swimmer who attended the most workouts that month, swam butterfly stroke for the first time, dove off the blocks for first time, finally learned a flip turn, perfected his or her breathing, swam the greatest distance that month, swam a first open water swim of any form, swam in first swim meet, broke a personal best time that was difficult to accomplish, exhibited outstanding team spirit in some special way, etc.
3. Selection:
a. Selection must be made by club coach. Only a coach can nominate a swimmer to receive this award.
b. Club coach or coaches can submit a maximum of one name per month per swim club.
c. Coach should submit name of Masters Swim Club, name of swimmer, month and year of award, and a brief statement of recipient’s accomplishment.
d. Coach should use link provided on SPMS website for submission.
e. Submission should be made by end of each month in order for recognition to appear the beginning of new month on website.
4. Recognition:
a. Club Swimmer of the Month shall be honored by the club coach who will be emailed a certificate to be printed out and presented to the recipient at appropriate and convenient time and place determined by the coach. It could be on deck before swim practice, at a team/club social, a club banquet, a holiday party, etc.
b. Recognition will also occur on SPMS website and newsletter.
5. Participation:
a. Coaches are encouraged to participate as appropriate to situation.
b. Coach may submit a deserving swimmer each month or just occasionally as he or she desires. All submissions are welcome and voluntary.
6. General Goals:
a. Encourage all swimmers, especially those who may not participate in reward generating programs such as swim meets. It is an opportunity to reward fitness swimmers and new swimmers who perhaps have never won a ribbon or medal ever before.
b. Recognize continued improvement in all aspects of swimming.
c. Promote inter-club awareness and unity by posting accomplishments on the SPMS website and newsletter.
d. Attract and encourage new members by sharing information on Club Swimmer of the Month on the website to show that Masters Swimming is more than just competitive swimming.
e. Retain and recruit Master Swimmers.
f. Improve swimmer morale.
g. Increase practice attendance.
128 Recipients
| Swimmer | Club | Coach | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2024 | |||
| Nicole Hale | Rose Bowl Masters | Chad Durieux | Learned Breaststroke. Best Coach Ever |
| December 2023 | |||
| Carol MacPherson | Long Beach Grunions | Kenny Brisbin | Completed her first interval training set |
| Kathy Olivares | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Hard Work at Practice and Meet Performance |
| Stephanie Knauer | Long Beach Grunions | Kenny Brisbin | Completed her first interval training set |
| November 2023 | |||
| Yuya Terada | Rose Bowl Masters | Chad Durieux | 10k Champ |
| October 2023 | |||
| Erica Dunbar | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Completed First Ironman Race |
| Jennifer Finotti Sheppard | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Fastest Female Swim at Ironman Arizona |
| Maria Calhoun | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Exceptional Improvement post surgery |
| Max Chen | Rose Bowl Masters | Chad Durieux | Dedication, attitude |
| September 2023 | |||
| Bruce McCleave | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Swam first OW - 1 Mile - 4th Place at OW National |
| Emil Halchev | Rose Bowl Masters | Chad Durieux | Great Attitude in workouts and open water! |
| August 2023 | |||
| Becky Cleavenger | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance 2023 LCM Regional Champs |
| Diane Smith | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance 2023 LCM Regional Champs |
| Julio Cienega | Rose Bowl Masters | Chad Durieux | Attitude, Helpful great teammate |
| Oscar Medel | Long Beach Grunions | Michael Dirlam | Shows enormous drive and perseverance at practice |
| Owen Lubow | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance 2023 LCM Regional Champs |
| Ryan Cox | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | SW Zone High Point & 10 Team Records |
| Stephanie Peacock | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | SW Zone Meet Performance & 6 Team Records |
| July 2023 | |||
| Anastasia Kurteeva | West Hollywood Aquatics | Kiley Ames | At IGLA, Anastasia won 10 gold medals |
| Christina Yen | Rose Bowl Masters | Chad Durieux | Attendance, Attitude and commitment |
| Eric Weber | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Great performances in workout and the Relay Meet |
| Sally Packard | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Great performances in workout and the Relay Meet |
| June 2023 | |||
| Helen Cox | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Butterfly Improvement at SCY Nationals |
| Niki Stokols | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Exceptional Performance at SCY Nationals 7 for 7 |
| May 2023 | |||
| Davis DeFontes | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | May LC Swim Meet and Practice Performance |
| March 2023 | |||
| Elizabeth Olsheim | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Hard work, consistency, and meet performance. |
| Sharon Dill | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Hard work, consistency, and meet performance. |
| January 2023 | |||
| Alena Zikova | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | 100% attendance during Polar Bear Challenge 27/27 |
| Isabel Zipple | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | 100% attendance during Polar Bear Challenge 27/27 |
| Rosemary Price | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | 100% attendance during Polar Bear Challenge 27/27 |
| October 2022 | |||
| David O’Brian | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Improvement, hard work, and commitment |
| David O’Brien | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Improvement, Hard Work, and Commitment |
| August 2022 | |||
| Jocelyn Atkinson | Long Beach Grunions | Kenny Brisbin | Attended first meet in 30 years |
| March 2022 | |||
| Antonio Escobar | SilverPeak Performance | charles mcpeak | Dedicated volunteer w/passion for swimming & SPP |
| January 2022 | |||
| Doug Kajiwara | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance in One Hour Swim. |
| Marc Fontaine | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Swimmer and Technique |
| Mike Matthews | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance in One Hour Swim. |
| May 2021 | |||
| Calley Prezzano | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Swimmer, Best Attendance |
| Jeff Sullivan | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Swimmer and Technique |
| Lisa Bove | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Swimmer |
| January 2021 | |||
| Jessica Korner | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Great Effort, Consistency, and Improvement |
| Zeyad Ramadan | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Workout Performance, Consistency, Weight Loss |
| November 2020 | |||
| Jon Frankel | Mission Viejo Masters | Diana LaMar for Mark Moore | Positive, Cheerful, Dedicated, and Caring |
| October 2020 | |||
| Emily Christiansen | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Workout Performance, Consistency, & Hard Work |
| Kendrea Rivera | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Hard Work & Consistency at Workouts |
| September 2020 | |||
| Mary Kailihiwa | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Swimmer, Best Attendance |
| August 2020 | |||
| Lisa Inouye | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Swimmer Most improved Triathlete |
| January 2020 | |||
| Luke Claus | Cal Lutheran Masters Swimming | Mark Hontas | Extra effort, pool leadership and clock repair |
| December 2019 | |||
| Brendan Hickey | Southern California Aquatic Masters | DMITRY BANOV | Amazing effort and great results |
| James Tobin | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Performance at the SCM Champs -4 team records |
| Marci Baun | Southern California Aquatic Masters | RADA OWEN | Amazing effort and great results |
| November 2019 | |||
| George McNee | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Swam 1st meet in 30+Years! Swam 3 events! |
| Holly Watkinson | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Competed in First Swim Meet ! 100 Breast 100 Free |
| Vanessa Pryor | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Swam in 1st Swim Meet. 50 & 200 Free,100 Breast |
| October 2019 | |||
| Bennett Katz | Cal Lutheran Masters Swimming | Mark Hontus | For excellent attendance and pool leadership |
| August 2019 | |||
| Anthony Galvez | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | 1st National Championship! |
| Jonathan Kretz | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Performance at Nat'ls and Winning Sharkfest Tahoe |
| Lindsay Holland | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | 2 Top Ten Finishes at Nationals |
| July 2019 | |||
| Ray McLaughlin | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Best Attendance |
| April 2019 | |||
| Brent Buff | Las Vegas Masters | Victor Hecker | Positive attitude! Work ethic! Team spirit! |
| March 2019 | |||
| Anthony Galvez | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | Sub-Minute 100 and 500 Qualifier for Nationals |
| Anya Kolesnikoff | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | At her 1st Swim Meet EVER: 2 First Place Finishes! |
| Jarvis Marlow | Las Vegas Masters | Victor Hecker | Encouraging teammates, making jokes, training hard |
| Stephen Ball | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Very Fast Times at Matt Biondi Meet |
| Summer Serpas | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Completed 100 miles (GTD) for the first quarter |
| Walter Butler | Las Vegas Masters | Victor Hecker | Driving 91 yr old teammate to workout daily! |
| February 2019 | |||
| Ariel Baugh | SilverPeak Performance | Charles Mcpeak | At RB did sub min on the 100 y free! |
| Natasha Kopp | SilverPeak Performance | Charles Mcpeak | PRs in in all her events & F 50-54 age group high point at RB SCY 2019 |
| December 2018 | |||
| Christian Barion | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Clay Evans | relay ironman and hero |
| Clive Edwards | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | All American 50 Breast and Top Ten Indiv and Relay |
| Rachel Pinto | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Clay Evans | for keeping swimming and keeping improving |
| October 2018 | |||
| Katie Adler | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | “PRed” her 2 miles at La Jolla 10 mile relay |
| August 2018 | |||
| Brian McAteer | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Clay Evans | won age group at zone championships |
| June 2018 | |||
| Jennifer Weiderman | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performances & Best Times ! |
| May 2018 | |||
| Becky Cleavenger | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance at 2018 Spring Nationals |
| Chris Cook | The Claremont Club | Tyler Hauck | Continues to improve in all strokes |
| Doug Kajiawara | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Rossella Pescatori | workout ethics, great results and team support |
| Thomas Heydorff (Gus) | Aquatic Training Center Masters | Janice Akins | Focused training to reach goals |
| April 2018 | |||
| Spencer Allen | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | -3 sec.100 Free & Dedication in practice |
| March 2018 | |||
| Gary Ladinsky | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | 1st Masters Swim Meet at 70! Wins 50 Free ! |
| Matt Berkman | Mission Viejo Masters | Jeff Taylor | Rediscovering himself |
| Yvette K Mankerian | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | Great attitude with improved technique resulting in faster times and completion of her 1st triathlon! |
| January 2018 | |||
| Dustin Morris | Long Beach Grunions | Kenny Brisbin | Swam 1st 800 free nonstop at practice |
| Mansi Kinworthy | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | From Fearful Swimmer to Fearless Swimmer |
| November 2017 | |||
| Brendan Herlihy | Mission Viejo Masters | Jeff Taylor | Brendan is ready to put his training to the test. |
| October 2017 | |||
| Chris Fowler | Long Beach Grunions | Kenny Brisbin | Attended his 1st meet in 25 years |
| September 2017 | |||
| Kyung Lee | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Tragedy to Triumph at 2017 Malibu Triathlon |
| Tom Einstein | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Clay Evans | swimming 2 and sometimes 3 workouts a day! |
| August 2017 | |||
| John Cambell | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Practice and meet performance, and team support |
| July 2017 | |||
| Blanca Garcia | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | Seven ribbons in 1st swim Meet High Point for SPP |
| Brian McAteer | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Clay Evans | For swimming fast and being a great teammate |
| Bruce Walton | Mission Viejo Masters | Audrey Viers | Positive attitude and competitive spirit |
| Grahm Scott | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | 1st sub minute 100 yard in practice |
| Keith Robinson | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Dropped over 26 seconds in his LCM swims in 2017 |
| June 2017 | |||
| Blanca Garcia | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | High Point for SPP at her First Swim Meet! |
| Diane Smith | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | USMS 70-74 National Champion 2 Mile Cable Swim |
| Kris McPeak | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | My Runner Wife Has Become a Swimmer! |
| May 2017 | |||
| Ana Fradkin | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Rossella Pescatori | For organizing the team and relays at Nationals |
| Elizabeth Olsheim | Mission Viejo Masters | Tina Sanderson | Discipline in practice and competitive spirit! |
| April 2017 | |||
| Beata Konopka | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Outstanding Performance at 2017 Spring Nationals |
| Marlow Peterson | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Improvement, Performance, and Commitment |
| March 2017 | |||
| Gary Meisels | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Swimming Breakthough Freestyle 100 in under 1:25 |
| Jennifer Batcheller | Mission Viejo Masters | Jeff Taylor | Exceptional effort and concentration at practice |
| Tom Reichhardt | SilverPeak Performance | Charles McPeak | 1st Meet Block Start Flip Turn - New to Swimming |
| February 2017 | |||
| Jim Santy | Mission Viejo Masters | Tina Sanderson | Outstanding Competitive Drive and Spirit |
| Michael Chang | Southern California Aquatic Masters | Rossella Pescatori | At every meet and rallies others |
| Niki Stokols | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | 1st Time 400 IM, 200 Fly & 200 Breast, Rose Bowl |
| January 2017 | |||
| Carolyn Kluss | Mission Viejo Masters | Tina Sanderson | Continued Improvement and Team Leader |
| Denise Hearst | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Winner of Open Water Series and Postal 400 Kick |
| November 2016 | |||
| Duran DesBaillets | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Consistent Workout Effort and Marked Improvement |
| October 2016 | |||
| Jim Elowitt | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Great Improvement in Speed and Endurance |
| Ken Umholtz | Ojai Masters | Rick Goeden | Dedication and Meet consistency |
| September 2016 | |||
| Elaine Eddinger | Long Beach Grunions | Kenny Brisbin | Excellent Improvement |
| Renee McDonough | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Commitment to Technique & Positive Team Spirit |
| August 2016 | |||
| Patty George | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Improvement,Team Support, and Outstanding Effort, |
| July 2016 | |||
| Roger Anderson | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Most Improved Open Water Swimmer |
| May 2016 | |||
| Becky Cleavenger | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Excellent performance SCY Nat's Ten Top Ten Swims |
| April 2016 | |||
| Karin Wegner | Las Vegas Masters | Vic Hecker | Helped LVM win SPMS Regionals! |
| March 2016 | |||
| Christopher Lee | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick-Reno | Displaced by SoCalGas Co. Never missed Workouts |
| January 2016 | |||
| Niki Stokols | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Consistent Effort, Improvement,Team Support |
| December 2015 | |||
| Leslie Monroe | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Excellent Improvement in Swimming and Triathlon |
| November 2015 | |||
| Vickie Olney | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Excellent improvement and Dedication to Workouts |
| October 2015 | |||
| Suzanne Baird | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Consistent Effort, Attendance and Improvement |
| September 2015 | |||
| Claire Scullion | Mission Viejo Masters | Tina Sanderson | Consistent, trains smart and a great attitude |
| Lou Silbermann | Desert Olympic Tritons | Ben Hobbins | 89 years old young, 'Spirit Of Tritons' SMPS Icon |
| Mark Losinski | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Remarkable time improvements 1st Top Ten USMS time |
| August 2015 | |||
| Mark Losinski | Conejo Valley Masters | Nancy Kirkpatrick Reno | Mark has dropped dozens of seconds on this times |
| Tami Barrera | Mission Viejo Masters | Mark Moore | Workout Attendance & Daily Doubles twice a week |