Teammates cheer on Jasmine Liu of Esperanza as she swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
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The meet records at the Foothill Swim Games spin a fascinating history lesson for Orange County aquatics.
Names like Michael Cavic (Tustin), Kaitlin Sandeno (El Toro), Grant Shoults (Santa Margarita) and Ella Eastin (Crean Lutheran) evoke memories of when the meet attracted many of the fastest swimmers — including several future Olympians — and teams from around the county.
The meet served as a rite of passage, of sorts, for those standouts and others such as Aaron Peirsol (Newport Harbor), Amanda Beard (Irvine), Jason Lezak (Irvine), Janet Evans (El Dorado) and Darren Ward (Sonora). And the list goes on.
Swimming fans watch the action in the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Andrew Salladin of Esperanza swims in the boys 200 yard freestyle final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Teammates cheer on Chloe Hickman of Foothill as she swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Teammates cheer on Jasmine Liu of Esperanza as she swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chloe Hickman of Foothill swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chloe Hickman of Foothill swims in the girls 100 yard butterfly final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jasmine Liu of Esperanza swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jasmine Liu of Esperanza swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jasmine Liu, left, of Esperanza and Chloe Hickman of Foothill congratulate each other after competing in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Tate Fitzgerald of Crean Lutheran swims in the boys 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Allison Mann of Villa Park swims in the girls 100 yard butterfly final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Chloe Hickman of Foothill swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Andrew Teh of Crean Lutheran swims in the boys 100 yard butterfly final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jasmine Liu of Esperanza swims in the girls 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Ryley Yoo of Santa Margarita swims in the boys 200 yard IM final at the 49th annual Foothill Swim Games at Foothill High School in North Tustin on Saturday, April 15, 2023. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
With the 50th anniversary of the Foothill Swim Games scheduled for next season, the meet is looking to increase the number of the teams on the starting blocks, Foothill girls coach Jen Massey said.
“We are going to definitely look at what other meets will be happening at the same time (next year),” said Massey, an alumnus of Foothill who swam for the Knights. “That’s the problem we had this year, and our spring break is different than other spring breaks.”
This past weekend, the Foothill Swim Games competed against a major club meet in Mission Viejo and high school meets at Mt. SAC and Northern California.
Northwood, University and Troy were among the teams at Mt. SAC while Santa Margarita and Mater Dei sent swimmers to Atherton for the California Catholic Challenge.
“It’s always hard when you do (the meet) over Easter break,” said Santa Margarita co-coach Rich Blanc, who had swimmers at Foothill, Atherton and the club meet.
“But Easter is March 31 next year so it shouldn’t be an issue. I do like (the meet) right before taper. Two weeks before league (finals), this is the right time for it. It just coincided with our Easter vacation this year.”
Blanc said other factors could be affecting attendance.
“I’ve heard from a lot of my coaching brothers and sisters that busing has been an issue this year,” he said, “because of the shortage of bus drivers.”
The Mt. SAC meet, however, was packed. Nearly 1,900 swimmers registered to race.
“It is kind of nice to have a little bit of competition to push (the swimmers),” said Esperanza girls coach Annette Nielsen, whose team won a team title at the Foothill Swim Games. “Hopefully, next year we’ll be here again and get a little more participation from other teams.”
