Marlins Swim To A National Championship In A Familiar Lane

MOUNT KISCO, NY — The Boys & Girls Club of Northern Westchester Marlins swim team kept a more than two-decade-long winning streak intact with their latest victory at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America National Swimming Championship Meet this month.

Members of the BGCNW Marlins swim team, 125 swimmers in all, made their way to St. Petersburg to compete in the annual Boys & Girls Clubs of America National Swimming Championship. The competition spanned over 3 days in a 22-lane, 25-yard outdoor pool at the North Shore Aquatics Complex. Clubs from all over the U.S. were invited to participate.

The Marlins team has held the title of BGCA National Champions without a break since 2000. This year, they took home their 23rd consecutive victory. The team scored 12,000 points overall — a total of 3,000 points more than their previous average. In two of the competition events the entire championship final was comprised of Marlins swimmers.

Erik Nadecki, a junior at Horace Greeley High School, broke three meet records, including the Boys Senior 100 Breast, the 200 Individual Medley and the 400 Individual Medley.

Ryan Sykes and Kelsey Grayson also won the individual high-point awards for 13-14 boys and girls respectively. Connor McHugh and Lucy Walker were the high-point winners for senior boys and girls.

The Marlins swim team is ranked Top 100 in the nation and received USA Swimming Bronze Medal Status in 2021. In September 2022, Senator Peter Harckham presented the team with a proclamation in recognition of these achievements.

"I am proud of the progress the team has made the past few years," Marlins head coach Zachary Hojnacki said. "Our recent success is a function of the culture of excellence we are developing together with the coaching staff, athletes, parent group, and Boys & Girls Club leadership. It is an extraordinarily unique situation here at the Boys & Girls Club, and I believe we are very fortunate to be a part of such a supportive organization that’s solely focused on providing opportunities for youth in our community."

Hojnacki joined the BGCNW family in 2018. He swam for the University of Arizona from 2009-2012, qualifying for the 2012 Olympic Trials in the 200 breaststroke, and the 2013 World Championship Trials in the 100 breaststroke.

But, it isn't just his athletic prowess that helps him to lead this team of champions.

In 2017, Hojnacki earned a PhD in Educational Psychology from the University of Arizona, where he studied the role stress and mindfulness play on athlete performance under pressure. Hojnacki said he is as passionate about developing a well-rounded, self-sufficient person in and out of the pool as he is about winning.