On Saturday and Sunday, March 10-11, the Bluffton area will have 27 swimmers competing at the Northwest Ohio YMCA-League Championships at Bowling Green State University. They will compete with more than 800 swimmers from the Northwest Ohio league that includes 18 teams from lower Michigan and northwest Ohio.

All of these swimmers are on the Bluffton Sardines summer swim team, but for winter swim, they swim with the Lima YMCA Barracuda Team or the Putnam County YMCA.

April Dorman of Bluffton is the head coach for the Lima team and Emily Broadman of Bluffton is one of the assistant coaches.  Bob Verb of Bluffton is one of the assistant coaches for Putnam.

“The summer swim season is short, running June and part of July. To really develop as a swimmer you need more time in the water. Winter season runs September through mid-March. 

We see so much improvement from season to season,” said Verb who is the head coach of the Sardines summer team with Dorman serving as part of the assistant coach staff. 

“Having 27 young Sardines joining winter programs is exciting and a signal that Bluffton swimming has a strong future.”

Lima YMCA Team
Jackson Bowlus, 9-10 boys
Allison Diller, 11-12 girls
Kari Diller, 8 and under girls
Xavier Diller, 9-10 boys
June Essinger, 9-10 girls
Levin Essinger, 8 and under boys
Eli Lehman, 9-10 boys
Jacob Lehman, 11-12 boys
CJ McCall, 11-12 boys
Colton McGuire, 8 and under boys
Kailey McGuire, 8 and under girls
Logan Nussbaum, 13-14 boys
Sydney Nussbaum, 11-12 girls
Lyla Schneck, 8 an under girls
Aaron Ungashick, 8 and under boys

Putnam County YMCA Team
Ella Armstrong, 11-12 girls
Landon Armstrong, 11-12 boys
Owen Armstrong, 8 and under boys
Lilly Dagani, 9-10 girls
Jenna Downey, 9-10 girls
Kelsey Mohr, 8 and under girls
Makenna Mohr, 9-10 girls
Izzy Stechschulte, 11-12 girls
Ally Stechschulte, 9-10 girls
Camden Verb, 8 and under boys
Riley Verb, 11-12 boys
Rory Youngpeter, 11-12 girls