Blue Marlins Swim Team IL : Coaches & Directors

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Darby S Brtva

Head Coach

Coach Darby has been with the Buehler Blue Marlins since 2000. She took over as the Head Coach Summer of 2005. She is ASCA Level Three certified and Level Four Educated. Coach Darby graduated from Hoffman Estates High School where she swam and ran track. She then moved on to Harper College for one year where she continued to swim and qualified to Nationals, she also ran track. Coach Darby then attended Eureka College where she graduated with B.S in Physical Science (chemistry & physics) with secondary education endorsement. She continued to swim and qualify for Nationals. She even placed in the top 8 in the country achieving All-American Status. Her senior year she was named captain of the swim team. Coach Darby also was on the pom pon squad, wrote for the school newspaper, was president of her dorm, named to the dean’s list, a member of Sigma Zeta (math and science honor fraternity), and graduated with honors. After college, Coach Darby returned to Hoffman Estates High school where she taught chemistry and physical science and also coached the girls’ swim team. After Hoffman, she moved on to Hersey High school where she coached the pom pon squad. After teaching for a few years, Coach Darby moved to the private sector and became a chemist. After 8 years of being a chemist, she retired when she got married to Dave Brtva. Coach Darby & Dave welcomed Alexander John Brtva into the world on September 9^th, 2008 and welcomed their second child William Franklin Brtva on March 27, 2012.

Coach Darby currently coaches the Striped and Black Groups. She had the honor of coaching the Blue Marlins’ first ever-national qualifier and currently has coached 10 National Qualifiers. She also has had the honor of coaching the first ever girls’ 8 & under District Champs and the boys’ 8 & under Area Team Champs both in 2008.. She also has the honor of coaching several district and area champions through out the 12 years she has been with the team. One highlight of her career is that in 2008-2009 season, Coach Darby was one of 5 finalists for YMCA National Swim Coach of the year. Another was having three of her swimmers recruited to swim collegiately.

Fun Facts Coach Darby Provided for us:

My favorite swimmer past or present is….. This is hard, I have had the chance to meet so many swimmers Pablo Morales, Anita Nall, Diana Munz, Gary Hall Jr., Rowdy Gaines. They were all so down to earth and nice. I think Janet Evans, Amy Van Dyken, and Jenny Thompson influenced me during high school and college. Now that I am older, I am impressed by Dara Torres. I think there are many great swimmers out there, but the ones that really stand out are the ones that are great roles models. They are someone I would want my team to look up to. They make good choices in and out of the water.

My favorite movie…. Do I have to pick one??? I am a huge Disney fan. I really like Finding Nemo and Chicken Little. But on the flipside… I love horror movies!!! I like being scared!!! I love musicals and I will never miss a chance to watch Gone With the Wind.

My favorite past time…. If I am not in the water swimming myself, I am surfing the web, playing a computer games, or spending time playing with Zander & Will.

My favorite food… tough choice… I love deep dish cheese pizza, McDonald’s French fries, and Chinese food.

Quote… Good, Better, Best. Never let it rest. Till the good is better, and the Better is Best!

My favorite book…. I really don’t have a lot of time to read, but when I do… it is normal Dean Koontz… it is supernatural scary type of stuff.

My favorite sport other than swimming… I like baseball, Go White Soxes!!! I like football, in fact I have won my mom’s work football pool for the past 5years.

My favorite cartoon character… Snow White

Favorite group/singer… I like all types of music.

Kim Leidolf

Coach

Coach Kim started swimming lessons at the age 4 because her mom couldn’t swim. At age 9, she joined her first swim team, Waubonsie White Waters in Aurora. At 12, she joined the Naperville YMCA, where she had many good and a few bad coaches. At 15, she started teaching swim lessons in the summers and continued through college. At 16, she was one of the inaugural members of the Maverick Swim Team in Naperville. Coach Kim swam Varsity all four years at Waubonsie Valley High School in Aurora and also played Water Polo. Her senior year she qualified for state in a Free Relay. Coach Kim continued to swim in college at North Central College in Naperville for only three years because she graduated early with a degree in accounting. She also earned her CPA in 2000. Coach Kim continued to swim after college on a masters team and that is how she got her first coaching job with the Great White Sharks in Wheaton, a developmental team. She coached for them for 5 years and then moved to the BR Ryall YMCA in Glen Ellyn. That same year Coach Kim married her husband George. For 5 years, she was head of the White and Green groups and moved many swimmers up to competitive levels to earn Y state and Age Group cuts. Upon having their second child, Allison in October of 2009, Coach decided she wanted to be closer to home with her husband and their son George, who was born in December of 2007, so she interviewed here at Buehler.

Fun Facts Coach Kim Provided for us:

1. Favorite swimmer – Tom Jager and Janet Evans

2. Favorite Movie – There are so many, but with the kids we have watched a lot of Disney lately, so I have to say Aladdin, Finding Nemo and Toy Story. I also like Pirates of the Carribean.

3. Past time – I love to play with the kids and relax on the couch with a warm blanket.

4. Favorite food – I love any kind of pasta especially my mom’s homemade spaghetti and meatballs.

5. Quote – Don’t really have one of these.

6. Favorite book – I like to read all the James Patterson books.

7. Favorite sport not swimming – I like to watch football on Sunday’s.

8. Favorite cartoon character – If I have to pick one, I guess it would be Goofy, because he is so funny.

9. Favorite Group/Singer – Pink, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Counting Crows

Darius Wolny

Coach

David Heckelsmiller

Coach

Coach David has been a part of the Blue Marlins coaching staff since 2010. Taking to the water competitively at an early age, Coach David was a USA swimmer and specialized in breaststroke events. In High School, he earned four Varsity letters and served as team captain his Senior season. Following graduation in 2008, Coach David spent a year studying engineering at the U.S. Naval Academy before transferring to the University of Illinois at Chicago to pursue a Bachelor's of Science in Kinesiology. He recently graduated in May 2013. A regular attendee at academic conferences and coaching clinics, Coach David constantly and ferociously seeks to expand his working knowledge to better serve his athletes. Coach David is Level 2 certified by the American Swimming Coaches Association, a certified YMCA spin instructor, and has been certified as a personal trainer by the American College of Sports Medicine.

In his free time, Coach David is a competitive cyclist and multisport athlete. In September 2013, he will be racing in Ironman Madison.

Fun Facts Coach David Provided for us:

My favorite swimmers... Adam Heckelsmiller. Dave Scott and Dara Torres round out the top 3.

My favorite movies... Breaking Away, Ben Hur, Ridley Scott's contributions to the sci-fi canon, Enter the Dragon, signature Quentin Tarantino

Quotes...

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

-Theodore Roosevelt

“To commit to something grand, something that may not be possible, to say “I am going to do it,” even when you may not be able to: That is dreaming. To actually set about the task of living up to your commitment, to begin doing, to tenaciously pursue what you said you would achieve: That is working on the dream.”

-Pete Vordenberg

My favorite books... Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, The Old Man and the Sea, The Count of Monte Cristo, Moby Dick

Sarah White

Coach

Coach Sarah started swimming her freshman year at Palatine High School where she swam the 100 Backstroke, 200 IM and on both Freestyle Relays. Coach Sarah also played water polo while in High School. At age 17 Coach Sara got her SCUBA certification. She has been a Swim Instructor and lifeguard since early 2002 and joined the Blue Marlins Staff in Summer 2011.

Fun Facts Coach Sarah Provided for us:

Favorite swimmer: Dara Torres, she’s training for 2012. Isn’t a million medals in the past twenty Olympics enough? Alright, only 12 medals in the past five Olympics. She is the oldest member of the Olympic team and still is one of the fastest people in the pool. Truly inspirational woman.

Favorite movie: Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, I was blown away, Michael Apted did a great job.

Favorite past time: Reading, I read entirely way too much. Other than being reclusive with written word I tend to be spending time with my sister, who is one of few who can make me smile at any given moment.

Favorite food: all I’m going to say is: Don’t diss the veggie burger. When I allow myself to eat meat I go for a bowl of chili.

Quote: “Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish. ”Albert Einstein. Who also said, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Favorite book: Anything written by Orson Scott Card. I’m also a Star Wars geek, I’ve read quite a few of them as well. I like to read books in a series, I thoroughly enjoyed both the Hunger Games series by Susanne Collins and Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare (I have not read book four yet). As of late I have been reading a lot of unpublished, writer’s community, online works.

With all that said, my all-time favorite book is more of a novella called The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis. He was also the man that wrote the Chronicles of Narnia series that inspired my favorite movie.

Favorite sport (other than swimming): Water Polo ranks pretty high on my ‘other’ list. Archery and Sailing are close seconds. I learned to sail when I was seven and could single hand a small craft by the time I was eight. Archery took a bit longer for me to warm up to, it became my winter sport. Palatine did not have an archery club or team so I shot through the park district. Both my sister and I have our own bows and my mother shoots too. My father an I shooting other, more explosive, things. A few years ago we shot clays with a shotgun and I loved it.

Favorite cartoon: Jim Hawkins from Treasure Planet. Great movie, I recommend it.

Favorite group/singer: I have a few, music is one of those things that I could on for a while about. I’ll keep it to a short list: Manafest, Destroy the Runner, John Mark McMillan, We Came As Romans, David Crowder Band, and The Classic Crime. I like many different types of music it throws most for a loop. If you like something (other than country) I probably like an equivalent band.

Random Fact: I am a small group for eight seventh graders, all of whom I love and adore. Even when they text me in the middle of the night. And I'm still taller than two of them! that's pretty good for being so ridiculously short.

William R Mathe

Coach

Coach William has been swimming since he was 11 years old with the Blue Marlins Swim team. He was a YMCA Area finalist in 2008 in the 50 and 100 yard freestyle. He holds high school records in the 50 and 100 yard freestyle. He also was captain of his high school swim team in 2007-2008 and 2010-2011 seasons. He was a YMCA Long Course National Championship qualifier in the 50 meter freestyle in 2010 and 2011. He began working at Buehler as a swim coach in 2009. He currently is attending Valparaiso University, where he is majoring in meteorology. He is continuing is swimming career at Valpo specializing in sprint freestyle and breaststroke.

Fun Facts Coach William Provided for us:

My favorite swimmer past or present is….. Konner Scott.

My favorite movie…. I am a big Star Wars and Star Trek fan. In general I am a big sci-fi fan.

My favorite past time…. When I am not at the y working or at school, I usually am watching TV, playing video games with my friends, or if it is spring I might go on a tornado chase.

My favorite food… I am a swimmer. I will eat basically anything.

Quote… There are many quotes that I really enjoy, it is really hard to pick one for so many of them mean so much. It really depends on how I am feeling to which quote I like the most.

My favorite book…. I don’t read a lot but my favorite would have to be the Harry Potter series.

My favorite sport other than swimming… I enjoy watching football on Sundays for I am a big San Francisco 49ers fan. I also enjoy watching NASCAR.

Favorite group/singer… I enjoy rock n’ roll, like AC/DC, Iron Maiden, and Guns n Roses. I also like some modern rock like Black Stone Cherry, Disturbed, Papa Roach, Skillet, and Three Days Grace.

Carly E Lagerquist

Coach

Coach Carly began her swimming career at the young age of 8. She had no interest in swimming competitively, but her friends convinced her it would be a fun way to spend their summer at the country club. After successfully completing the summer season, Carly decided to continue the sport throughout the year. Her newfound passion for swimming lead her to join the McHenry County Piranhas. During her first season at the MCY, she qualified for both districts and state. She continued to compete for her country club team and the Piranhas until she transferred to the Buehler Blue Marlins at age 14. Under the guidance of Coach Darby, Carly qualified for LC Nationals in several freestyle and butterfly events. In 2010, Coach Carly began working at the Buehler as a lifeguard and swim coach. Throughout the seasons, she has attended swim instructor trainings, swim clinics, and swim conferences in hopes of expanding her swimming knowledge. She is currently working towards a degree in International Business and Management.

Fun Facts Coach Carly Provided for us:

Favorite swimmer: Natalie Coughlin and Ryan Lochte. Their passion for swimming is contagious to say the least. I had the pleasure of going to watch them swim at the 2008 Olympic Time Trials. They both had such a drive while swimming, yet were humble after each race they won.

Favorite movie: I enjoy watching the Chronicles of Narnia, One Night with the King, all of the movies from the Avengers (Iron Man, Captain America, etc.). I also enjoy the Batman movies. Oh, and can’t forget the classic movie Finding Nemo!

Favorite past time: Going up to Lake Geneva for the weekend with the family. Whether it was relaxing on the beach, or cruising on the boat, we always had a good time up on the lake.

Favorite food: I enjoy any type of pasta or chicken. (You're not a true swimmer if you don’t like pasta ;-)). Some of my favorite dishes are Pot Roast, Pad See Eew (Asian Cuisine), or Spinach Roloto.

Quote: “Worry looks around, sorrow looks back, faith looks up.” Or, “Perseverance, our greatest glory lies not in never falling, but rising every time we fall.” On a side note, I find Albert Einstein's quote rather amusing, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Favorite book: Any type of book that I find intriging. I will read almost any genre besides "sappy" love novels - those put me to sleep.

Favorite sport (other than swimming): I play beach volleyball. I also enjoy dancing and surfing.

Favorite cartoon: I find pleasure in watching almost any Disney movie (including all the characters.) However, I have always been a fan of Cinderella.

Favorite group/singer: My favorite groups/singers are always changing. Most likely if you play a song from any genre (besides rap or heavy metal) I will like it.

Random Fact: 1) Dogs are one of my weaknesses, particularly Rottweilers. 2) I can “conversationally” speak Chinese: Wõ huì shuō yìdiānr Zhōngwén.