The Texas Age Group Swimming Championship (TAGS) meet is the state championship meet for swimmers 14 & under. The Short Course meet is held in early March while the Long Course meet is held in late July. It is one of the premier age group meets in the USA and therefore the top age-group meet in Texas. Swimmers who successfully qualify and compete in this meet are generally those that go on to greater success in High School and even collegiate swimming later in their career. Qualifying times are established by the Texas Swimming Association every fall based on participants in previous years. You must have the qualifying times to enter the meet.
What is "STAGS"?
This is the South Texas Age Group Swimming Championship meet. They are held in mid February for short course season, and mid July for the long course season. Many South Texas teams have this as one of their biggest meets of the season and for many age group swimmers it will be. The qualifying time standards are established by South Texas Swimming and you must have them in order to compete. They are based on the number of participants in the meet each year and can change prior to the start of following year. Swimmers who do not achieve the STAGS time standards may choose to participate in the Junior Olympics, which are held each spring for short course, and each summer for long courseWhy do we have to volunteer our time to the team?
What is Short Course? What is Long Course?
Short Course is training or competing in 25 yard or meter pools, while Long Course is training or competing in 50 Meter Pools. Most indoor pools in the USA are set-up as 25yard pools and so most of the times younger athletes become familiar with early on are the short course yard (scy) times. Since these meets are held in the winter months, our Short Course competition season starts in late August or September and culminates with championship meets in February & March. The Long Course competition season begins in April and continues through July and August depending on the highest-level championship meet a swimmer can qualify.
What equipment does my swimmer need?
Swimmers need goggles, cap, and a suit for practices. A mesh bag to carry all of it is helpful. If a swimmer competes, a BLACK SUIT and a Lone Star TEAM CAP will be required. Any black suit will suffice. Team caps are available for sale from the LSAC's Head Coach. Please label all equipment with the swimmer's name!
Why do we have to volunteer our time to the team?
There are many expenses related to running a year round swim program, including coaches' salaries, pool rental, and enormous pool heating costs, among other things. We require Volunteer Hours on a sliding scale, based on how many hours per week you/your child swim(s). Volunteer hours are required for fundraising activities. If we eliminate fundraising, we will have to raise our training fees, which are currently very competitive among local swim teams.