San Mateo swimmer Parker Del Balso set for Junior National Championships

Del Balso’s season with BAC concludes this week with a trip to the 2022 Speedo Junior National Championships at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatic Center in Irvine. She is scheduled to compete in two events at the annual 18-and-under meet featuring a national pool of amateur standouts, with her swim in the women’s 200-meter back Wednesday and the 100-meter back Thursday.

“I’m excited,” Del Balso said. “A little bit nervous.”

That seems a little bit out of character for Del Balso, who typically exhibits nerves of steel in the pool. Hence the CCS championship, followed by an All-American performance at the CIF Swimming & Diving Championships in Clovis, where she stormed the podium with a third-place finish in the 100-yard back.

With her first career appearance in the Junior National Championships, Del Balso is in a prime spot to put herself on the map heading into the recruiting cycle of her senior year. The incoming varsity senior has yet to announce a college commitment.

“Going to my biggest meet that I’ve ever been to before,” Del Balso said. “Definitely the most competitive meet I will ever have gone to. … I’ve already had two weeks of competition leading up and those meets went really well. I’m really happy with how I did.”

In addition to the Futures meet — where she finished with a time of 1 minute, 4.43 seconds in the 100-meter back, hundredths of a second off her personal record of 1:04.36 — Del Balso also enjoyed a banner week at the California/Nevada Speedo Sections in Roseville at the Roseville Aquatics Complex, leaning on her background as a distance specialist from her youth swimming days to claim a first-place finish in the women’s 800-meter freestyle.

“I wouldn’t say it’s my best (event),” Del Balso said. “But I started off as a big distance swimmer, swimming the mile, and it just kind of evolved into middle distance. … I definitely enjoy it. It’s like a love-hate relationship.”

While this will be Del Balso’s first trip to the Junior Championships, she qualified for the primetime event last summer — albeit just one week prior at the 2021 Futures Championships — but opted not to attend, citing timing and travel concerns.

“I’m just excited to see these people swim,” Del Balso said. “And to be among their level of competition is just really cool.”

Del Balso is set to return to San Mateo for her senior year, having already made her mark on the public-school varsity program. As a junior, she broke four program records, including two relay marks in the 200-yard medley relay and the 400-yard free relay, as well as two individual marks in the 500-yard free and the 100-yard back.

“I am super excited,” Del Balso said about her upcoming senior year. “Just looking to continue having fun. I think senior year will definitely be a little more emotional. But I’m looking forward to spending that last season with the people that I love and really enjoy it, and hopefully just have some good swims too.”