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This past weekend the state of Mississippi held their MHSAA Championships at the Courthouse Aquatic Center. The state of Mississippi has two different classes that schools can fall under, thus creating more opportunities for students to battle for the top spots on the podium.
On the girls side:
Madison Central took first on the women’s side, collecting a total of 140.5 points. Second went to Northwest Rankin High School and their 81.5 points, while third went to Tupelo who collected a total of 77 points.
Shelby Hale of Desoto Central High School neared the Class 2 record of 1:56.56 set in 2011 by Lacey Russell in the 200-yard free with a time of 1:58.34. Addison Russell of Northwest Ranking High School finished second overall with a time of 2:01.05, while Kailey Skinner of Oak Grove High School was third with a 2:02.39.
The girls in the 50-yard free kept it close with the top two finishers stopping the clock .03 seconds apart. Kyjanna Webber of Harrison Central High School got her hand on the wall first, stopping the clock at 24.34. Paige Kessler of Madison Central High School settled for second and a 24.37, while teammate Maddie Howell grabbed third with a 24.75.
Webber continued her prowess in the sprint free events by claiming the win in the 100-yard free with a time of 53.02 nearing the Class 2 record of 52.45 that she set in 2013. Kessler finished second overall with a time of 53.62, while Walker Fortenberry was third with a 53.73.
AK Mitchell of Northwest Rankin turned in a swift 58.62 to claim first in the 100-yard fly, making her the only athlete to swim under the 1-minute mark. Mitchell neared but was unable to break the Class 2 record of 58.26 set in 2014 by Cris Roberts.
First in the 100-yard back went to Gabrielle Ivey of Desoto Central high school who stopped the clock at the 1:00.71 mark. Mitchell and Kalin Tang of Madison Central tied for second with a 1:01.36.
The 200-yard IM went to Jessica Blanchard of Madison Central and her final time of 2:11.06. Blanchard also collected a win in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:08.72.
Addison Russell finished first in the 500-yard free with a time of 5:20.75.
On the boys side:
Tupelo collected an astonishing 133 points to win the meet, while Clinton High School finished second with 70.5 points. Oak Grove High School was third with 59 points.
Blaise Vera of Clinton High School demonstrated his prowess in the sprint freestyle events winning both the 50 and 100 free. Vera turned in a swift 20.77 to not only win the 50 but to also replace both the Class 2 and MHSAA records. The former Class 2 record was a 21.64 set in 2014 by Ashton Robertson, while the state record was a 21.58 set in 2010 by Clark Garner.
Vera continued his success in the 100 free posting a final time of 45.84, also replacing the Class 2 and MHSAA records. Both of those records were formerly held by Stetson Lamb of Hernando High School from 2014.
While Vera uprooted some of Lamb’s old records, he set about setting some new records of his own. Lamb’s first win of the day came in the 200-yard free when he finished in a blazing 1:39.18 beating the state record by over two seconds and the Class 2 record by over six seconds. The state record was originally set in 2010 by John Servati and was a 1:41.95, while the Class 2 record was a 1:45.30 set by Jackson Kojima in 2012.
Later in the meet Lamb delivered a swift 57.15 to take down both the state and Class 2 records in the 100 breaststroke. His time replaces the 58.12 set by Matthew Nichols in 2010 and the Class 2 record of 58.15 set by Jacob Nichols in 2014.
Noah Young of Clinton High school continued the record-setting trend with three new records of his own. Young turned in a time of 1:54.24 to finish first in the 200 IM and to set new state and Class 2 records. The former state record was a 1:56.25 set by Jack Smithson in 2014, while the Class 2 record was a 1:56.40 set by Colton Fremont in 2012.
Young delivered a quick time of 52.40 to lower the Class 2 record in the 100-yard back but was just shy of the state record.
Alex Miller of Oak Grove High School posted a final time of 51.43 in the 100-yard fly. His time was quick enough to replace the state record of 51.75 set by J.T. Jones in 2001. His time also eclipsed the Class 2 record of 52.54 set by Fremont in 2011.
