Blacksburg Boys, Monacan Girls Repeat at Virginia Class 4 State Championships

Photo Courtesy: Swim Monacan Twitter (@SwimMonacanHS)

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The 2020 Virginia Class 4 State Swimming and Diving Championships took place on Friday, Feb. 21 at the SwimRVA Pool in Richmond, Va.

A total of three Class 4 records were broken during the meet:

Salem’s Nick Lawson – 200 free (1:38.71)
Salem’s Nick Lawson – 500 free (4:24.87)
Blacksburg’s Heidi Treser – 1-meter board (394.25)

Blacksburg used their impressive depth to win the overall team title on the boys’ side with 303 points ahead of Salem (209) and Monacan (189). The girls of Monacan also repeated as team champions, finishing with a score of 276 ahead of Blacksburg (250) and Jamestown (195).

Click HERE for full results and team scores.

BOYS MEET

Top 5 Team Scores:

1. Blacksburg – 303
2. Salem – 209
3. Monacan – 189
4. Jamestown – 178
5. Jefferson Forest – 164

Grafton began the meet as the team of Alexander Franklin (23.18), Kostas Mateer (26.95), Patrick Franklin (24.49), and Jaz Paraham (22.14) combined to win the opening 4×50 medley relay in 1:36.76, slightly ahead of runner-up Monacan’s 1:36.98. Franklin later won the 100 back after powering home in 50.03.

NC State commit Lawson cruised to first in the 200 free, stopping the clock in 1:38.71 as the only swimmer in the field to crack the 1:40-barrier. His time broke Brennen Doss’ Class 4 record of 1:39.26 set in 2018. The senior also dominated the 500 free, winning by nine seconds in a time of 4:24.87 to break Doss’ Class 4 mark of 4:28.55 from two seasons ago.

Dominion’s Andrew Blusiewicz won a tight 200 IM battle, touching the wall in 1:51.34 for the victory ahead of Menchville’s Cole Younger who was second in 1:51.84. Younger late got redemeption in the 100 breast; he won in 57.10 to out-touch Blusieqicz’s 57.34

Park View’s Kyle Johnson splashed-and-dashed his way to the gold medal in the 50 free, finishing in a quick 20.88 to just miss the Class 4 record by .04. Soon after, the senior dove back in the pool and flew to the top of the podium in the 100 fly after clocking in at 49.89 as the only swimmer to dip under the 50-second marker.

Jamestown’s Austin Smith sprinted his way to the top spot in the 100 free, finishing with a time of 46.06 to edge out runner up Justin Lee (46.69) of Broad Run. Blacksburg freshman Eli Babcock dove to first on the one-meter board, posting a final score of 398.45 to best the field by over 50 points.

Salem’s Ben James (21.96), Logan DeWalt (21.25), Boon Fleenor (21.79), and Lawson (21.03) joined forces to win the 4×50 free relay in 1:26.03, just .03 shy of the Class 4 record. Fleenor (48.12), James (48.45), DeWalt (47.45), and Lawson (45.88) again combined to win the 4×100 free relay in 3:09.90, just off the Class 4 mark.

GIRLS MEET

Top 5 Team Scores:

1. Monacan – 276
3. Blacksburg – 250
3. Jamestown – 195
4. Menchville – 194
5. Dominion – 171

Dominion’s Ashley Bogushefsky (28.09), Natalie Schlemmer (30.31), Rachel Schlemmer (25.13), and Kelli McMillan (24.28) began the girls’ meet by winning the opening 4×50 medley relay in 1:47.81. Treser dove to the top of the podium for the second-straight season after posting a final score of 394.25 points on the 1-meter board, bettering her own previous class record of 387.25 set last season.

Monacan’s Angela Ritchie led the charge in the 200 free, dropping over three seconds from her prelims swim to win the event in a final time of 1:52.07. Soon after, she was back in the pool to successfully defend her state title in the 100 back after powering home in 56.40.

Menchville’s Isabel Marstellar stopped the clock in 2:05.07 to win the 200 IM, just ahead of Tuscarora’s Shelby Gerving who was a close second in 2:05.67. Gerving later found herself with the gold medal after getting her hands to the wall the fastest in the 100 breast with a time of 1:04.93.

Monacan’s Kelsey Peel splashed-and-dashed her way to the gold medal in the 50 free, posting a final time of 24.03 for the win to out-touch Jamestown’s Wylio Hanson (24.05) by .02. Peel proved her sprint talent by also winning the 100 free in a swift 52.19, just edging out Great Bridge’s Sophie Knepper (52.20).

Grafton’s Kylie Tankard flew to the top of the podium in the 100 fly, touching the wall in 55.16 to win the race by well over a full second. Monacan’s Jessie Wallin led the way in the 500 free as the first of only the top three swimmers in the field to break the five-minute barrier, doing so in a winning time of 4:56.88.

Menchville’s Ann Chappell Ellington (24.46), Delaney Younger (24.65), Erin Wojtkowski (25.29), and Marstellar (23.73) won the 4×50 free relay in 1:38.13. Monacan’s Ritchie (53.88), Shannah Dillman (54.11), Wallin (53.33), and Peel (52.88) clinched their team title by winning the 4×100 free relay in 3:34.20.

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