COLLEGE PARK, Maryland, February 29. The University of Maryland-College Park was the place to be Feb. 25 to see the top high school swimmers in the state competing in two divisions.
Division 3A/2A/1A
No state records were bettered in the 3A/2A/1A portion of the meet, but Oakdale junior Evan Kolovich came within 4-hundredths of bettering the 100 fly mark of 52.28 that was posted in the 4A/3A meet.
Poolesville scored 301 points to capture the team trophy on the boys side. Poolesville was led by sophomore Xavier Laracuente. He took the 100 free in 48.85 and–with teammates senior Matthew Liu, junior Jake Rubenstein and sophomore Alex Lin–grabbed the 400 free relay title with their 3:24.13. C. Milton Wright took second with 211 points, with sophomore Kyle Paxton nabbing the 100 breast in 1:01.21.
Third place went to Middletown, who put together 184 points just ahead of Oakdale's 102. Middletown 's Zachary Lilley ended his senior season with a 22.48 triumph in the 50 free. Lilley also anchored Middletown's winning 200 free relay with juniors Matthew Walchuck, Eric Darby and Andrew Pressly (1:32.89). The Oakdale quartet of sophomore Chris Lamont, juniors Karl Sassell and Kolovich and sophomore Timmy Krajewski combined for a 1:44.55 victory in the 200 medley relay.
Harford Tech senior Brandon Carestia doubled in the 100 back (53.98) and 200 IM (1:59.78). Mitchell Reynolds, a sophomore at Frederick, posted a winning 4:54.84 in the 500 free. Northwood's Austin Moore closed out his high school career with a 1:48.50 first-place time in the 200 free.
C. Milton Wright's 315.5 points put them at the top of the podium stand to receive the girls team trophy. Poolesville's 283 points were good for second, followed by Oakdale (2420, Frederick (135) and Walkersville (117.5).
Two swimmers grabbed two event titles apiece. Northwood senior Chelsea Vanderweele took charge of the 200 free (1:53.88) and the 100 back (59.70). Diana Hanson, a junior at Poolesville, posted times of 1:07.51 in the 100 breast and 2:11.08 in the 200 IM.
Easton's Brooke Bielecki captured the 50 free in 25.08. Poolesville freshman Dorit Song nabbed the 100 free with her 53.88. Another freshman, Philippa Rogers from Oakdale, topped the field in the 500 free (5:19.87). Aberdeen's Cora Summerfield, a junior, emerged victorious in the 100 fly with her 1:00.41.
C. Milton Wright's team of senior Taylor Nesbit, freshman Lauren O'Mara, senior Danielle King and sophomore Gabby Jordan combined for a 1:54.82 win in the 200 medley relay. Senior Katie Gallagher, freshman Julia O'Mara, Jordan and senior Rachel Flint put together a 1:44.38 for a second C. Milton Wright victory in the 200 free relay. Poolesville's quartet of freshman Lindsay Knapp, junior Cynthia Jih, Hanson and Song nabbed the 400 free relay in 3:44.72.
Division 3A/4A
It would be safe to say that Walter Johnson senior Garrett Powell had a spectacular meet. He had a hand in setting three of the 16 state records that were set during the 3A/4A meet. Powell posted new individual marks of 4:27.83 in the 500 free and 51.79 in the 100 back and, with junior Barry Mangold, senior Ryan Whitescarver and junior Chris Root, set a 3:12.25 in the 400 free relay.
Nine other individuals set state records: Sherwood junior Anna Kolanowski (200 free, 1:50.79); Gaithersburg seniors Ellen Anderson (500 free, 4:54.96) and Tyler Pham (200 IM, 1:56.41); Wootton sophomore Kristina Li (100 back, 57.02) and junior Austin Dickey (100 breast, 57.77); Walt Whitman juniors Audrey Gould (100 breast, 1:06.48), Charlotte Meyer (200 IM, 2:05.01) and Patrick Scordato (100 fly, 52.28); and Bethesda sophomore Graham Baird (200 free, 1:43.01).
Record-setting wasn't limited to individual events, either. Walt Whitman's 200 free relay team of senior Reia Tong, sophomore Sarah Kannan plus Gould and Meyer combined for a 1:37.81; senior Victoria Kuhn took over Kannan's spot for a second Walt Whitman standard in the 400 free relay (3:35.05).
Besides Walter Johnson's 400 free relay record for the boys, Wootton's quartet of freshman Daniel York, Dickey with seniors Kenneth Ke and Michael Fu combined for a 1:39.02 record in the 200 medley relay. Winston Churchill's group of seniors Odon Soevik, Samuel Lee and Harrison Gu, with junior Austin Cole, broke the 200 free relay mark with their 1:28.27.
Walt Whitman's Tong and Mangold both doubled in the 50-100 free. Tong put up times of 23.93 and 52.10 on the scoreboard, and Mangold cruised to times of 21.60 and 47.36. Winston Churchill senior Natalya Ayres posted a 57.58 to win the 100 fly.
321 points was good enough for Walt Whitman's girls team triumph. Wootton placed second with 290.5 points, followed closely by Winston Churchill (279). Sherwood came in fourth with 178 points, and Urbana took fifth with 160. Walter Johnson was the top boys team, collecting 268 points. Winston Churchill was second (223), followed by Wootton (184), Bethesda (176) and Walt Whitman (169).
In a separate diving competition Feb. 24, also at UMCP, Churchill's Kali Becker (435.80) and Timothy Faerber (533.10) finished in first place.