Saints Swimming Earn 1st Place at North State Championship

This past Saturday, the Saints traveled to the Delta State University Aquatic Center in Cleveland, MS to compete in the North Championship Class I (1A-5A schools) swim meet. Both the girls and boys squads left as the North State Champions with 20 swimmers advancing to the State Championship on Saturday at the Tupelo Aquatic Center. The girls 172 points placed them more than 100 points ahead of the North State runner-up, Pontotoc High School. The boys, with their 154 points, were 57 points ahead of the North State Boy’s runner-up, Cleveland Central High School. St. Andrew’s also won 4 of the 6 relay events and 10 of the 16 individual events.

 

In individual competition, Gia Ngo contributed maximum points from two solid winning performances in both the 200 individual medley (IM) and 100 backstroke. Lydia Foster dominated the 100 freestyle and followed it up with a second in the 100 breaststroke. Anabelle Abraham had an individual victory in the 200 free followed up by a 3rd in the 500 free. Jamie Lee Jenkins won the 50 free sprint followed by a third place in the 100 butterfly. Bess Ketner got an individual win in the 100 breaststroke after a 4th in the 200 IM. Mary Elizabeth Kees, Claudia Maron, Hannah Grace Kerr, Pegah Vasighi-Ansarifar, Liza Lominick, and Hailey Watkins rounded out the team scoring for the girls. 

 

Rhodes Pharr and Luke Fender earned two first place individual swims each. Pharr won the 200 free and 100 breaststroke with Fender winning the 200 IM and the 500 free. Elias Abraham was next with a pair of 2nd place finishes in both the 200 free and 100 butterfly. Maury Allin, Thomas McCaffery, William McCaffery, William Skelton, Will Fender, Heath Seawright, John Matthews, and Pranav Reddy rounded out the scoring for the boys with impressive swims that will carry them to Tupelo.

 

This Saturday, the swimmers will face some fierce competition brought on by the South State Champions, St. Patrick High School girls and boys squads, as well as the girls from Our Lady Academy and boys from St. Stanislaus. The Saints will need their best swims of the season to stay competitive for a repeat of last season’s success. Go Saints!