Triangle teams win seven NCHSAA regional swimming championships, point towards state.
Three Triangle-area high school swim and diving teams put themselves in position to repeat as state champions by winning regional championships over the weekend.
Green Hope swept the 4A Central boys’ and girls’ regional meets at Greensboro Aquatic Center, and Carrboro took the 1A-2A boys’ crown in the East regional at Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary.
Four other Triangle-area teams also won regional titles, with Cardinal Gibbons sweeping the 4A East boys’ and girls’ championships in Cary; Chapel Hill winning the 3A Central boys’ title in Greensboro; and the Carrboro girls joining the boys as 1A-2A East champs in Cary.
Top individuals and relay teams will compete this weekend in the state swimming and diving championships at the Triangle Aquatic Center.
The 3A finals are Thursday, the 1A-2A finals Friday, and the 4A finals Saturday.
Green Hope is going for its fourth consecutive boys’ 4A championship.
And in 4A girls’ competition, Cardinal Gibbons junior Claire Curzan will be seeking to repeat as champion in the 100-meter butterfly and the 100 backstroke. Curzan was named Most Outstanding Swimmer in the state championships last year after setting national high school meet records in both events.
Boys
4A Central
Green Hope (124) outdistanced runner-up Apex Friendship (93), with Grimsley, Apex and Cary rounding out the top five.
Green Hope junior Michael Cotter won the 200 freestyle and 500 freestyle and swam on victorious 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay teams.
Triangle-area winners:
200 medley relay: Green Hope (Landon Lloyd, Michael Cotter, Jackson Pollard, Ben Prucha)
200 freestyle: Michael Cotter (Green Hope)
50 freestyle: Victor Axholdt (Athens Drive)
1-meter diving: Peter Edin (Panther Creek)
100 butterfly: Ryan Silver (Athens Drive)
100 freestyle: Landon Lloyd (Green Hope)
500 freestyle: Michael Cotter (Green Hope)
200 freestyle relay: Green Hope (Landon Lloyd, Alex Nolet, John Prucha, Ben Prucha)
100 backstroke: Wyatt Pena (Apex Friendship)
100 breaststroke: Grayson Nye (Middle Creek)
400 freestyle relay: Green Hope (Jackson Pollard, John Prucha, Colin Whelehan, Michael Cotter)
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/4a%20central%20-%20results_1.pdf
4A East
Cardinal Gibbons easily won the team title (116 points), outdistancing Leesville Road (76), Millbrook (75) and Broughton (74).
Three swimmers won a pair of events -- Cardinal Gibbons junior Kellen Russell, Wake Forest junior Tate Bacon, and Broughton sophomore John Reese Taylor.
Triangle-area winners:
200 freestyle: Kellen Russell (Cardinal Gibbons)
200 individual medley: John Reese Taylor (Broughton)
100 butterfly: Tate Bacon (Wake Forest)
100 freestyle: David Greeley (Cardinal Gibbons)
500 freestyle: Kellen Russell (Cardinal Gibbons)
200 freestyle relay: Cardinal Gibbons (Joshua Moore, Mason Taylor, Patrick Drake, David Greeley)
100 backstroke: Tate Bacon (Wake Forest)
100 breaststroke: John Reese Taylor (Broughton)
400 freestyle relay: Cardinal Gibbons (Kellen Russell, Joshua Moore, Tull Perkins, David Greeley)
https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/4a%20east%20-%20results_2.pdf
3A Central
Chapel Hill (138) beat out Northern Guilford (98) for team honors, with East Chapel Hill, Southwest Guilford and Orange finishing 3-4-5.
A pair of Chapel Hill swimmers, seniors Sam Hoover and Peter Bretzmann, each won twice.
Triangle-area winners:
200 freestyle: Sam Hoover (Chapel Hill)
200 IM: Peter Bretzmann (Chapel Hill)
100 freestyle: Sam Hoover (Chapel Hill)
500 freestyle: Peter Bretzmann (Chapel Hill)
200 freestyle relay: Chapel Hill (Sam Hoover, Edward Wang, Michael Volpe, Ayden Xu)
100 breaststroke: Michael Volpe (Chapel Hill)
400 freestyle relay: Chapel Hill (Ayden Xu, Austin Chang, Peter Bretzmann, Sam Hoover)
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/3a%20central%20-%20results_2.pdf
3A East
Topsail won the team championship, with Cleveland tying for fourth. Clayton was ninth and South Johnston 10th. There were no Triangle-area winners, but Cleveland’s Aidan DeSimone finished second in the 200 and 500 freestyle events.
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/3a%20east%20-%20results_2.pdf
1A-2A East
Carrboro (142) beat out Croatan (101) for the title, with Nash Central, First Flight and Washington rounding out the top five.
Carrboro freshman Andrew Commins had an outstanding meet, winning two events and swimming on two first-place relay teams.
Triangle-area winners:
200 medley relay: Carrboro (Will Thompson, Brandon Miller, Andrew Commins, Jackson Lee)
200 freestyle: Andrew Commins (Carrboro)
200 IM: Brandon Miller (Carrboro)
100 butterfly: Andrew Commins (Carrboro)
100 breaststroke: Max McCallion (Carrboro)
400 freestyle relay: Carrboro (Brandon Miller, Andrew Commins, Kieran DeWalt, Will Thompson)
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/1a%262a%20east%20-%20results.pdf
Girls
4A Central
Green Hope (113.5) outdistanced Athens Drive (93) and Apex Friendship (90.5) for the team championship. Grimsley and Panther Creek were fourth and fifth.
Green Hope sophomore Keelan Cotter and Apex Friendship senior Brooke Zettel each won two events.
Triangle-area winners:
200 medley relay: Apex Friendship (Megan Legarth, Brooke Zettel, Taylor Bloom, Emma Szczuka)
200 freestyle: Keelan Cotter (Green Hope)
200 individual medley: Brooke Zettel (Apex Friendship)
50 freestyle: Jiaya Fu (Apex)
100 butterfly: Taylor Bloom (Apex Friendship)
100 freestyle: Katherine Carson (Green Hope)
500 freestyle: Keelan Cotter (Green Hope)
100 backstroke: Abigail Clark (Cary)
100 breaststroke: Brooke Zettel (Apex Friendship)
400 freestyle relay: Green Hope (Katherine Carson, Clare Smith, Sydney Morgan, Keelan Cotter)
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/4a%20central%20-%20results_1.pdf
4A East
Claire Curzan’s two victories, plus a pair of first-place finishes by senior Julie Lahiff, helped Cardinal Gibbons (113.5) get past Millbrook (93). Broughton, Hoggard and Enloe rounded out the top five.
Triangle-area winners:
200 medley relay: Cardinal Gibbons (Claire Curzan, Julie Lahiff, Katie Mitchell, Parker Bolduc)
200 freestyle: Jenna Jacobs (Millbrook)
200 IM: Elena Dry (Broughton)
1-meter diving: Chloe Perkins (Cardinal Gibbons)
100 butterfly: Claire Curzan (Cardinal Gibbons)
500 freestyle: Julie Lahiff (Cardinal Gibbons)
200 freestyle relay: Broughton (Elena Dry, Taylor Morris, Lily Welsh, Olivia Goschwind)
100 backstroke: Claire Curzan (Cardinal Gibbons)
100 breaststroke: Julie Lahiff (Cardinal Gibbons)
400 freestyle relay: Broughton (Elena Dry, Taylor Morris, Lily Welsh, Olivia Goschwind)
https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/4a%20central%20-%20results_1.pdf
3A Central
Northern Guilford squeaked past East Chapel Hill, 114-107, for the team title. Northwood, Chapel Hill and Orange rounded out the top five.
Orange freshman Katie Belle Sikes was the only Triangle-area winner, taking the 50 and 100 freestyle races.
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/3a%20central%20-%20results_2.pdf
3A East
D.H. Conley was the regional winner. Cleveland finished seventh and Clayton 11th. There were no Triangle-area winners.
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/3a%20east%20-%20results_2.pdf
1A-2A East
Carrboro won nine of 12 events and coasted to a big victory with 155 points. Voyager Academy (74) was the closest competitor. Croatan, First flight and Manteo rounded out the top five.
Carrboro junior Lindy Bilden won two events and swam on two victorious relay teams. And Voyager Academy junior Ede Kosik also won twice.
Triangle-area winners:
200 medley relay: Carrboro (Kate Hegland, Scarlett simmons, Eliot Hunsberger, Maya Lambert)
200 freestyle: Ede Kosik (Voyager Academy)
200 IM: Maya Lambert (Carrboro)
50 freestyle: Lindy Bilden (Carrboro)
100 butterfly: Lindy Bilden (Carrboro)
100 freestyle: Ede Kosik (Voyager Academy)
500 freestyle: Emily Carpenter (Carrboro)
200 freestyle relay: Carrboro (Lindy Bilden, Maya Lambert, Kate Hegland, Emily Carpenter)
100 backstroke: Eliot Hunsberger (Carrboro)
100 breaststroke: Scarlett Simmons (Carrboro)
400 freestyle relay: Carrboro (Emily Carpenter, Kate Hegland, Eliot Hunsberger, Lindy Bilden)
Full results: https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/1a%262a%20east%20-%20results.pdf
Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle