by Mike Stirling
Tri-Valley High School swimmers hosted the Muskingum Valley League Championships last Saturday, January 25 at the Family YMCA in Zanesville. Seven schools of the Muskingum Valley accepted the invitation to show off some of the top swimmers in the area.
Once again, the Scotties performed very well against some outstanding swimmers. Tri-Valley girls finished first against the seven competitors while the boys were a very respectable second in the swim field. Overall, the Dresden combined squad finished in second place just 29 points behind a strong Riverview team.
In addition to 12 first-place finishes, 4 seconds and 3 thirds, Junior Cyrus Dittmar captured first in the Boys 100 Yard Breaststroke and in the process set a new Tri-Valley school record in the event with a time of 1:06.62. Dittmar was followed by Freshman Gabe Lentz.
On the girls side of the ledger, Junior Clare Waggle recorded 3rd place points and teammate Mazzie Mallett came in 6th followed by Scotties Kayley Harper and Rhiannon Shaw in the Girls 100 Yard Breaststroke.
Senior Caroline Holmes was once again making her presence felt as she finished 1st in the Girls 100 Yard Backstroke followed by fellow senior Marissa Sees in 5th place in the backstroke. For the boys, Mason McDaniel and Schawn McDonald finished 3rd and 6th respectively in the 100 Backstroke.
Holmes recorded a second 1st as she touched over 10 seconds ahead of the second-place swimmer in the Girls 100 Yard Butterfly with Clare Waggle coming in 3rd followed by Emma Meadows in 6th and Kayley Harper. Freshman Hansel Holmes made the podium as he touched in 1st place in the Boys 100 Yard Butterfly followed by Senior Tracy Beale in 7th place and Nathan Sauerbrey.
Freestyle events were led by Marissa Sees in the 50 Free where she was just out-touched and had to settle for 2nd place. Sees was joined by Alex Dale (5th place), Emma Lewis (7th place) and Emma Meadows. Scottie swimmers on the boys side were represented by Mason McDaniel (4th place) as well as Gabe Lentz and Tracy Beale.
Senior Mariah Clark led the way for the Tri-Valley girls in the 100 Yard Free as she, Seryna Mann and Alex Clark finished 2nd, 3rd and 6th respectively followed by Jade White. Blaine Cox, Schawn McDonald and Bret Mohler represented the boys in the 100 Free.
Junior Larissa Lynch had an impressive swim in the Girls 500 Yard Free as she was the 1st place finisher followed by Freshman Emma Lewis who recorded her best time as she finished 3rd. Macey Felumlee was the third Tri-Valley entrant in the 500 Free. With an equally impressive effort, Sophomore Nathan Sauerbrey represented the Dawgs as he touched 1st in the Boys 500 Free.
Mariah Clark chalked up a first in the Girls 200 Freestyle where she edged out the second-place swimmer by .13 of a second. Macey Felumlee added points for her 7th place finish followed by Jade White. Cyrus Dittmar was back in the water as he captured 3rd place in the Boys 200 Free and was joined by fellow Scotty Bret Mohler.
Always an exciting event, the Individual Medley lived up to expectations as Hansel Holmes, swimming all four strokes, won the Boys 200 Yard IM by 17 seconds. Larissa Lynch and Seryna Mann finished 2nd and 3rd in the Girls 200 IM followed by Scotties Mazie Mallett and Rhiannon Shaw who touched in 5th and 6th place in the same IM.
To the surprise of no one, Scotty girls Caroline Holmes, Clare Waggle, Larissa Lynch and Marissa Sees teamed to capture the Girls 200 Yard Medley Relay by 5 seconds.
A second foursome of Macey Felumlee, Mazie Mallett, Emma Lewis and Alex Dale also swam the Medley Relay as did a third squad of Kayley Harper, Rhiannon Shaw, Emma Meadows and Jade White. On the male side, the team of Mason McDaniel, Cyrus Dittmar, Hansel Holmes and Nathan Sauerbrey teamed to win 1st place in the Boys 200 Yard Medley Relay.
First place in the Girls 200 Yard Freestyle Relay was captured by the speedy foursome of Clare Waggle, Mariah Clark, Seryna Mann and Caroline Holmes with a young team of Jade White, Mazie Mallett, Kayley Harper and Alex Dale coming in just out of the points. The boys team of Cyrus Dittmar, Blaine Cox, Mason McDaniel and Hansel Holmes recorded a strong 2nd place finish in the Boys 200 Yard Free Relay followed by the foursome of Gabe Lentz, Tracy Beale, Bret Mohler and Schawn McDonald.
To cap the meet, the 400 Yard Freestyle Relay showcased the team of Mariah Clark, Marissa Sees, Seryna Mann and Larissa Lynch as they recorded a 1st place finish with the squad of Emma Lewis, Emma Meadows, Rhiannon Shaw and Macey Felumlee finished 5th. The boys team of Blaine Cox, Bret Mohler, Schawn McDonald and Nathan Sauerbrey combined to take 2nd place in the Boys 400 Yard Free Relay.
As the final home appearance of the Tri-Valley swim team, Saturdays meet a was thrill to watch. Swimmers and coaches deserve a great deal of credit for a very successful swim season.
