Boys rule the pool

FEB 8, MONTGOMERY AQUATIC CENTER—

The boys' swim and dive team won the Division I championship with a score of 388, beating top competitor Whitman High School by just four points.

At the half, the Blair boys were in fourth place behind Walter Johnson, Whitman and Sherwood high schools, but they came back in the second half. Their most successful events were, as has been the case all season, the 100-yard butterfly, backstroke and breaststroke events.

The boys' biggest accomplishment, according to Coach David Swaney, was that several more swimmers qualified for Metros with exceptional times. The Blazers placed first in the division in the 200-yard medley relay and the 200-yard freestyle relay. Individually, senior Ian MacKinnon placed first in the 100-yard backstroke and second in the 50-yard freestyle, and senior David Madej placed second in the 100-yard breaststroke.

The boys were elated at their success. "When I was a freshman, we were in Division III. My whole high-school swimming career has been leading up to this," said senior co-captain Tom Johnson, who swam in the 200-yard medley team and placed fifth in the 100-yard backstroke. "Even our coach had war paint on."

Blair's girls placed last at the meet, giving the Blazers fourth place overall. According to Swaney, the girls did better than predicted. "It was a good meet for the girls," he said. "The score doesn't show it, but individually kids did pretty well."

Swaney said that both squads exceeded his expectations for the season but that he was most impressed by the Blazers' success in distance events. "The surprise this year was that we were suddenly competitive in distance, where we have always suffered big time," he said. Fast underclassmen contributed to the boys' distance speed, and freshman Kelsey Dean was "amazing" for the girls, Swaney said.

Blair placed last in girls' diving partly because junior Elizabeth Finn, Blair's best girl diver, was sick and could not attend the meet. Senior Pete Johnson failed two of his usually successful dives at the meet, though he was expected to break Blair's six-dive record. Senior Stuart Berg placed seventh with a season-best score of 115.35.

Blair's fourth place at Divisionals means it will remain in the top division next season. But Swaney said he is worried that graduation will hit the boys' team hard. "Next year will be rough in Division I. In two years we will be just as good as this year," he said. "Our freshman and sophomores are fast."

Only two girls are leaving the team this year, and because of consistent time drops, Swaney is optimistic for the girls' future. Senior Leah Cowdrey said that underclassmen will reap benefits from struggling through the season in the top division. "Dropping time comes from racing the girl next to you," she said. "[Swimming in Division I] will help them out in the long run because they know what they need to practice and they know what competition is out there."

Cowdrey said that the boys, many of whom swim on non-Blair teams, had an advantage that the girls lacked. Several boys practiced twice as much as most girls each week.

According to Swaney, depth and diversity of skill allowed the boys to go undefeated. "Our third swimmers outscored every other team's third swimmers," he explained. "Our top eight swimmers can be competitive in any event."

Swaney called this year "the most winning season Blair has ever had."