Six Cougars to Compete in B Regional Swim Championship

Six Manassas Park High School swimmers will advance to the B Regional Championship meet on Feb. 4. 

MPHS coaches said the entire team acheived many personal bests on Saturday during the Bull Run District Championship meet at the Manassas Park Community Center. 

 In order to advance to the Regional meet, swimmers must have a state qualifying time or place in the top eight for individual events, or in the top four for relay events.  

 The 200 yard medley relay the team—freshman Thomas Smith, freshman Austin Ponsart, junior Daniel Smith and senior Michael McFarland—placed sixth with a time of 2:16.59. The girls medley relay team— sophomore Sierra Sotelo, sophomore Olivia Carros, sophomore Taylor Geer and freshman Janiecia Lindsay—also placed fifth with a time of 2:20.48, down 1.86 seconds and a team best.

 In the 200 yard freestyle, McFarland placed tenth with a personal best time of 2:41.61, down 6.42 seconds.  Lindsay place third  for the girls team, with a personal best time of 2:29.06. Freshman Shaina Williams placed fifth at 2:32.64.  Both girls will advance to the regional meet.

 For the 200 yard individual medley, D. Smith placed fifth with a time of 2:34.75—his personal best by 0.94 seconds. Ponsart earned his personal best time by 0.33 seconds with a final time of 3:03.58.  Geer obtained a seventh place finish with a time of 2:54.94.  Both D. Smith and Geer will swim in next week’s regional meet.

 For the 50 yard freestyle, freshman Matthew Gillespie swam at 34.53 seconds and freshman David Hanggi swam at 35.52 seconds, down 2.98 and 6.8 seconds, respectively.  For the girls, sophomore Hannah Campbell earned a time of 32.67 seconds, another personal best by 0.39 seconds and Sotelo had a time of 34.28.

 No MPHS boys entered the 100-yard butterfly, but for the ladies, Geer placed sixth with a time of 1:16.69 and a guaranteed position for regionals.  Williams obtained a time of 1:23.25.

 For the 100 yard freestyle, sophomore Nick Gonzalez earned his personal best time by 14.47 seconds with a 1:17.00, while sophomore Anthony Towns dropped 4.72 seconds for his final time of 1:19.22. 

Lindsay placed sixth with a personal best time by 0.97 seconds of a 1:05.78, giving her a spot in Regionals.  Freshman Kaylynn Semple earned her best time by 8.98 seconds with a 1:22.14.

 In the 500 freestyle event, McFarland obtained a personal best time by 7.59 seconds at a 7:36.97.  The ladies had sophomore Hannah Campbell who earned a personal best time of 7:32.25 and Carros with a personal best time of 7:48.48. 

 The 200 yard freestyle relay team—Gonzalez, Towns, Gillespie and Hanggi—earned a sixth place finish with a time of 2:16.64.  The girls team of Sotelo, freshman April Day, Semple and Campbell placed seventh with a time of 2:19.71— a team best by 14.13 seconds. 

 For the 100 yard backstroke, T. Smith obtained his personal best by 1.86 seconds with a time of 1:20.44. Sotelo placed eighth with a personal best time by 7.3 seconds at 1:21.53. That advances her to the regional meet.  Carros swam the event in 1:24.47, her personal best by 1.85 seconds.

 For the 100 yard breaststroke, D. Smith earned a time of 1:23.88. For the girls, Xu came in sixth place with a time of 1:23.76, her personal best by 3.75seconds.  Day earned her personal best time by 21.89 seconds at a 1:42.56, the biggest drop of the week.  Xu will advance to Regionals in this event. 

In the 400 yard freestyle relay, the final event of the day, the boys team— T. Smith, Ponsart, McFarland and D. Smith—placed seventh with a time of 4:40.07. The girls team—Campbell, Xu, Geer, and Williams— placed fifth with a time of 4:50.71, a team best by 0.09 seconds.

 MPHS will compete in the B Regional Championship meet on Feb. 4, at 2 p.m.at the Manassas Park Community Center.

The Bull Run District consists of Central High School Woodstock, Clarke County High School, George Mason High School, Madison County High School, Manassas Park High School, Strasburg High School and William Monroe High School. 

The MPHS Swim Team is in its inaugural season and is led by Head Coach Sam Olbes and Assistant Coach Kim O'Brien.

Women's Scores

1. George Mason High School 108
2. William Monroe High School 88
3. Clarke County High School 46
4. Central High School Woodstock 45
5. Madison County High School 36
6. Manassas Park High School 22
7. Strasburg High School 8

Men’s Scores

1. George Mason High School 127
2. Central High School Woodstock 73
3. William Monroe High School 62
4. Clarke County High School 61
5. Madison County High School 20
6. Strasburg High School 6
7. Manassas Park High School 4