RICHMOND, Virginia, February 20. TEN Virginia Independent High School Championships (VISAA) records were set Feb. 15-16 in a meet that was streamed live by SwimmingWorld.TV.
Collegiate School's girls team scored 383 points to St. Catherine's 281.5, Trinity Episcopal's 262, Hampton Roads' 218 and Norfolk's 167. Fork Union put together 275 points for its team title, ahead of Bishop O'Connell (242.5). Woodberry Forest grabbed third (217), followed closely by St. Christopher (211) and Collegiate School (202).
For full coverage of the VISAA meet, check out the SwimmingWorld.TV event landing page.
Girls
It was a very fast meet–the top three times in the girls 400 yard free relay cleared the previous standard of 3:36.20 from 2009 by Trinity Episcopal School. The new record holder is Collegiate School with their 3:33.55. Setting the new standard were junior Ashton Pollard, sophomore Campbell Brewer, sophomore Caroline Pollard and junior Mary Katherine Kish.
Collegiate School swept all three relays in VISAA record time. Their 200 free relay of senior Chandler Makepeace, junior Katie McCauley, Brewer and Kish posted a 1:38.88, which cleared out St. Catherine's 2009 mark of 1:39.15. In the 200 medley relay, Ashton Pollard, eighth-grader Jasmine Harper, Caroline Pollard and Makepeace combined for a 1:48.09, bettering the mark they set last year of 1:50.01. That team included the Pollard sisters, Brewer and Makepeace.
Kish's 4:57.51 gave her an individual win in the 500 free. With the relay sweep, Kish's individual win plus depth, the Cougars earned the girls team title with an impressive 555-point total. Trinity Episcopal was the runner-up, putting together 394 points. Hampton Roads Academy took third (386 points), followed by Bishop O'Connell (291) and St. Catherine's School (281.5).
Madeira School's Kylie Jordan took down two VISAA marks. In the 200 IM, the freshman posted a 2:04.21 to better Natalie Griffith's long-standing (1998) standard of 2:05.55. Rachel Naurath's 2010 record of 55.33 fell to Jordan's 54.50. Also setting a VISAA standard was Highland freshman Reni Moshos, whose 56.56 in the 100 back eclipsed Gabrielle Bishop's 2010 time of 57.13.
Trinity gained valuable points from two-event winner Kate Nezelek in the 50 and 100 free (23.91 and 51.74), and junior Keaton Busser in the diving competition (324.20 points).
Carlisle School senior Claire Adkins' 1:52.62 earned her a victory in the 200 free. St. Catherine junior Sommer Harris put together a winning 1:05.68 in the 100 breast.
Boys
Woodberry Forest senior Zach Switzer was the star of the boys competition, setting VISAA standards in both the 200 IM (1:50.20) and the 100 back (48.92). In both cases, Switzer improved on the marks he set last year of 1:50.72 in the 200 IM and 50.02 in the 100 back. Woodberry Forest kicked off the boys meet with a 1:34.69 victory in the 200 medley with an all-senior squad of Switzer, Mac Trainor, Bear Bondurant and Alex Hapgood.
Fork Union's three Egyptian swimmers gave the school 151.5 of their 275 points, led by junior Ali Khalafalla. He lowered Hussein Mohamed's 2009 mark of 45.31 in the 100 free by 1-tenth with his 45.21. He also led Fork Union's 400 free relay of senior Michael Guerci, junior Karim Elsayed and senior Mohamed Saleh to a VISAA record 3:08.61, taking down Collegiate School's 3:08.79 from 2009. The same quartet also posted a winning 1:25.18 in the 200 free relay.
Townley Haas, a Benedictine College Prep sophomore, was triumphant in the 200 and 500 free (1:41.74 and 4:37.14). Also earning first-place awards were Steward senior Henry Bassett (50 free, 21.12), St. Catherine junior Henry Fauls (100 fly, 51.18) and Covenant senior Eli Holstedge (100 breast, 57.28). Norfolk Academy junior Joe Bedford claimed the diving competition with 372.20 points.
