March 28, 2024

Aquagirls win LHC swim championship

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INDIANOLA — Senior Sarah Prendergast and sophomore Lindsey Blommers paced NCMP’s Aquagirls to a Little Hawkeye Conference Swim Meet championship. The two swimmers were double individual event champions.

The Aquagirls put together a team effort to win the inaugural Little Hawkeye Conference Swim Meet Tuesday at Indianola. NCMP won five events and scored points with placings second through eighth in other events to edge Indianola, 351-347, for the team title.

Grinnell finished third in the varsity competition with 210 points. Oskaloosa took fourth with 144 points.

“On paper, it looked like there was no way we would win this meet. Indianola had beaten us twice before this year by fairly small margins, but it was still daunting to put the point totals side by side. I usually work up a couple of point scenarios for close meets.” NCMP head coach Sarah Patterson said. “The girls were on fire.”

NCMP’s junior varsity rolled up 356 points winning six events, including all three relay races, to win its division. Indianola was second with 245 points and Grinnell was third with 74 points.

“Our seniors were nothing short of amazing in their ability to harness our team momentum and make it a fun week of practice leading into the conference meet,” Patterson said. “Our seniors — Kaitlyn Barnes, Willa Colville, Emily Miller, Sarah Prendergast, Hayley Sinclair, and Erin Van Sickle — not only swam well, but orchestrated this amazing win.”

Blommers, who is ranked No. 5 in the state, dominated the 100-yard breaststroke race with a winning time of 1 minute, 8.63 seconds. Earlier in the meet, Blommers won the 50-yard freestyle race in 26.61 seconds.

Prendergast led a 1-2-3 finish in the 200 freestyle in 2:05.74 followed by junior Jessica Zahn in 2:11.92 and sophomore Alex Inskeep in third at 2:13.46. Prendergast and Zahn went 1-2 in the 500 freestyle in 5:56.70 and 5:58.48, respectively, and freshman Courtney Dawson took fourth in 6:23.43.

“I ride the distance girls pretty hard, and all the hard work they have done this season showed up last night. All three had personal times in the 200 freestyle,” Patterson said.

NCMP opened the conference meet with a second place finish in the 200 medley relay. The foursome of sophomore Lakin Jenkins, Blommers, senior Emily Miller and junior Jaclyn Michener posting a winning time of 1:58.83.

Jenkins, Blommers and Prendergast combined with Inskeep to win the 200 freestyle relay in 1:46.74. To finish the meet, the quartet of Prendergast, Inskeep, Zahn and Miller finished second in the 400 freestyle relay race in 4:00.85.

“The medley relay team had its season’s best time and battled right down to the wire with Indianola,” Patterson said. “Our 200 freestyle relay was extremely exciting-we were seeded second and ended up winning it.”

In the 100 butterfly, Miller finished second in 1:06.81 followed by Jenkins in third at 1:08.95 and junior Morgan Altman in fifth at 1:17.67. Miller placed sixth in the 50 freestyle in 28.08 seconds and freshman Abbie Hill was eighth in 28.88 seconds.

Jenkins touched second in the 100 backstroke in 1:07.29 while junior Julia Prime was fifth in 1:16 and junior Sarah Urias was sixth in 1:17.06. Freshman Erika Van Sickle took fourth in the 200 individual medley in 2:4072 followed by Urias in fifth at 2:43.38 and Dawson in seventh at 2:48.97.

Inskeep placed third in the 100 freestyle in 1:00.11 with Michener in fifth at 1:03.18 and senior Willa Colville in sixth at 1:04.30. Freshman Allison Paulius took sixth in the 100 breaststroke in 1:22.46 and junior Briahna Teague was eighth in 1:28.30.

NCMP’s junior varsity went 1-2-3 in three individual races and won the three relay races. Emma Thomas won the 200 freestyle, 2:29.20, and the 500 freestyle in 6:48.43. Paulius won the 200 IM in 2:49.54.

“Our junior varsity swam lights out and dominated their division of the meet,” Patterson said.

The 200 medley relay team of Molly Coy, Pie Pandumrong, Camilla Schlosser and Liv Barnes won in 2:00.20. The team of Hill, Colville, Michener and Zahn won the 200 freestyle relay race in 1:53.73. Winning the 400 freestyle relay race in 4:22.23 was the team of Dawson, Colville, Altman and Michener.

“It was a great night for our team,” Patterson said. “This group is so close, and that sure makes for a fun season. Coach Jenny Jensen and I couldn’t be prouder.”

NCMP concludes the regular season in the North Central Iowa Conference meet at 1 p.m. Saturday in Waterloo. The Aquagirls are four-time defending NCIC champions.

Little Hawkeye Conference Swim Meet

Varsity

Team scores: NCMP 351, Indianola 347, Grinnell 210, Oskaloosa 144.

200-yd medley relay: 2. NCMP (Jenkins, Blommers, Miller, Michener), 1:58.83.

200-yd freestyle: 1. Prendergast, 2:05.79, 2. Zahn, 2:11.92, 3. Inskeep, 2:13.46.

200-yd IM: 4. Erika Van Sickle, 2:40.72, 5. Urias, 2:43.21, 7. Dawson, 2:48.

50-yd freestyle: 1. Blommers, 26.61, 6. Miller, 28.08, 8. Hill, 28.88.

100-yd butterfly: 2. Miller, 1:06.81, 3. Jenkins, 1:08.95, 5. Altman, 1:17.67.

100-yd freestyle: 3. Inskeep, 1:00.11, 5. Michener, 1:03.18, 6. Colville, 1:04.30.

500-yd freestyle: 1. Prendergast, 5:56.70, 2. Zahn, 5:58.48, 4. Dawson 6:23.46.

200-yd freestyle relay: 1. NCMP (Blommers, Jenkins, Inskeep, Prendergast), 1:46.74.

100-yd backstroke: 2. Jenkins, 1:07.29, 5. Prime, 1:16, 6. Urias, 1:17.06.

100-yd breaststroke: 1. Blommers, 1:08.63, 6. Paulius, 1:22.46, 8. Teague, 1:28.30.

400-yd freestyle relay: 2. NCMP (Prendergast, Inskeep, Zahn, Miller), 4:00.85.

Junior Varsity

Team scores: NCMP 356, Indianola 245, Grinnell 74.

200-yd medley relay: 1. NCMP (Coy, Pandumrong, Schlosser, Liv Barnes), 2:00.20.

200-yd freestyle: 1. Thomas, 2:29.20, 2. Petro, 2:40.0, 3. Kaitlyn Barnes, 2:40.18.

200-yd IM: 1. Paulius, 2:49.54, 2. Altman, 2:51.05, 3. Coy, 3:08.38.

50-yd freestyle: 4. Schlosser, 30.62, 5. Liv Barnes, 31.32, 6. Lamb, 33.15.

100-yd butterfly: 2. Balek, 1:20.51.

100-yd freestyle: 2. Erika Van Sickle, 1:05.06, 3. Schlosser, 1:07.59, 4. Prime, 1:09.36.

500-yd freestyle: 1. Thomas, 6:48.43, 2. Erin Van Sickle, 7:09.52, 3. Kaitlyn Barnes, 7:12.32.

200-yd freestyle relay: 1. NCMP (Hill, Colville, Michener, Zahn), 1:53.73.

100-yd backstroke: 3. Coy, 1:23.99, 4. Hayley Sinclair, 1:33.76, 5. Courtney Ingle, 1:33.81.

100-yd breaststroke: 2. Pandumron, 1:41.93, 3. Lamb, 1:46.33.

400-yd freestyle relay: 1. NCMP (Dawson, Colville, Altman, Michener), 4:22.23.

Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
641-792-3121 ext. 6535 or jsheets@newtondailynews.com