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By James A. McCray IIIPrince George's County, Content ManagerStanding on the edge of the platform Saturday at the Fairland Sports and Aquatics Complex in Laurel,
Bowie male swimmer
Tyler Lynch knew what he had to do and knew what was on the line.
Knowing what he knew, he would go on to set the tone for the Bulldogs as he swam opening leg of the
400-yard freestyle relay team, the last scheduled event of the day for the boys' teams.
Bowie --in the midst of a points battle with Eleanor Roosevelt-- needed the race win to further solidify its Prince George's County 4A team championship and in just 3 minutes, 42 seconds, the championship was signed, sealed, and celebrated.
"I was just like we [have] to do it for the team," Lynch said, "I had to do it for the relay team and get a head start."
Lynch was one of four parts to help seal the win as
Maxwell Mayhew (second leg),
David Webster (third leg), and
Andrew Jennings (fourth leg) each played a vital role in gaining the vital 40 first-place relay points en route to 359 team points.
"It felt really well," Jennings explained, "coming into the wall and just looking around finding that nobody was there with me and knowing that we won."
Through seven of 11 events, Roosevelt held a 284.5-283 lead over Bowie and although the points earned on the last race of the day officially earned the Bulldogs the title, the race before the 400 free relay all but clinched it as
Brian Laufer took first place in his 100 breaststroke.
"We were losing by a little bit, so we knew we had to win to get into the lead," Laufer said.
Laufer was one of two double winners for Bowie as he earned first-place honors in the boy's 50 free earlier in the day and earned his second with his breast-stroke race.
Jennings, the second, earned individual top honors in the 100 free and 100 back.
"That is the race that kind of won it for us," Bowie head coach
Maggie Fletcher said of Laufer's race. " ... Roosevelt snuck in there on us a little bit, but [we] did a good job. The times did not go down as far as we wanted them to but, with the championship and everything, the nerves get going and everything else ... but it feels good."
Roosevelt finished with 349.50 team points on the day, 9.5 points off of Bowie's pace, after the two teams had been separated by no more than 4 points through for the last four events.
"I knew it was going to come down to the [400 free relay]," Roosevelt head coach
Anne Koroknay said. "We had been keeping track of the score, so I knew it was going to come down to the 400 free. ... [My] four boys each had great times, and you can't argue with that."
Although Bowie and Eleanor Roosevelt won 10 of 11 events between the two of them,
Parkdale's Robert Bailey earned the top honors in the 200 free event with a time of 2:05.82.
"It was kind of fast," Bailey said of his race. "I was kind of tired through the [entire race]."
Douglass boys stay perfect; win 3A/2A/1AThe
Frederick Douglass Eagles boys swim team entered Saturday with a perfect 7-0 regular-season divisional record and remained that way after finishing with 165 team points earning county 3A/2A/1A championship honors.
The 200 and 400 free relay teams each earned respective fourth-place finishes for the Eagles.
Ameer Taylor and
Andre Parrish each earned eighth overall in the 50 free and 100 breast, respectively, good enough to claim the top individual finishes for the Eagles.
The first county championship in three years was just one of many highlights on the season for Douglass.
"My boys had a fantastic season," Douglass head coach
Jim Woods said. "They beat Oxon Hill this year for the first time ever, and beat High Point this year for first time ever. ... Today they had a lot of first-place wins in heats, and my 200 free relay took 10 seconds off their time."
Eleanor Roosevelt Girls swim to 10th straight
The history books are clear and evident when looking at the past of the Eleanor Roosevelt Lady Raiders girls swimming team.
Looking at a list of former girls Prince George's County swimming team champions, the list reads Eleanor Roosevelt nine consecutive times.
After gaining 403 team points and first-place finishes in nine of 11 events, the Lady Raiders can ink its name on another championship.
"It feels good," Koroknay said. "We kind of expected the girls to do well today. ... I couldn't have asked for anything more. This catapults us to regionals and states and bigger and tougher competition, and I think this got everyone in the right state of mind for the post season."
Roosevelt finished with two double-winners on the day as Hannah Betman (200 free, 500 free) and Emily Morse (200 individual medley, 100 butterfly) paced the Lady Raiders.
"I just tried to go out strong and finish strong," Morse said of her medley race. "I knew the girls who were seeded second and third were good [at the breaststroke] and that is kind of my weak spot, so I had to make sure I maintained speed through that."
On how it feels to be champions, Betman added: "It feels great. We have been working really hard all season for it, and we got it, so it was good."
High Point's Chloe Brown (50 free) and Laurel's Jade Hill (100 breast) won their respective events on the day as well.
"When I was a freshman, I won states," Brown said. " ... For my senior year, I just want to try to live it up again, and try to do it again, hopefully."
Frederick Douglass girls earn 3A/2A/1A county title
The Frederick Douglass Lady Eagles continued a streak of its own as it won its third consecutive 3A/2A/1A title with Saturday total of 137 points.
Aujenae Smith finished eighth overall, respectively, in the 200 free as top the individual finish for the Lady Eagles.
"It is going to be tough," Woods said of the upcoming post season. "We have to go against some tough teams from St. Mary's County, Charles County, and Frederick County, and we are going to bring the best show we can."
As far as confidence after Saturday's showing, Woods added: "It helps. Winning is contagious, so that is a big plus. ... The kids are all charged up and they are waiting to get their hardware."
tmccray@digitalsports.com
Boys: Bowie 359, Eleanor Roosevelt 349.50, Laurel 240.50, Charles H. Flowers 218, Frederick Douglass 165, Forestville 107, Oxon Hill 96, Gwynn Park 94, Surrattsville 81, Suitland 80, Parkdale 72, High Point 72, Largo 58, Northwestern 49, Fairmont Heights 37, Friendly 26, Henry Wise 25, Bladensburg 17, DuVal 12
Event 1 -
200 Yard Medley Relay1. Bowie 1:50.51
2. Eleanor Roosevelt 1:54.53
3. Laurel 1:58.26
Event 3 -
200 Yard Freestyle1. Robert Bailey (P) 2:05.82
2. William Dunham (ER) 2:06.06
3. Kevin Hendley (ER) 2:08.32
Event 5 -
200 Yard Individual Medley1. Lee Friedman (ER) 2:17.63
2. Michael Aberg (ER) 2:24.86
3. David Webster (B) 2:25.07
Event 7 -
50 Yard Freestyle1. Brian Laufer (B) 23.23
2. Tyler Lynch (B) 23.65
3. Caleb Jackson (CHF) 24.33
4. Marc Howell (ER) 24.52
Event 11 -
100 Yard Butterfly1. William Dunham (ER) 1:02.48
2. David Webster (B) 1:02.60
3. Michael Aberg (ER) 1:02.81
Event 13 -
100 Yard Freestyle1. Andrew Jennings (B) 53.77
2. Rene Haley (CHF) 53.93
3. Robert Bailer (P) 54.80
Event 15 -
500 Yard Freestyle1. Kevin Hendley (ER) 5:51.21
2. Jared Hester (L) 5:54.73
3. Patrick McDonough (ER) 6:06.87
Event 17 -
200 Yard Freestyle Relay1. Charles H. Flowers 1:38.08
2. Bowie 1:39.28
3. Eleanor Roosevelt 1:43.56
Event 19 -
100 Yard Backstroke1. Andrew Jennings (B) 1:04.52
2. Thomas Senecal (ER) 1:06.78
3. Jordan Megaughey (L) 1:08.66
Event 21 -
100 Yard Breaststroke1. Brian Laufer (B) 1:06.97
2. Lee Friedman (ER) 1:08.52
3. Tommy Masino (B) 1:09.66
Event 23 -
400 Yard Freestyle Relay1. Bowie 3:42.63
2. Eleanor Roosevelt 3:46.94
3. Laurel 3:59.93
Girls: Eleanor Roosevelt 403; Bowie 302, Laurel 294, High Point 205, Charles H. Flowers 184, Frederick Douglass 137, Oxon Hill 121, Henry Wise 107, Gwynn Park 63, Suitland 51, Parkdale 47, DuVal 41, Fairmont Heights 33, Forestville 23, Bladensburg 20, Friendly 18, Central 15, Northwestern 11
Event 2 -
200 Yard Medley Relay1. Eleanor Roosevelt 2:00.91
2. Laurel 2:09.51
3. Bowie 2:18.26
Event 4 -
200 Yard Freestyle1. Hannah Betman (ER) 1:59.96
2. Courtney Like-Mathews (ER) 2:06.20
3. Sarah McCray (L) 2:21.84
Event 6 -
200 Yard Individual Medley 1. Emily Morse (ER) 2:15.42
2. Kendall Irish (ER) 2:20.55
3. Jade Hill (L) 2:24.85
Event 8 -
50 Yard Freestyle1. Chloe Brown (HP) 26.43
2. Rebecca Riley (ER) 26. 62
3. Kelsey Carter (CHF) 28.44
Event 12 -
100 Yard Butterfly1. Emily Morse (ER) 1:00.76
2. Kendall Irish (ER) 1:01.90
3. Caitlin Raynor (L) 1:04.88
Event 14 -
100 Yard Freestyle 1. Julia Felts (ER) 59.30
2. Danielle Jackson (FH) 59.90
3. Alicia Osborn (ER) 1:02.92
Event 16 -
500 Yard Freestyle1. Hannah Betman (ER) 5:14.20
2. Callie Betman (ER) 5:47.99
3. Kelsey Carter (CHF) 6:05.56
Event 18 -
200 Yard Freestyle Relay1. Eleanor Roosevelt 1:49.33
2. Bowie 2:00.91
3. Henry Wise 2:09.49
Event 20 -
100 Yard Backstroke1. Courtney Like-Matthews (ER) 1:03.85
2. Cailtin Raynor (L) 1:04.74
3. Emma Varner (ER) 1:07.97
Event 22 -
100 Yard Breaststroke1. Jade Hill (L) 1:11.85
2. Emma Varner (ER) 1:15.22
3. Danielle Jackson (FH) 1:15.59
Event 24 -
400 Yard Freestyle Relay1. Eleanor Roosevelt 3:57.23
2. Laurel 4:22.79
3. Bowie 4:25.86