BRUNSWICK

The USA Swimming Championship Meet was held at Bowdoin College last weekend with Long Reach Swim Club of the Bath Area Family YMCA, Casco Bay YMCA of Freeport and the Wiscasset Community Center among teams competing. Meet scoring was through the top 16 spots.

Casco Bay shined under head coach Dan St. Pierre.

“In the past, all of our age group championships have come in even-numbered years,” said St. Pierre. “In 2008 we had the YMCA 11-12 boys champions, in 2010 the YMCA 8-and-under girls champions, and in 2012 the YMCA 8-and-under and 9-10 girls champions. This year, after a somewhat disappointing YMCA championship meet, our 9-10 girls not only won their championship, but dominated it! This is also the first championship at the Maine Swimming USA Championship meet I have won as a coach. In 10 years of being the head coach at Casco Bay and over 10 years as an assistant coach at the Sanford YMCA or the Biddeford YMCA. If I remember the math right, they won by 209 points and if you went 209 points below second you were in 10th spot.

“The 9-10 girls also won the 200 medley relay by quiet a lot. But, we also had the winner of the 50 back, third-place finisher in the 50 fly and the 11th-place finisher in the 50 breast — all in one relay. It was quiet awesome to watch. Margie McLeod won the 50 back and 100 back as well. As a team overall age and gender, we finished ninth.”

Casco Bay won the 10-andunder girls with 585 points with Waldo County second (376), Long Reach seventh (259) and Wiscasset 14th (48), while Long Reach won the boys with 517 points with Wiscasset sixth (239) and Casco Bay 13th (45). Long Reach was first overall (776).

Coastal Maine won 11-12 girls with 1,064.50 points, with Long Reach third (410), Casco Bay 13th (53) and Wiscasset 19th (7), while Long Reach won 11-12 boys (828) with Wiscasset eighth (147) and Casco Bay 11th (43). Coastal Maine beat out Long Reach (1,302.50- 1,238) to win overall.

Long Reach won 13-14 girls (937), with Casco Bay eighth (210) and Wiscasset 14th (50), while Coastal Maine boys were champs with 682 points with Long Reach fourth (561) and Wiscasset 12th (148). Long Reach took overall (1,498- 1,141) over Portland.

In 15-and-over girls, Long Reach won (668) with Casco Bay 10th (99), while the Westbrook

Seals took the boys’ title (732) with Long Reach fifth (312) and Casco Bay eighth (100). Westbrook took overall (1.310-980) over Long Reach.

Casco Bay set several team records along the way.

Girls records included McLeod in the 9-10 100 free (1:07.64), 100 back (1:14.52), 500 free (6:53.89) and 100 individual medley (1:18.29), Eliza Lunt in the 13-14 100 breast (1:11.65) and 200 breast (2:41.59), Abby Belisle Haley in the 15-18 50 free (24.92) and Haley E. Estabrook in the 15- 18 1,000 free (12:07.25) and 1,650 free (20:06.44).

Boys records included Ben Cox-Faxon in the 11-12 200 breast (2:53.33), Zack Roland in the 15-18 50 breast (31.28) and 200 breast (2:27.10), Conner R. LaJoie in the 100 breast (1:07.03) and Travis Libsack in the 15-18 200 IM (2:06.00) and 400 IM (4:28.71).

“As for upcoming Zones, we only had two swimmers who accepted their invitation to go after they qualified. They are McLeod and Zoe Siegel, both from the 9-10 age group,” said St. Pierre. “The other swimmers offered to go, but turned it down for various reasons included Belisle Haley, Libsack, LaJoie, Estabrook and Lunt.”

Also, Belisle Haley made another National cut-time in the 50 free, bringing her total events qualified in up to four (100 and 200 fly, 50 and 100 free). Libsack just missed the cut-time in the 100 back by .23 seconds.

The YMCA National Swim Meet will be held in Greensboro, N.C. April 3-6.

“Two of the more impressive records set were the 9-10 girls 200 Free relay, which was set in 2006,” said St. Pierre. And the Senior boys 200 IM, which was broken by Libsack and previously held by Gettysburg graduate and threetime All-American Matt Libby, set back in 2008.”

In 10-and-under girls top point-getter was Emily Ecker of Portland Porpoise (165), while McLeod was third (145) and Wiscasset’s Vanessa Albert 12th (48), Casco’s Siegel 12th (48) and teammate Quinn Chicoine 15th (40).

In 10-and-under boys, Carson Prouty of the Hurricanes was first (180), with Long Reach’s Robbie Hyde third (131) and teammate Nicolas Holland ninth (85), Wiscasset’s Henry Currier 13th (50) and Long Reach’s Evan Willertz 13th (50).

In 11-12 girls, Gabby Low of the KVY Stingrays was first (177), with Long Reach’s Sophie Kruse sixth (122), while in 11-12 boys Liam Sullivan of Mount Desert Island was first (180), with Brian Hess of LRSC second (157) and teammates Jacob Stafford sixth (114) and Andrew Samson 15th (76).

In 13-14 girls, Sonia Lin of LRSC captured first with 167 points, while Ann Tolan of LRSC was 13th (112). In 13-14 boys, Talor Hamilton of Down East was first (174) with Casco Bay’s Adam Roland 15th (107).

In 15-and-over girls, Colby Harvey of Coastal Maine was first (161) with Jessica Russell of LRSC third (146), Lynsie Russell of LRSC seventh (119), and teammate Hope Logan 12th (97).

Arthur Conover of Mid- Maine Dolphins won 15-andover boys with 166 points, while Nate Samson of LRSC was eighth (122),

Long Reach

The LRSC 11-12 boys 200 medley relay team of Samson, Hess, Stafford and Matthew Yost broke a team and state record with a 1:59.28, beating the old team record of 2:00.75 (Matt Clark, Matt Hallowell, Derek Anton, Luke Crawford) and state record of 2:00.42.

Hess also broke his own team record in the 50 breaststroke with a time of 30.96, which was also under state record time, but he ended up second.

In the 100 breast Hess broke his own team record with a time of 1:09.50 and again his own in the 200 breast (2:35.00). And finally, in the 100 IM he broke his own team record with a time of 1:04.20

In the 13-14 girls division, the relay team of Emma Blair, Lin, Caitlin Tycz and Tolan set four team and state records: 200 medley relay (1:49.28 (“Faster than the Maine high school class A or B state champions,” said head coach Jay Morissette); 400 medley relay (4:01.96), 200 free relay (1:39.01, faster than the Maine high school class A or B state champions); and 400 free relay (3:42.30).

Also, Tolan achieved YMCA Nationals cut-off times in the 50 free (24.39) and in the 100 free (53.63).

In the Senior girls age division, the 400 free relay team of Jessica Russell, Logan, Tessa Lindsley and Celia Ouellette set a team/state record with a time of 3:35.27.

The 400 medley relay team of Jessica Russell, Catie Luedee, Logan and Ouellette set a team record in 3:59.47

Jessica Russell established a team record in the 500 free with a time of 5:05.50. Russell also qualified for YMCA Nationals in the 200 butterfly with a team record time of 2:08.26

In the Senior boys division, Henry Ditzel made a YMCA Nationals cut-time in the 100 breast with a time of 1:01.12

Nate Samson made a YMCA nationals cut-time in the 100 breast (1:01.24).

“Just another amazing swim meet,” said Morissette. “Most kids put it all together and swam career best times, fortunately all at the right time! Again our balance was the difference and our depth was unapproachable. We had three quality 13-14 boy relays each time and the best any other team could come up with was one! That was a huge advantage.

“In the extremely competitive Senior girl division, the LRSC B relays finished topeight and as high as fourth — ahead of most other teams’ A relays.

“My assistant coaches, Sponge Savage and Jeff Soreide did a great job keeping on top of the swimmers and keeping the focus in the right direction.

“The LRSC parent group was also amazing. We had parents helping in every facet of the meet management, from meet director to timers to marshalls. It was a huge undertaking on all fronts. In the end it’s all about the kids and they certainly made me and did the greater Bath- Brunswick communities very proud.

Up next, Long Reach has two swimmers competing at the YMCA New Englands at Springfield College this upcoming weekend. Evan Willertz and Emily Martin will compete in the 9-10 age group.

“We also have a couple kids going to U.S. Zone Championships next week,” added Morissette.

“We have 11-12 girl Sophia Kruse and 9-10 boy Robbie Hyde to represent LRSC in this all-star meet.”