EDWARDSVILLE – The Montclaire Swim Club boys team dominated the races in every age group, taking both the boys and overall championships in the 62nd edition of the Southwestern Illinois Swimming Association meet, held Sunday morning and afternoon at the Chuck Fruit Aquatic Center at the Edwardsville District 7 sports complex.
The Marlins won the boys championship with 960 points, with the Collinsville Swim Club coming in second with 840 points, the Summers Port Club of Godfrey was third with 767 points, Paddlers Swim Club of Granite City was fourth with 566 points, and Sunset Hills Country Club of Edwardsville was fifth with 64 points.
Montclaire also won the overall championship with 1,972 points, while the Gators came in second with 1,876 points, the Sharks came in third with 1,421 points, the Pirates placed fourth at 1,148 points, and the Stingrays finished fifth with 507 points.
Montclaire came out on top with great performances from all their swimmers, but for a time, the eventual outcome was close, with any team capable of coming out on top.
Nugent pointed out some of his swimmers who had an outstanding meet on the day.
“Some of my nine-10 boys have been fantastic, our 11-12 girls, as a whole, have been awesome,” he said. “Overall, I’d say that everyone’s been a pretty solid swimmer today.”
For the Gators, it’s been a fantastic last two seasons, and Collinsville have built themselves into a strong contender, with many standout swimmers.
“Well, based upon technology, we know how we’re doing,” said Gators’ head coach Peggy Butler with a smile. “The scores have been posted all day, and so, we’ve just alternated between first and second all day So, I know we’re doing well.”
In the eight-and-under age group, Montclaire won the 100-yard medley relay with a time of 1:46.64, while the Gators’ Caleb Kober took the 25-yard freestyle at 18.83 seconds, and also won the 50-yard freestyle, coming in at 41.82 seconds. The Marlins’ Elijah Barth won the 25-yard breaststroke at 27.91 seconds, while Xaden Thompson of the Sharks won the 25-yard backstroke at 24.70 seconds, Kober won his third event by taking the 25-yard butterfly at 25.25 seconds, and also was part of the winning team, as Collinsville won the 100-yard freestyle relay at 1:33.25.
In the nine-and-10-year-old races, Montclaire’s Ashton Eastman won the 100-yard freestyle at 1:11.82, also taking the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 32.49 seconds, while teammate Joe Meyer won the 100-yard individual medley at 1:54.70. Aike Chen of the Marlins won the 50-yard breaststroke at 56.39 seconds, while Eastman won his third event of the day in the 50-yard backstroke at 40.74 seconds, Parker Dodds of Paddlers won the 50-yard butterfly at 52.00 seconds, and the Marlins won the 200-yard freestyle relay at 2:40.82.
In the 11-12 age division, Montclaire’s Caden Calvin won the 100-yard freestyle at 1:07.64, while the Sharks took the 200-yard medley relay at 2:35.99, Calvin won the 50-yard freestyle at 29.10 seconds, with Summers Port’s Eli Aldridge winning the 100-yard individual medley at 1:24.54, and Landon Brooks of Montclaire winning the 50-yard breaststroke at 43.32 seconds. Brooks also won the 50-yard backstroke at 40.36 seconds, while the 50-yard butterfly went to Calvin, his third win of the day, at 33.55 seconds, and the Sharks won the 200-yard freestyle relay at 2:15.30.
In the 13-14 age group, the Pirates’ Jackson Suhre won the 200-yard freestyle at 2:00.96, with Boden Rives of the Marlins taking the win in the 100-yard freestyle at 57.06 seconds, Paddlers won the 200-yard medley relay at 2:15.20, and Bram Malsbury of Collinsville won the 50-yard freestyle at 25.00 seconds. Suhre won the 100-yard individual medley at 1:04.78, then brought home his third win of the day in the 100-yard breaststroke at 1:11.56. In the 100-yard backstroke, the winner was Malsbury at 1:07.95, becoming a three-time winner in the 50-yard butterfly at 27.92 seconds, while the Pirates won the 200-yard freestyle relay at 1:49.33.
In the 15-18 category, the 200-yard freestyle went to Erick Humphrey of Summers Port at 1:58.45, while the 100-yard freestyle was won by Luke Berger of the Gators at 49.92 seconds, and the Gators won the 200-yard medley relay at 1:49.43. Berger took the 50-yard freestyle at 22.96 seconds, while teammate Tyler Brooks won the 100-yard individual medley at 1:01.62. Humphrey won the 100-yard breaststroke at 1:08.07, Brooks won the 100-yard backstroke at 59.11 seconds, Berger brought in his third win of the day in the 50-yard butterfly at 26.60 seconds, and the Gators won the 200-yard freestyle relay at 1:36.56.
The top point scorers for each age group were Kober in the eight-and-under division, with 48 points, the nine-and-10 top scorer was Eastman, also with 48 points, in the 11-12 division, the top scorer was Calvin at 48 points, the 13-14 winner was a tie between Malsbury and Suhre, both with 48 points, and the winner in the 15-18 group was Berger, who also had 48 points.
Dan Brannan also contributed to this story.
