Dakota Swimmer Shines in Four Events at National YMCA Championship

Sophomore year is going very well for swimmer , who became a state champion in November and a second-place national finisher this week at a YMCA Championship Meet in Greensboro, NC.

Pugh, competing for the Macomb Family YMCA Marlins, was the runner-up Thursday afternoon in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 16:26.76. Thirty-two other young women from around the country qualified for that event.

The 16-year-old finished nearly as high in three other races, earning points daily during four days of indoor competition that ended Thursday:             

• Third place: 1,000-yard freestyle on Tuesday
• Fourth place: 500-yard freestyle on Monday
• Fourth place: 400-yard individual medley on Wednesday

Pugh, who also competed in the YMCA Nationals last April, is a varsity swimmer at Dakota. She won the 500-yard freestyle in last fall's Division 1 state finals at Eastern Michigan University and placed second in the 200-yard freestyle.

She is , as the school's athletics web page boasts with her photo.

This spring break week, Pugh's points at the Greensboro Aquatic Center were the only ones tallied by the Mount Clemens-based Marlins, who finished in 58th place.

The Greater Flint YMCA led among Michigan teams, winding up in 19th place with 182 points.

The Birmingham Blue Dolphins earned 33 points from two events for 49th place. That YMCA's 200-yard freestyle relay team finished seventh Thursday, scoring all but one of the points.  

The Farmington Family YMCA was 61st with 15 points, thanks to 17-year-old Marina Borri's eighth-place finish in the 200-yard breaststroke.

Michigan's 16 teams also included South Oakland Family YMCA (Royal Oak), the North Oakland Family YMCA (Auburn Hills), the Livonia Family YMCA and the Ann Arbor YMCA.    

Editor's Note: This article has been corrected to reflect that Pugh is a sophomore, not a junior as originally noted.