Tyrell Excels Despite Atoms' Average Finish In Swim and Dive

Woodson used an impressive showing in backstroke and breaststroke to pull away from West Springfield and win the 2011 Patriot District Boy’s Swim and Dive championship.

Both Annandale’s boys and girls had a strong showing in dive. Patrick McCann finished second on the boys side, and Allie Vogus and Paige Blennerhassett finished third and fourth for the girls. Kyle Tyrell couldn’t turn in a personal best in the 100 fly but still finished second with a time of 52.67, good enough for the state cut. He then dropped two tenths of a second to win the 100 backstroke with another state qualifying time of 52.23.

The Cavaliers had staked an early lead when Matt Hubbard, Jake Retting, and Connor Shannon placed first, fourth and sixth in diving. Lake Braddock rounded out the top three as the final scores were 490-454-380. West Springfield had chipped away at Woodson’s lead and trailed by just 13 points before the Cavaliers’ depth proved to be too much. Woodson picked up nine points in the 100 yard backstroke and 12 more in the 100 breaststroke, leaving the 400 freestyle relay as little more than a formality in earning its second straight district title.

“They were pumped up. They knew West Springfield was on their tail trying to regain the title, but our boys knew what they needed to do and they were ready to go,” Woodson coach Susie Hamrock said.

Both the Spartans and the Cavaliers distanced themselves from the competition during the 100 breaststroke as the teams combined to take the first eight places. Woodson’s Bo Ilgenfritz and Nate Pease finished one-two with times of 1:00.12 and 1:03.24.

South County’s girls finally broke the stranglehold Woodson and West Springfield had long held on the district as they also used a late push to take home the school’s first swimming championship. The Stallions trailed the Spartans by nine entering the 100 breaststroke, but Danielle Gemma, MacKenzie Walsh and freshman Brooke Malone earned 42 points and a 371-357 lead that held up with a second place finish in the 400 freestyle relay. Woodson’s girls took third as the final scores were 405-387-296.5.

Malone had a disappointing time in the 200 IM, but certainly made up for it when it mattered most by taking second in the breaststroke with a state qualifying time of 1:07.95.

“We swam very well. In the backstroke we were concerned, but three of the girls turned in personal bests,” South County coach Robert Jones said. “They came to win it, and they proved they were contenders this year.”

Jones said entering Saturday, he had scored his Stallions as finishing 12 points behind West Springfield.

In the Spartans second place finishes, one particularly bright spot was the effort of junior Colin Stephenson. He swam butterfly in West Springfield’s 200 medley relay that dropped over three seconds and took first with a time of 1:38.41 despite being seeded third. Then, swimming in the third heat of the 50 free, he dropped nearly half a second and jumped up to sixth place with a time of 23.10. Two events later, he dropped almost two seconds from his 100 fly to finish fourth at 53.35 and get below the state cut of 53.69. During the 200 freestyle relay, swimming third, Stephenson made up about half a stroke on Lake Braddock’s Cubby Maquera on his turn, and Matthew Gartzka was able to hold on to give the Spartans a first place finish with a time of 1:30.62.