By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com
Swimmers know what’s supposed to happen in the pool come Metros.
They know who they’ve beaten, who’s been training hard, who has the fastest times. And if they don’t, they’re quickly told.
But when Churchill’s girls swimming team heard the swimming community talking about how they were set to end Good Counsel’s 12-year run of winning Metros, it freaked them out a bit.
“It scared me,” junior Alicia Watkins said, “when we first heard we were going to win Metros, when everybody was talking about us.”
Now, months later after feeling the hype, Churchill fulfilled its billing, breaking Good Counsel’s dominance by scoring 414 team points compared to Good Counsel’s 337. Whitman placed third and Walter Johnson girls took fourth.
Churchill also won the overall title, combining boys and girls scores, by scoring 677 points compared to Good Counsel’s 610.
Whereas last week, when Churchill clinched the boys and girls county championship and tossed Coach Rodney Van Tassell into the pool, this week the entire team went in for a swim.
It may be the start of a changing of the guard in the high school swimming scene, which has been long dominated by the public schools.
“I think this says a lot about the parity of swimming in this area,” Van Tassell said. “I think that’s the way it’s going to be for a while.”
The Bulldogs did it the way they’ve been doing it all year, with depth and a select few standout moments. Overall, Good Counsel won six events, compared to just two by Churchill.
Capping off the day was a triumphant Churchill victory at the 400-yard freestyle relay. The Bulldogs had lost to Walter Johnson in duals, divisionals and counties but ended up winning by a full second.
Watkins was dominant throughout the day, and especially so during her leg of the 400-yard freestyle relay. Individually, she won the 500-yard freestyle by a staggering 5.33 seconds, besting her personal best of 5:03 with an automatic All-American time of 4:56.03.
“I kept telling them all year that’s our best relay,” Van Tassell said. “It was all just a matter of them believing they could do it.”
Georgetown Prep claimed the boy’s title by 21.5 points over Gonzaga. The Little Hoyas were led by senior Brady Fox, who broke his own 100-yard fly Metros record with a time of 48.71. Fox also chased the 100-yard back Metro record but fell 0.39 milliseconds short.
Prep also won the 200-yard medley relay and 200-yard free with Matt Thomas.
“Standing here with my best time in the 100 fly, a great relay split, I’m happy,” Fox said. “I’m a little disappointed with my 100 back but I did what I needed to do. … Our main goal was to just win the meet.”
Several other Metros records were toppled Saturday. O’Connell’s Michael Flach broke the 500-yard free with a time of 4:26.02, more than four seconds less than Yuri Suguiyama’s 2000 record. Poolesville junior Cara Chuang broke her own record in the 100-yard backstroke by 0.38 milliseconds with a time of 55.24.
Good Counsel’s boys 200-yard free relay – consisting of Zack Wepasnick, Matt Reinheimer, Casey Stodter and Kevin Vallario – toppled Paul VI’s record from 1999 with a time of 1:25.71.
Gonzaga’s 400-yard freestyle relay team – consisting of Brian Murphy, Brendan Whipkey, Doug Mackenzie and Pat Sullivan — topped Georgetown Prep and broke the Little Hoyas’ record by nearly four seconds.
Walter Johnson sophomore Elizabeth Pepper, O’Connell’s Flach, Good Counsel freshman Sarah Haase and Sherwood’s Emily Ryczek were all individual double champions.
Event 1: Boys 200 Medley Relay
Georgetown Prep (Brady Fox, Raymond Chi, Matt Thomas, Adam Spencer) – 1:34.99
Event 2: Girls 200 Medley Relay
Whitman (Victoria Kuhn, Reia Tong, Danielle Schulkin, Lauren Poore) – 1:48.41
Event 3: Boys 200 Free
Matt Thomas, Georgetown Prep – 1:38.81
Event 4: Girls 200 Free
Elizabeth Pepper, Walter Johnson – 1:50.55
Event 5: Boys 200 IM
Michael Flach, O’Connell – 1:51.15
Event 6: Girls 200 IM
Sarah Haase, Good Counsel – 2:04.17
Event 7: 50 Free
Pat Sullivan, Gonzaga – 20.86
Event 8: 50 Free
Emily Ryczek, Sherwood – 23.99
Event 11: Boys 100 Fly
Brady Fox, Georgetown Prep – 48.71
Event 12: Girls 100 Fly
Danielle Schulkin, Whitman – 56.00
Event 13: Boys 100 Free
Kevin Vallario, Good Counsel – 45.73
Event 14: Girls 100 Free
Emily Ryczek, Sherwood – 51.72
Event 15: Boys 500 Free
Michael Flach, O’Connell – 4:26.02
Event 16: Girls 500 Free
Alicia Watkins, Churchill – 4:56.38
Event 17: Boys 200 Free Relay
Good Counsel (Zack Wepasnick, Matt Reinheimer, Casey Stodter, Kevin Vallario) – 1:25.71
Event 18: Girls 200 Free Relay
Good Counsel (Sarah Haase, Morgan Dailey, Nora Considine, Blair Webb) – 1:38.14
Event 19: Boys 100 Back
Brady Fox, Georgetown Prep – 49.19
Event 20: Girls 100 Back
Cara Chuang, Poolesville – 55.24
Event 21: Boys 100 ******
Evan Wollman, DeMatha – 56.07
Event 22: Girls 100 ******
Sarah Haase, Good Counsel – 1:02.51
Event 23: Boys 400 Free Relay
Gonzaga (Brian Murphy, Brendan Whipkey, Doug Mackenzie, Pat Sullivan) – 3:05.97
Event 24: Girls 400 Free Relay
Churchill (Natalya Ares, Shannon Ridge, Maria Watkins, Yvonne Huo) – 3:33.12
TEAM STANDINGS
Boys
1. Georgetown Prep – 433
2. Gonzaga – 401.5
3. Good Counsel – 273
4. Churchill – 263
5. DeMatha – 252
6. Walter Johnson – 193
7. Sherwood – 156
8. O’Connell – 139
9. Paul VI – 137
10. Wootton – 131
11. B-CC – 117
12. Blair – 116.5
13. Whitman – 110
14. St. Stephen’s/St. Agnes – 108
15. Northwest – 96
Girls
1. Churchill – 414
2. Good Counsel – 337
3. Whitman – 306
4. Walter Johnson – 280
5. Holy Cross – 257
6. St. John’s – 164
7. Bishop Ireton – 149
8. Northwest – 146
9. Sherwood – 137
10. O’Connell – 136
11. Quince Orchard – 125
12. Richard Montgomery – 120
13. Poolesville – 111
14. Holton Arms – 89
15. Sidwell Friends – 82
Combined
1. Churchill – 677
2. Good Counsel – 610
3. Walter Johnson – 473
4. Georgetown Prep – 443
5. Whitman – 416
6. Gonzaga – 401.5
7. Sherwood – 293
8. O’Connell – 275
9. Holy Cross – 257
10. DeMatha – 252
11. Northwest – 242
12. Bishop Ireton – 229
13. Wootton – 211
14. St. John’s – 194
15. Blair – 157.5
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