The GHS swim and dive team began the winter season on the front foot. The girls placed second at the Friday Night Invite in Glenwood Springs on Dec. 6, and third in a relay-specific meet in Grand Junction on Dec. 7.
The commanding performances from the stacked senior class, and impressive times from underclassmen contributed to a soaring morale ahead of the home meet on Dec. 14.
“I was really impressed with the Petrie girls,” said Head Coach Tami Maciejko. “Maya made a state cut time in the 50 freestyle. She had never made an individual cut before, and absolutely crushed it.”
Seniors Sam Jones and Jemma Petrie returned to the pool right where they left off, and led the team from the top of leaderboards on Friday. Sam took first in the 100-yard breaststroke, and claimed first in the 200-yard medley relay alongside teammates Elora Jones, Maya Petrie and Audrey Meeuwsen. Her performance earned her state qualifying times in the 200-freestyle and 100-breaststroke.
Jemma cashed in 22 team points for the Cowboys with second-place finishes in the 200-yard IM and 100-yard butterfly. Her 200-yard freestyle relay with Kathryn Frey, Catalina Schwab and Maya also placed first. She joined Sam with a qualifying time in the 200-freestyle.
The stacked senior class shined, but GHS newcomer Meeuwsen also turned heads in her first high school meet. The freshman placed first in the 500-yard freestyle and contributed to the 200-medley relay team to earn 23 team points.
While Meeuwsen’s point tally led the underclassmen, Maya and Elora also earned 15 and 10 points each. Maya’s third-place time of 27.44 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle earned her a state qualifying time, and a reputation as one of the fastest freestylers on the team.
Seniors Frey, Catalina and Zia also led from the front. Frey bagged a second-place time of 2:19.77 in the 200-yard freestyle, while Catalina took second in the 100-yard backstroke. Zia placed second in the 1-meter dive with a final score of 151.05.
The Cowboys will host top Western Sope teams at a home meet at the Gunnison Rec Center on Dec. 14, starting at 10:30 a.m.
(Alex McCrindle can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or alex@gunnisontimes.com.)
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