MECHANICSBURG – Swimming is a highly competitive sport in Pennsylvania. And, it’s hard enough getting out of District 3 into the PIAA Championships.
Waynesboro’s Eve Phillips and Brenner McIlquham both did it. Phillips earned the gold medal at last weekend’s District 3-AAA Swimming and Diving Championships held at Cumberland Valley. She won the 50-yard freestyle and then placed second in the 100 freestyle.
“Pennsylvania is the fourth best state in the country for swimming and PA schools hold a number of National High School Records so this meet is tough to even qualify for,” said Waynesboro coach Sharon McIlquham of the PIAA meet.
McIlquham finished seventh in the boys’ 50 freestyle and will join Phillips in the state meet on the campus of Bucknell University in Lewisburg. The PIAAs will take place from March 13 to 16.
Phillips, a junior who qualified with a seed time of 23.51 seconds, improved on that time in the finals. She won the 50 freestyle with a time of 23.37 seconds, finishing ahead of three other sprinters with sub-24 second times. Julia Havice of Dallastown, a senior, placed second in 23.64 seconds.
Phillips placed third last year in the 100 freestyle in the District 3 Championships and was sixth in the 100 butterfly. At the state meet last year she was 13th in the 100 fly and 11th in the 100 free.
Phillips is ranked sixth in the state in the 50 freestyle and ninth in the 100 free.
Sylvia Roy of Mt. Lebanon is the top seed in the 50 freestyle (22.84 seconds).
“After Eve finished swimming last season we sat down and had a talk,” McIlquham explained. “I told her that her freestyle events have been looking strong and that she keeps improving every time she swims them and is at the point where I believed she could step up in the 50 and 100 and have some swims she would be happy with because she is so strong off of her turns.
“Eve is quite smart about her swimming, and she agreed so we put a plan into motion. The first step was no one was to know that she was switching her focus, not even her teammates. Next, she was to start hitting the weight room a lot more which she did. Sprinters need strength more than most other swimmers, and Eve was willing to put in the work. She and Brenner put on a lot of muscle in the off-season which helped them throughout this season and during the postseason so far. Finally, a lot of race strategy was put into play to prepare for Districts and ultimately States.
“The same with Brenner; he qualified for YMCA Nationals. However, it was more difficult to qualify for PA states, so our focus and strategy were put there.”
Ruth Phillips also competed in the 50 freestyle. She completed the race in 25.09 seconds and in 13th place. She is a freshman.
Eve Phillips also qualified for the state meet in the 100 freestyle with a second-place finish in a time of 51.52 seconds. Phillips finished close behind Havice, who won with a time of 51.47 seconds.
Waynesboro finished the 200 freestyle relay in sixth place. The team of Ruth Phillips, Belle Hess, Eve Phillips, and Maddy Stoops finished the event in 1:40.75.
The 400 freestyle relay featuring the same four swimmers placed ninth (3:43.86).
Waynesboro’s Jada Creager qualified for districts in 1-meter diving but did not place.
Waynesboro finished ninth in team scoring with 89 points.
In boys’ competition, McIlquham is going to the PIAA Championships in the 50 freestyle. McIlquham placed seventh with a time of 21.52 seconds. The event was won by Muhlenberg’s Brady Robidas in 20.60 seconds.
McIlquham, a senior finished 15th in the 100 freestyle (48.44 seconds). Robidas also won this event with a time of 45.72 seconds.
McIlquham improved by 22 places in the 50 free at districts. Last year, he placed 29th in the event.
McIlquham’s teammate, JB Bonner, placed 15th in the 100 backstroke (55.90 seconds).
Also in the boys’ competition, Greencastle-Antrim’s Sean Dewiler finished seventh in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 59.18 seconds. He was 10th in the 200 individual medley with a time of 1:57.84.
Chambersburg won the team championship with 289 points.
Alex Kaczmark was runner up in the 200 freestyle (1:42.05). Jed Ritchie was fourth in the 200 IM (1:55.73). Jared Estep placed second in the 100 butterfly (50.14 seconds). Teammates Cristian Pong and Kaczmark finished fourth and fifth, respectively in the butterfly.
The 400 freestyle relay team of Pong, Amir Tasker, Ritchie and Estep finished second with a time of 1:26.7. Tasker finished third in the 100 freestyle (46.71 seconds), while Cullen McGraw was runner-up in the 500 freestyle (4:45.36) and Pong placed fifth in the 100 backstroke (52.79 seconds).
The team of Kaczmark, Tasker, Ritchie and Estep won the 400 freestyle relay in 3:06.33. Keagan Myers rounded out the Trojans on the winner’s podium with a first-place finish in 1-meter diving with 312.55 points.
