Photos courtesy of Jamie Hester
Twelve teams jumped at the chance to get the 2014-15 swimming and diving season started at a meet hosted by Bryant High School at the Bishop Park aquatic center on Thursday.
Tiffany Robinson (Photo courtesy of Jamie Hester)
The big field created some tough competition and Conway used its quality depth to come away with the girls team title with 408 points. Pulaski Academy finished second at 336 with Cabot third (269). The host Lady Hornets took fourth with 249 points. Mount St. Mary Academy of Little Rock was a distant fifth at 186.
The Lady Hornets were led by senior all-State performer Lindsey Butler whose second-place in the 100 yard backstroke was the team’s top finish. Her 1:01.47 was just a tough off the pace of Pulaski Academy’s Allison Taylor (1:00.01).
Butler was also third in the 50 free at 25.01 and contributed a leg to the fourth-place relay team in the 200 medley, joining Lara Kockaya, Katie Higgs and Ploy Freebairn on a 2:02.05 clocking. That quartet also earned fourth-place points in the 200 freestyle relay, finishing in 1:48.28.
Individually, Freebairn was fourth in the 500 free in a time of 5:54.98 and Jessica Butler was fourth in the 200 individual medley, finishing in 2:25.63.
Jessica Butler captured fifth in the 100 free in 59.15 and Higgs was fifth in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:06.95.
Freebairn’s 2:28.67 in the 200 IM was good for seventh while the 400 relay team of Reagan Smith, Jordan Tarvin, Taylor Wilson and Jessica Butler earned a sixth-place finish in 4:27.39.
The Lady Hornets picked up top 10 finishes from Higgs in the 100 backstroke (1:09.78) and Helen Woodham in the 500 (7:01.32).
Bryant picked up points from Kockaya in the 100 breast stroke (10th in 1:21.31) and the 200 IM (14th in 2:44.97). Devin Hester was 11th in the 200 free (2:32.76) and 12th in the 500 free (7:11.05).
In the 50 free, Smith turned in a 28.86 to place 12th. She was 16th in the 100 free at 1:06.06 to contribute to the point total.
In the 100 butterfly, Taylor Wilson was 13th (1:20.68), Erin Vaughn 14th (1:21.28) and Tiffany Robinson 16th (1:23.03).
Ellie Hooten was 14th in the 200 free (2:37.41) and Jamie Hammers was 14th in the 500 free (7:23.30). Wilson added a 16th-place finish in the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:13.12.
The Lady Hornets will compete again on Thursday, Nov. 20, at Henderson State University in Arkadelphia.
Devin Hester (Photo courtesy of Jamie Hester)
