MEDFORD GIRLS SWIMMING - Every move works as swimmers speed past the Tridents

MEDFORD GIRLS SWIMMING

Another meet of mixing and matching swimmers with different events Thursday produced the same results for the Medford Raiders –– another lopsided Great Northern Conference win.

This time, the Raiders won all three relays and captured individual victories in all but one race in a 116-49 win over the host Ladysmith Co-op Tridents. The team win bumped Medford to 5-1 in the GNC with one more dual meet remaining. That is the home finale tonight, Thursday, against Lakeland at 5:30 p.m.

Medford swept the maximum 12 possible points in the 200-yard medley and 200-yard freestyle relays and scored 10 more in the 400-yard freestyle.

The medley team of Sydney Sperl, Chelsea Gebauer, Chiara D’Arienzo and Kodi Rappe got the meet started with a winning time of 2:05.41, while the B team of Cadance Haenel, Jayda Fryklund, Layla Petersen and Tana Rappe was second in 2:13.49, 1.58 seconds ahead of the Tridents’ team.

In the 200-yard freestyle relay, D’Arienzo, Gebauer, Sydney Sperl and Kodi Rappe won in 1:52.99, while Fryklund, Tori Nicks, Aliyah Galan and Mackenzie Petersen were second in 2:04.68, 2.33 seconds ahead of Ladysmith’s top team. Layla Petersen, Haenel, Fryklund and Kodi Rappe won the 400-yard race in 4:18.67, beating Ladysmith’s top team by 8.09 seconds. Nicks, Tana Rappe, Galan and Mackenzie Petersen took third in 4:35.62.

D’Arienzo made it a perfect four for four in event wins with her two individual victories. She swam the 100-yard freestyle for the first time this fall and won it in 58.99 seconds, the best time a Raider has had this season. Haenel was third in 1:06.26, 1.6 seconds behind Ladysmith’s runner-up Alyxandria Lunemann. Haenel edged Trident Abby Fye by 0.69 seconds.

D’Arienzo also swam her first 100-yard breaststroke for the Raiders and won it in 1:18.75, while Kodi Rappe was second in 1:22.7, 0.48 seconds ahead of Ladysmith’s Liv Repka.

Fryklund swam the 100-yard backstroke for the first time since Aug. 27 and was almost 11 seconds faster this time around, winning in 1:12.43. Tana Rappe was second in 1:17.06, beating Lunemann by 1.47 seconds and Nicks was fourth in 1:21.39.

Mackenzie Petersen continued to improve in the 500-yard freestyle, winning it in 6:12.22. The senior was 6.24 seconds faster than the week before and beat Tana Rappe, who easily took second, by 7.75 seconds. Galan was fourth in 7:26.01, more than 31 seconds faster than the last time she entered this race on Sept. 17. Petersen added a second-place finish in the 200yard freestyle at a personal-best 2:15.97, 1.35 seconds behind winner Sarah Allard. Nicks was third in 2:26.24.

Gebauer swam the 50-yard freestyle for the first time this fall and won it in 27.6 seconds as Medford swept the top three spots. Sperl (28.22) and Haenel (29.67) were second and third. Sperl won the 200yard individual medley in 2:32.33, while Layla Petersen was second in 2:48.47, 3.21 seconds ahead of Fye. Petersen, a little later, won the 100-yard butterfly in 1:10.54, 1.29 seconds ahead of Allard. Gebauer swam that event for the first time this season and took third in 1:14.11.

Mata Decker won the JV 50-yard freestyle in a personal-best 34.63 seconds, while Elizabeth Bartnik was third in 38.77 seconds. Decker also won the JV 100-yard backstroke, posting a time of 1:53.35 in her first time in that event.

Following today’s Senior Night meet with the Thunderbirds, Medford will prepare for the Great Northern Conference’s championship meet, set for Friday, Oct. 25 at 5 p.m. at Colby High School.