In their last competitive event of the season, the Homer girls swim team claimed victory, and some closure, at the Kenai Peninsula Swimming Championships on Saturday in Homer.
The championships were held at the Kate Kuhns Aquatic center between Homer, Kenai Central, Soldotna and Seward high schools. The Homer girls won the meet with 117 points, and were followed by the Stars with 75, Kenai with 52 and Seward with 18. For the boys, Kenai took home first place with 117 points. The Stars took second for the boys with 68, followed by Seward with 63 and Homer with 17.
Homer’s Madison Story broke a school record she shared with her mother, Corise Story, as of last weekend. Just as last weekend, Madison got the record swimming the lead leg of the 400 freestyle relay. Last weekend, Madison tied the record by swimming 54.36 on the lead leg. Saturday, she broke the record by going 53.83.
The event was allowed by the Kenai Peninsula Borough School district under a set of safety protocols, while all other sports in the district have now been canceled. Only the swimmers whose events were currently taking place or coming up next were allowed in the pool area, and masks were worn at all times other than while swimming.
Story was also named female swimmer of the year for the peninsula, and Homer head coach Caleb Miller was named the peninsula’s coach of the year.
Kenai senior Owen Rolph was named the male swimmer of the year for the peninsula.
Homer seniors were honored a ceremony before the meet began. Story, Adeline Berry, Angelica Haakenson, Ella Blanton-Yourkowski and Emmet Wilkinson were all given gifts and flowers as part of the senior recognition.
Contributing to Story’s big day were wins in the girls 200-yard IM with a time of 2:08.9, and the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:04.92. She was also on Homer’s winning relay teams.
Story, Berry, Carly Nelson and Hannah Overdorf won the 200-yard medley in 1:51.86, and the same Mariners group won the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:46.50.
Berry and Nelson also notched individual wins on Saturday — Berry in the girls 100-yard butterfly with a time of 1:00.2 and the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 25,73, and Nelson in the 200-yard freestyle in 1:01.85 and the 100-yard freestyle in 55:15.
John Wright, Koda Poulin, Owen Rolph and Sorin Sorensen all helped propel the team to first place with individual wins. The Kardinals team of Tristen Reese, Brock Storms, Ethan Berga and Wright won the boys 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:45.55, and the team of Poulin, Sorensen, Rolph and Wright took first in the 200-yard medley relay in 1:47.18.
Kenai head coach Will Hubler said he appreciated the four-school meet being hosted to give his team’s nine seniors some level of closure to the end of their season.
“It was a weird season,” Hubler said. “I’m glad we got to do something for them, because a lot of them have been swimming since they were 6 years old.”
Kenai Peninsula Swimming Championships
Female Swimmer of the Year – Madison Story, Homer.
Male Swimmer of the Year – Owen Rolph, Kenai Central.
Coach of the Year – Caleb Miller, Homer.
GIRLS
Team Scores: 1. Homer High School, 117; 2. Soldotna High School, 75; 3. Kenai Central High School, 52; 4. Seward High School, 18
Individual events
200-yard medley relay — 1. Homer (Nelson, Story, Berry, Overdorf), 1 minute, 51.86 seconds; 2. Soldotna, 2:29.41.
200-yard freestyle — 1. Carly Nelson, Hom, 2:01.85; 2. Rachael Pitsch, Ken, 2:08.35; 3. Kylie Mullaly, Sew, 2:19.89; 4. Tirzah Frederickson, Sol, 2:19.93; 5. Bristol Johnson, Hom, 2:22.77; 6. Madison McDonald, Ken, 2:25.91.
200-yard IM — 1. Madison Story, Hom, 2:08.90; 2 Madison Snyder, Sol, 2:27.67; 3. Hazel Pearson, Hom, 2:36.76; 4. Olivia Overdorf, Hom, 2:51.42; 5. Eden Alioto, Ken, 3:00.26.
50-yard freestyle — 1. Adeline Berry, Hom, 25.73; 2. Regan Evans, Sol, 26.84; 3. Delta Fabich, Hom, 27.90; 4. Grace Morrow, Ken, 28.50; 5. Tirzah Frederickson, Sol, 29.80; 6. Maria Anderson, Ken, 30.88.
100-yard butterfly — 1. Adeline Berry, Hom, 1:00.20; 2. Mia Nappi, Sew, 1:03.08; 3. Julia Anderson, Ken, 1:09.08; 4. Olivia Overdorf, Hom, 1:22.41; 5. Evelyn Wilcox, Sol, 1:26.25.
100-yard freestyle — 1. Carly Nelson, Hom, 55.15; 2. Regan Evans, Sol, 1:01.29; 3. Delta Fabich, Hom, 1:02.92; 4. Grace Morrow, Ken, 1:03.71; 5. Wren Dougherty, Sew, 1:08.16; 6. Eden Alioto, Ken, 1:09.84.
500-yard freestyle — 1. Rachael Pitsch, Ken, 5:48.25; 2. Hannah Overdorf, Hom, 5:59.00; 3. Charisma Watkins, Sol, 6:15.61; 4. Madison McDonald, Ken, 6:25.32; 5. Evelyn Wilcox, Sol, 7:05.55; 6. Naomi Frederickson, Sol, 7:19.58.
200-yard freestyle relay — 1. Soldotna (Snyder, Frederickson, Watkins, Evans), 1:52.64; 2. Homer, 1:54.00; 3. Kenai, 1:55.82.
100-yard backstroke — 1. Madison Snyder, Sol, 1:07.35; 2. Hannah Overdorf, Hom, 1:08.81; 3. Julia Anderson, Ken, 1:10.51; 4. Bristol Johnson, Hom, 1:13.66; 5. Maria Anderson, Ken, 1:17.29; 6. Emma Snyder, Sol, 1:26.15.
100-yard breaststroke — 1. Madison Story, Hom, 1:04.92; 2. Mia Nappi, Sew, 1:08.34; 3. Hazel Pearson, Hom, 1:18.85; 4. Charisma Watkins, Sol, 1:21.82; 5. Kylie Mullaly, Sew, 1:22.40; 6. Deloma Watkins, Sol, 1:28.02.
400-yard freestyle relay — 1. Homer (Story, Nelson, Berry, Overdorf), 3:46.50; 2. Soldotna, 4:12.28; 3. Kenai, 4:39.85.
BOYS
Team Scores: 1. Kenai Central High School, 117; 2. Soldotna High School, 68; 3. Seward High School, 63; 4. Homer High School, 17
Individual events
200-yard medley relay — 1. Kenai (Poulin, Sorensen, Owen, Wright), 1:47.18; 2. Soldotna, 1:56.61; 3. Seward, 2:01.53.
200-yard freestyle — 1. John Wright, Ken, 2:04.34; 2. Brock Storms, Ken, 2:04.68; 3. Nikita Monyahan, Sol, 2:06.44; 4. Jackson Bird, Sew, 2:06.81; 5. Max Reese, Sol, 2:13.10; 6. Foster Boze, Sol, 2:13.19.
200-yard IM — 1. Koda Poulin, Ken, 2:06.35; 2. Tristen Reese, Ken, 2:24.40; 3. Bengimin Ambrosiani, Sew, 2:25.50; 4. Lucas Nollar, Hom, 2:32.43; 5. Hunter Fry, Hom, 2:33.25; 6. Anatoli Boutwell, Sol, 2:41.00.
50-yard freestyle — 1. Owen Rolph, Ken, 23.36; 2. Nathan Pitka, Sol, 23.97; 3. Paxton Hill, Sew, 24.32; 4. Peter Spanos, Sew, 25.48; 5. Emmet Wilkinson, Hom, 25.70; 6. Ethan Berga, Ken, 26.02.
100-yard butterfly — 1. Owen Rolph, Ken, 54.65; 2. Ethan Berga, Ken, 1:06.48; 3. Nickolas Ambrosiani, Sew, 1:11.30.
100-yard freestyle — 1. Sorin Sorensen, Ken, 52.39; 2. Nathan Pitka, Sol, 52.51; 3. Peter Spanos, Sew, 56.79; 4. Tristen Reese, Ken, 56.90; 5. Foster Boze, Sol, 59.38; 6. Brandon Christenson, Sol, 1:00.90.
500-yard freestyle — 1. Koda Poulin, Ken, 5:05.33; 2. Nikita Monyahan, Sol, 5:46.60; 3. Jackson Bird, Sew, 5:50.39; 4. Hunter Fry, Hom, 5:52.42; 5. Bennjamin Abel, Sol, 6:39.82.
200-yard freestyle relay — 1. Kenai (Sorensen, Storms, Poulin, Rolph), 1:35.05; 2. Soldotna, 1:42.85; 3. Seward, 1:46.48.
100-yard backstroke — 1. Paxton Hill, Sew, 1:01.39; 2. Sorin Sorensen, Ken, 1:01.46; 3. Brock Storms, Ken, 1:01.95; 4. Sam Mclain, Sew, 1:10.69; 5. Anatoli Boutwell, Sol, 1:12.89; 6. Bennjamin Abel, Sol, 1:15.43.
100-yard breaststroke — 1. Max Reese, Sol, 1:13.41; 2. John Wright, Ken, 1:14.46; 3. Emmet Wilkinson, Hom, 1:14.89; 4. Lucas Nollar, Hom, 1:15.93; 5. Enoch Frederickson, Sol, 1:17.15; 6. Judah Brueckner, Sew, 1:22.10.
400-yard freestyle relay — 1. Kenai (Reese, Storms, Berga, Wright), 3:45.55; 2. Seward, 3:52.80; 3. Soldotna, 4:12.09.
Reach Megan Pacer at mpacer@homernews.com.
