It was just around 1 p.m. at the University of Maryland’s Eppley Aquatic Center when tension was running high. With just minutes left, the RM Swim and Dive team found itself in a miserable state of unknowing. The boys team had taken home the state title by over 50 points in 2016, and preliminary seedings had suggested that a repeat performance was highly likely. Nevertheless, at halftime, the Rockets were down around 20 points to Churchill and had already suffered a disqualification, several upsets, and time gains in key events.
However, the boys fought back with a strong second half, ultimately succeeding in defending their title by just barely edging out Churchill, 289-287. The victory secured the boys’ third win at States in four years.
While the meet had not gone as smoothly as expected from start to finish, RM not only managed to put many swimmers on the podium, but also showcased its spirit of teamwork and fierce determination.
After the 200 medley relay, consisting of seniors Matt Nguyen, Kenny and Greg Afolabi-Brown, and Jonathan Mendley, swam to a first place finish in the first swimming event of the meet, the scene was set for countless other top-eight performances and stellar swims. The 200 freestyle relay (both Afolabi-Brown brothers, senior Simon Li, and Mendley) also finished in first, simultaneously breaking the meet record, while the 400 free relay (sophomores Connor Din, Steven Mendley, and John Clado and junior Jack Rose) placed third.
In addition, Kenny Afolabi-Brown placed first in the state in the 50 freestyle, as did Rose in the 100 backstroke. Rose out-touched second place Michael Wong of Clarksburg by 0.02 seconds to break the school record and claim gold–had he gotten second, the boys team would have finished behind Churchill by a single point. “As I pushed off the wall for my fourth length, I saw Michael Wong, and I got a little scared because I knew his underwaters are better than mine,” he said. “I knew it all came down to that last length, so I used up all my energy, and it really did come down to the last stroke.”
Among the other podium placers (through 8th place) were Din (6th in 200 and 500 free), Jonathan Mendley (50 free, 7th), Steven Mendley (100 free, 8th), Rose (500 free, 3rd), Nguyen (100 back, 3rd), Kenny Afolabi-Brown (100 breast, 5th), and Li (100 breast, 7th).
While the girls were not quite as successful numerically, they concluded the meet in a stellar 11th place finish with 69 combined points. Senior Kamryn Umbel started off with a silver in girls diving on Friday evening, just 2.2 points out of first. The next day, the girls opened the swim meet with an 8th place in the 200 medley relay, consisting of senior Grace Sun, sophomore Caroline Cornish, and freshmen Sophia Wang and Joy Shi. The team had initially placed 9th, but an early takeoff disqualified the Churchill relay team–which would otherwise have been first–and opened up a spot on the podium for RM.
Sun, Shi, and Wang also swam individual events in which they earned 13, 6, and 2 points, respectively, for the girls team.
The girls swam in a total of nine of events and succeeded in dropping time off their seeds in eight of them. Each of the three relays in particular saw dramatic time losses, collectively scoring 48 points. “We actually did really well,” reflected sophomore Lauren Zhou, who anchored the 200 and 400 free relays. “Lots of best times, but mostly we just watched the guys because it was so close, and that was really fun.”
Featured photo by Chris Park
