The West Potomac Girls Swim/Dive Team Capped Off an Exciting Three Days of Swimming With

2012 Northern Region Swim and Dive Championships Recap By: Sue Murphy, Janet Moffitt and Gretchen Walzl

The West Potomac girls swim/dive team capped off an exciting three days of swimming with a 2nd place finish in the 2012 Northern Region Swim and Dive Championships Feb. 2-4 at Oak Marr Rec Center. On the way to their runner-up finish, the girls posted a regional record and an automatic all-American time in the 200Y medley relay (1:46.19). The winning relay team of Reanna Doña, Maxine Clifford, Sara Bertram, and Hellen Moffitt also finished a very close second in a fast 400Y freestyle relay (3:32.21) to end the meet.

Sophomore Sara Bertram followed up the West Potomac victory in the 200Y medley relay with a seventh place finish in the 200Y IM (personal best time of 2:10.68). Later in the meet, Bertram swam to an impressive third place finish in the 100Y butterfly with another personal best time of 57.50.

West Potomac had two championship finalists in the 50Y freestyle. Senior Reanna Doña finished fourth in 24.26, while freshman teammate Maxine Clifford was sixth in 24.35. Both Doña and Clifford followed their 50Y freestyle races with top-eight finishes in the 100Y backstroke. Doña was third with a time of 57.21, and Clifford eighth in 59.83.

Junior Hellen Moffitt had a very successful Regional meet as well. She placed third in a very competitive 100Y freestyle, swimming 52.08 in a race that saw the regional record fall. Moffitt came back later to finish second in the 100Y backstroke in 55.96, giving the Wolverines an impressive 2-3-8 finish in that event.

How did we get to this point, see below:

Thursday night got us started with the girls showing us the way during the preliminary session. In the 500Y freestyle sophomore Carolyn Murphy, with the help of her brother Patrick as lap counter, came in 20th, just missing the cut for the finals. A short time later, Murphy and teammates Melanie Bomberg, Kristine Pinter, and Maddy Bolger swam to a 17th place finish with a time of 1:45.41, advancing to the finals as alternates.

------Friday night the boys garnered excitement when senior Trevor Jenne showed up at the blocks at the start of the boys 200Y medley relay, missing clerk of course entirely. (That's devotion because he made it just in time coming from an all-District band rehearsal). Michael Valceanu was down with a serious case of poison ivy (folks, it doesn't go dormant). Sophomore Cyrus Adams-Mardi bravely stepped up to the blocks to swim the 50Y backstroke leg of that relay. Freshman Will Rausch followed on the breaststroke leg, Jenne swam the butterfly leg and senior Patrick Murphy swam the final freestyle leg of the medley. Unfortunately, the time just wasn't enough to advance to Saturday’s finals.

The team of Patrick Murphy, Cyrus Adams-Mardi, Trevor Jenne and senior Jack King came back later to swim the 400Y freestyle relay, and gave it their all, finishing 24th.

Note: If anyone has photos of the boys from the meet, please send them my way for posting.

------Saturday night was complete noise. In the air, in the blood and in the water. To see pure JOY in girls’ faces, go to westpotomacsports.org, look under girls swim/dive and go to links. There is a picture from the Washington Post, All Met Section with a picture of the girls at the finish of the 200 relay. Also on the front page of the webpage are several photos from Saturday. To get the full article, go the Washington Post, All Met section in Sunday’s paper. Additionally go to the link for PVS Regional Results for complete results of the meet for both boys and girls.

The girls 200Y Medley relay didn't just win, they beat the regional record and went for an All American Time. Their only fly in the ointment was one Janet Hu (summer swimmers, you know the name).

That was just this week, Whew. My family wants me back, anybody's guess why. Anyhoo, the state meet starts in two weeks (Feb. 17 and 18), with updates to keep our fans apprised and hopefully there to cheer on the girls. Reanna Doña, Hellen Moffitt, Sara Bertram and Maxine Clifford have all qualified to swim two individual events each. West Potomac will also field girls’ relays for the meet.