By Staff
participate in Junior Championships
By Michael S. Hill
Advance Staff Writer
As a tuneup for the Junior Championships, the Atmore Stingrays Swim Team competed against Monroeville in a dual meet July 13. The meet was originally scheduled for June 29, but was rained out. All events were 25 yards in length. Here's how the Stingrays performed:
In the 10-and-under division, Clare Jones placed second in the backstroke and third in the butterfly, breast stroke and freestyle events. Hillary Rolin took first place in the freestyle and backstroke while finishing second in the the butterfly and breast stroke.
In the 12-and-under division, Eva Currie placed second in the freestyle, third in the breast stroke and fourth in the backstroke. Amanda Hetzel finished second in the butterfly and freestyle and third in the backstroke and breast stroke events. Ben Hetzel placed third in the freestyle, breast stroke and backstroke competitions. Brandon Sharpless won first place in the butterfly and freestyle events and placed second in the backstroke and breast stroke.
In the 14-and-under division, Kerrianne Castleberry swam to first-place finishes in all four events she entered. She won the backstroke, breast stroke, butterfly and freestyle competitions. Cooper Jones won first place in the breast stroke and placed second in the freestyle and backstroke events. Tyler Jones took first place in the freestyle, backstroke and butterfly events while finishing second in the breast stroke.
In the 16-and-under division, Kristi Rigby placed third in the freestyle and breast stroke and fourth in the butterfly. Megan Rolin won first place in the freestyle, breast stroke and butterfly events and placed second in the backstroke.
Junior Championship Swim Meet
Fourteen teams and more than 500 swimmers descended upon Gulf Shores July 15 for the Junior Championship Swim Meet, presented by the Greater Mobile Swimming and Diving League.
Although Atmore took only 11 swimmers to the meet, there were some outstanding performances turned in.
Competing in the "A" division, Kaylie Castleberry brought home two first-place medals while Megan Rolin took one first-place medal. The "A" division is composed of swimmers who swam faster than the pre-determined time limits, or standards, for the different events. Therefore, if a swimmer qualified for the "A" division, they are termed Standard Breakers.
Here are the Stingray individual results:
In the 9-year-old division, Aaron Sharpless won a first-place medal in the 50-yard freestyle event. He also placed second in the 100-yard individual medley, fifth in the 50-yard backstroke and seventh in the 50-yard breast stroke.
In the 10-year-old division, Hillary Rolin placed fourth in the 50-yard backstroke, fifth in the 50-yard freestyle, seventh in the 100-yard individual medley and 12th in the 50-yard breast stroke.
In the 11-year-old division, Ben Hetzel finished sixth in the 50-yard backstroke, eighth in the 50-yard breast stroke and ninth in the 50-yard freestyle.
In the 12-year-old division, Amanda Hetzel placed fifth in the 50-yard backstroke, sixth in the 100-yard freestyle, seventh in the 100-yard individual medley, ninth in the 50-yard breast stroke and 10th in the 50-yard freestyle. Brandon Sharpless took third-place medals in the 50-yard breast stroke and the 100-yard individual medley. He also placed fifth in the 50-yard backstroke and sixth in the 50-yard freestyle.
In the 13-year-old division, Cooper Jones finished fifth in the 50-yard backstroke, sixth in the 50-yard breast stroke and eighth in the 50-yard freestyle. Tyler Jones won a third-place medal in the 100-yard individual medley. He also placed fourth in the 100-yard freestyle, sixth in the 50-yard backstroke and freestyle, and seventh in the 50-yard breast stroke. Kerrianne Castleberry snagged a third-place medal in the 100-yard freestyle while placing fourth in the 50-yard breast stroke, fifth in the 50-yard freestyle, seventh in the 50-yard backstroke and eighth in the 50-yard freestyle.
In the 15-year-old division, Kristi Rigby took third-place medals in the 50-yard breast stroke and 100-yard freestyle events. She also finished fourth in the 100-yard individual medley and freestyle, and sixth in the 50-yard backstroke. Megan Rolin took first place in the 50-yard backstroke, second place in the 100-yard individual medley and third place in the 50-yard freestyle.
Swimming as a Standard Breaker in the "A" division, Rolin took first place in the 50-yard breast stroke and third place in the 100-yard freestyle. Also swimming as a Standard Breaker, 13-year-old Kaylie Castleberry notched first-place victories in the 50-yard backstroke and 100-yard individual medley events, as well as a second-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle.
With the Stingrays nearing the end of their season, coaches and players voted for Atmore's Swimmer of the Year award. Nine-year-old Aaron Sharpless took the honors for the boys, while 11-year-old Eva Currie was the female awardee.