NCMP shows off depth in home win over Oskaloosa

Sep. 15—The Newton-Colfax-Mingo-Pella girls swim team had a chance to mix and match its lineup and show off some depth while also competing well enough to cruise to another easy win.

The Aquagirls had no trouble downing Oskaloosa at the Newton YMCA and several swimmers got a chance to compete in events they don't usually get to swim in on Tuesday.

At the end of the night, NCMP won all but one varsity event, finished 1-2-3 in five events and cruised past the Indians 112-39.

"We were able to mix up our lineup quite a bit, so it was fun to see athletes swim different events, but still race tough," NCMP head coach Sarah Patterson said. "It was a great job by all of our swimmers."

The Aquagirls were 1-2 in the 200-meter medley and 200 freestyle relays and went 1-2-3 in the 400 freestyle relay. They were only awarded team points for the top two finishes in each event though.

In the 200 medley relay, the team of Lillie Ray, Addison Van Maanen, Paige Benson and Alex Riney won a competitive race in 2 minutes, 18.26 seconds. Finishing closely behind was the team of Maylei Ruggles, Brooke Linahon, Olivia Felten and Peyton Ray in 2:18.91.

"We started out with scrappy races in all of our medley relays where we arranged our lineup so teammates were racing," Patterson said. "Senior Olivia Felten had a fly swim that was on fire. I love a good race, too."

Riney led the squad with four wins on the night, while Lillie Ray and Harper Barton were part of three wins. Benson was on two relay wins and Linahon won a pair of individual events.

The 200 freestyle relay team of Riney, Benson, Evelyn Munk and Lillie Ray won the race in 1:59.51 and the foursome of Tori White, Van Maanen, Barton and Ruggles finished second in 2:00.22.

The Aquagirls went 1-2-3 in the 400 freestyle relay but only scored team points for the top two finishes. The winning team featured Riney, White, Izzy Lane and Barton and they won in 4:30.16.

The runner-up squad was Linahon, Munk, Hailey Dickerson and Peyton Ray and they finished in 4:33.76. Finishing third was the team of Estella Allen, Skyler Gooden, Lauryn Garrett and Avery Meyer and they stopped the clock in 5:00.51.

"Our last relays had some strong splits, including Alex Riney, Brooke Linahon, Tori White, Izzy Lane, Evelyn Munk, Hailey Dickerson and Peyton Ray," Patterson said. "Peyton's final split of 1:02.56 is our fastest meter relay split of the year so far."

Barton and White finished 1-2 in the 100 and 200 freestyle.

Barton won the 200 freestyle in 2:25.28 and White was second in 2:25.59. Dickerson took third, too, in 2:38.94.

In the 100 freestyle, Barton won in 1:06.12 and White was second in 1:08.45. Benson was just behind White in third with a time of 1:08.78.

"Freshmen Harper Barton and Tori White battled it out in the 200 freestyle where Harper took a narrow victory," Patterson said. "It's so exciting to have freshmen who are so competitive."

NCMP also was 1-2-3 in the 50 and 400 freestyle.

In the 50, Linahon won the race in 30.34, Van Maanen was second in 31.0 and Garrett finished third in 32.07.

Linahon also won the 400 freestyle in 5:24.63. Dickerson placed second in 5:39.55 and Gooden was third in 6:02.97.

"Brooke Linahon was on fire last night, winning both the 50 freestyle and the 400 freestyle," Patterson said. "She is an incredibly versatile athlete. Plus, we were able to celebrate birthdays for Brooke and Jacy who are twins."

NCMP was 1-2 in the 200 IM and the 100 butterfly.

Lillie Ray won the 200 individual medley in 2:44.66 and Lane finished second in 2:55.35.

"Lillie Ray won the 200 IM in an off event for her," Patterson said. "I told her it was good conditioning. Insert smiley face here."

Riney was the winner in the 100 butterfly in 1:15.23 and Peyton Ray took second in 1:16.04.

"Alex Riney and Peyton Ray went 1-2 in the 100 fly — a new swim for both of them," Patterson said. "They did really well, and it shows how hard they train that they can go out and swim a strong fly event."

Peyton Ray won the 100 backstroke in 1:17.94 and Lane was the runner-up in 1:24.61.

In the 100 breaststroke, the Aquagirls went 2-3 with Van Maanen taking second in 1:28.67 and Anna DeVries placing third in 1:32.63.

Notes: The JV races were mostly made up of all NCMP swimmers. Gooden and Ellie Wogen each were part of two wins to lead the way. "Great swims by our JV swimmers, many who swam new events," Patterson said. "Sky Gooden crushed the 50 freestyle — winning the event — and then went on to swim her first 400 freestyle where she posted a strong swim. Ellie Wogen had a great 400 freestyle, winning the JV event. Lauryn Garrett swam a strong JV 100 back and would have placed second in the varsity race."