Oklahoma high school swimming: Edmond North boys edge Jenks for Class 6A state title
EDMOND — Edmond North site coach Jared Prince knew his boys team would have a battle with Jenks at the Class 6A state swim meet.
Both rosters are loaded with talent, and they placed first and second at last year’s state meet.
Edmond North got close last season as it earned a runner-up finish.
But this year was different.
The Huskies finished with 362 points Friday night at Edmond Schools Aquatic Center, beating four-time defending champion Jenks by one. Edmond North now has four titles in boys swimming and claimed its first since 2016.
Edmond North won all three relays.
Ryan Healy, Collin Ho, Garrett Levendofsky and Riley Conway won the 200-yard medley relay (1 minute, 35.50 seconds). Jenks was disqualified in that race, which played a significant role in the team standings.
In the 200 freestyle relay, the Huskies won as Conway, Michael Harley, Dylan Eden and Jack Starrett finished in 1:26.84.
Starrett, Harley, Levendofsky and Healy sealed the win with a victory in the 400 freestyle relay, the final race of the night.
“Today, we just came in with the goal of sweeping the relays and that energy just pushed us through the whole meet,” said Prince, who is in his first year at Edmond North and also coaches for Class 5A Heritage Hall.
“Winning all the relays just changed our whole energy for the day. That really made the whole difference. They swam out of their minds today.”
Edmond North had three boys swimmers claim an individual title — Conway in the 50 freestyle (21.09), Starrett in the 100 freestyle (46.44) and Healy in the 200 individual medley (1:51.16).
“It was really a roller coaster,” said Healy, a Michigan signee who also placed second in the 500 freestyle (4:37.16). “After yesterday (at prelims), it was looking pretty bleak. Everything that needed to happen kind of happened for us. A lot of the guys swam lights out.”
Edmond North and Jenks had an incredible battle, but there was an even closer showdown on the girls side.
Jenks claimed its 14th girls swimming title after tallying 318 ½ points. Bartlesville was the runner-up with 318.
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Stillwater’s Littlefield claims two more titles
Avery Littlefield continues to dominate in Class 6A.
The Stillwater junior won both of her individual events after finishing the 50 freestyle in 23.09 and the 100 freestyle in 50.71.
She was within a second of breaking state records in both races. Former Edmond Memorial standout Sam Woodward has held the records since 2008 with times of 22.98 and 49.86, respectively.
“I think everything went better than planned,” said Littlefield, who now has five individual state titles. “Yesterday, I was really happy with both of my times. I cut in the 50 and in the 100, so I wasn’t really expecting much today. But I kind of surprised myself.”
Littlefield will likely swim at the Division I level and recently visited the University of Kansas.
Littlefield’s competition in Class 6A has ramped up since she was a freshman, and she lost the 100 freestyle at last year’s state meet.
Now, she has put herself in position to be a seven-time state champion.
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Other standout performances
● Norman freshman JD Thumann made a strong statement, winning the 100 butterfly (49.55) and 200 freestyle (1:40.70).
● Edmond North sophomore Kelsey Healy claimed the title in the 100 backstroke (56.52).
● The Edmond North girls won the 200 medley relay (1:49.09), 200 freestyle relay (1:38.97) and 400 freestyle relay (3:35.78). Healy, Caleigh Stoddard, Sarah Kingrey and Anna Young swam in the 200 medley relay, while Kingrey, Young, Caroline Glover and Laney Jones competed in the 200 freestyle relay. Glover, Healy, Stoddard and Jones made up the 400 freestyle relay team. Edmond North placed third in the team standings with 286 points.
Reporter Nick Sardis covers high school sports across the Oklahoma City metro and state. Have a story idea for Nick? He can be reached at nsardis@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @nick_sardis. Support Nick’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at oklahoman.com/subscribe or by using the link at the top of this page.
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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma HS swimming: Edmond North boys edge Jenks, win Class 6A title
