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Freshman Raya Woods is in the water with senior Jazelle Sanchez diving in for her leg of the relay.
Freshman Elyssia Aguilar swims the Breaststroke. Jeanine Apuron | Sea Lions
Junior Taylor Woods competes in the Breaststroke. Jeanine Apuron | Sea Lions
The Miner swimmers hosted a three way meet against Florence High School and Arizona College Preparatory School on Tuesday, Sept. 23. The final scores for the Girls teams were: Arizona College Prep 94, San Manuel 52, and Florence 48. The Miner Boys got edged out in a very close meet: Arizona College Prep 85, San Manuel 81, and Florence 35.
Miner swimmers won some key races during the day. Senior Jazelle Sanchez won the always close 50 Freestyle against a solid field. The only other race won by the Girls’ team was the final event of the meet, the 400 Freestyle Relay. Jazelle Sanchez teamed up with Junior Cita Sweeney, Junior Mariela Canisales and Freshman Raya Woods. It turns out winning that relay secured enough points to pass Florence in the final score.
The Boys’ team won seven out of the 11 races (which included two out of the three relays) but were not able to win the meet because of the depth that the Arizona College Prep team had. With only seven swimmers, it would have been a huge achievement for the Miners to win the meet. As the meet unfolded, it looked as if the Miners might pull it off. After close losses in the first two events, the Medley Relay and 200 Freestyle, the Miners came roaring back, winning six events in a row. Freshman Will Newman won the 200 IM by over 30 seconds, and then Junior Taylor Woods won a close 50 Freestyle with a good burst at the finish. After the diving break, Will Newman won the 100 Butterfly against some very good competitors from both visiting teams. Sophomore Colbey Stratton won the 100 Freestyle followed by a win in the 400 Freestyle by Jacob Christian. The Miners would have the win 200 Freestyle relay if they hoped to win the meet, the team of Taylor Woods, Colbey Stratton, Sophomore Michael Garcia, and Sophomore Robert Sweeney won a race that had three lead changes with the Miners ahead at the finish. As the Miners celebrated the relay win, Arizona College Prep’s B Relay team quietly finished fourth to essentially put the meet out of reach for the Miners. The Miners also went on the win the 400 Freestyle by a huge margin (Stratton, Newman, Christian, and Sweeney).
Miner swimmers are looking forward to the next meet against Florence, Canyon State Academy and Combs at the Merrill Ranch Pool in Florence on Thursday, Oct. 2 at 4 p.m.
There are news or informational items frequently written by staff or submitted to the Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner, Superior Sun, Pinal Nugget or Oracle Towne Crier for inclusion in our print or digital products. These items are not credited with an author.
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