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Stepping up against tough competition, the Rockbridge County High School boys swimming team placed second of 12 teams at the Region 3C meet on Tuesday of last week at the Brooks Family YMCA in Charlottesville while the RC girls finished ninth of 12 teams. Three RC boys and two relay teams qualified for the Class 3 state meet, while RC junior girl Rio Bucy also advanced.
In addition to qualifying by time, individuals qualified by placing in the top five, and relay teams qualified by placing in the top four.
Following up on a secondplace finish at the Valley District meet a week earlier, the RC boys scored 77 points, trailing only host Western Albemarle’s 155. RC head coach Erica Bisaillon said Western Albemarle is “one of the fastest teams” in Virginia High School League history.
“The personal improvement in swims is what we’re striving for, but the recognition that comes with a trophy is exactly what these boys de- served and will drive them through onto the state meet,” added Bisaillon.
Liberty Christian Academy placed third with 67 points, while Monticello (64) and Brookville (55) rounded out the top five. Last year, the Wildcats placed third at the Region 3C meet.
The RC girls, following up on a fifth-place finish at the district meet, tallied 10 points to finish just behind Wilson Memorial (eighth, 23 points) and ahead of LCA (10th, 9). Western Albemarle won the girls’ meet with 150 points, Monticello (118) placed second, and Fluvanna County (73) finished third. Completing the top five were Turner Ashby (fourth, 62) and Heritage (fifth, 44). Last year, the RC girls placed fifth at the regional meet.
For the RC boys, senior Will Gibbs, junior Spencer Pfaff and sophomore Keagan Black each advanced in two individual races.
Black defended his regional title in the boys’ 100-yard backstroke, finishing in 54.63 seconds, more than two seconds ahead of the runner-up, Wilson Memorial’s Liam McMahon (56.86). In the 100-yard butterfly, Black placed second in 53.34 seconds, only trailing Western Albemarle’s David King (51.26).
Pfaff, the Valley District boys swimmer of the year, won the 100-yard freestyle in 48.25 seconds, more than two seconds ahead of the runner-up, Monticello’s Val Dowd (50.3). In the 50-yard freestyle, Pfaff placed second in 21.46 seconds, trailing only WA’s King (21.06).
Gibbs placed second in the 200-yard freestyle in 1:53.17, trailing only LCA’s Jerry Gordon (1:47.1) and finished fourth in the 100-yard butterfly in 57.01 seconds.
The RC boys placed second in the 200-yard freestyle relay in 1:31.54, just behind Western Albemarle (1:30.01). RC team members were Black, Gibbs, Pfaff and junior Grayson Garcia. In the 400-yard freestyle relay, the same four boys teamed up to place second in 3:23.24, trailing only WA (3:19.58).
For the RC girls, Bucy advanced by placing fifth in the 500-yard freestyle in 6:04.46, about 11 seconds faster than her time at the district meet.
The RC girls’ 200-yard freestyle relay team missed qualifying for the state meet by two spots, placing sixth in 4:41.59. Team members were Bucy, seniors Greta Guse and Rowan Moles, and sophomore Lexi Walters.
Pleased by how her swimmers performed at the regional meet, Bisaillon said, “These swimmers have worked so hard for this, and I’m so proud of their swims. It’s hard to quantify how hard they’ve worked, but when you look at it over the course of the season, they’ve put in over 180 miles in the pool.”
“The excitement and energy that comes from a large meet like regionals is exactly what they need to put themselves in the right mindset and show up for their swims,” added Bisaillon. “We’re a small team, but we do what needs to be done.”
The Class 3 state meet will take place on Saturday at the SwimRVA Collegiate School Aquatics Center in Richmond.
