WHITE RIVER JUNCTION — Both the Vergennes Champs and Middlebury Marlins came home with titles from the Vermont Swim Association 2018 Championships, held this past weekend at the Upper Valley Aquatic Center in White River Junction.
The Champs won the Division II championship by finishing first in five individual races and one relay, second in four other relays, and third in a fifth relay race.
Almost all of those top finishes were earned by swimmers 12 years old or younger, including Connor Husk, 6, who won two races and broke a state record in the 6-and-under 25-yard backstroke set in 2015 by his now 9-year-old teammate Will Clark.
Clark won a 10-and-under race, Carlyn Rapoport won an 11-12 race, and Sebastian Giroux and Ellie Brooks won 8-and-under events.
Brooks also joined Ellie Bearor, Petra Fearon and Sophia James in winning the girls’ 8-and-under 100-yard freestyle relay, and those same four were second in the 8U medley relay. Two more Champ relay teams placed in the top five in the 8U freestyle relay.
Rapoport joined her 10U girls’ teammates Madelyn Giroux, Acadia Clark and Hadley Harris to finish second in b
oth relays in that age group. The most notable exceptions to the Champs’ youth movement were Olivia Hawkins, whose strong 17-18 and 18U finishes included a second place, and the 18U girls’ free relay quartet of Anna Rakowski, Emma Beauchemin, Jordan Jewell and Hawkins, who swam to a third-place result.
Hawkins and another Champ senior swimmer who posted strong results, Ethan Sausville, were swimming in their last meets for the team.
In all, the Champs scored 1,557 points, good for fourth overall in Vermont behind the three large Division I
Chittenden County teams that also dominated the Champlain Valley Swim League meet the week before: repeat state champion The Edge (4,406), followed by Essex (2,416) and Burlington Tennis Club (2,005).
Within Division II Brattleboro (1,369.5), St. Albans (1,354.5) and Manchester (1,228) trailed Vergennes.
Meanwhile, the smaller Marlins team relied on older swimmers to take first place in Division IV, scoring 643.5 points to edge Quechee (585.5), with Bennington (534) and the CRV Stingrays (467) trailing.
The Marlins did not win any events, but 18U swimmer Archie Milligan posted two seconds and swam on two third-place relay teams, joining Oliver Poduschnick, Fraser Milligan and Will Carpenter in the freestyle relay, and Fraser Milligan, Poduschnick and Nathan Stone to win the medley relay bronze.
Also earning a second-place finish for the Marlins was one younger swimmer, Lucy Poduschnick, in the 8U 50 breaststroke. She also placed fifth in the 50-Fly.
Athletes in most age ranges scored points for both teams, many of them with top-five finishes and many in multiple events.
Swimmers for both teams who posted top-12 results were:
GIRLS’ RESULTS:
• 6U 25-yard freestyle: 6. Isabella De La Cruz, V, 27.02.
• 7-8 25 free: 6. Sadie Chance, M, 19.37; 7. Bearor, V, 19.54; 11. Fearon, V, 20.13.
• 7-8 25 back: 1. Brooks, V, 21.01; 5. Aurora, Foley, M, 23.49; 9. Annika Smits, V, 24.15.
• 8U 50 free: 2. Brooks, V, 43.15; 4. Bearor, V, 443.83.
• 8U 50 breaststroke: 2. M. Poduschnick, M, 23.74; 3. James, V, 24.68; 4. Sadie Chance, M, 25.90; 9. Jordan Hutchins, V. 27.87; 12. Reese Muzzy, V, 28.38.
• 8U 50 fly: 3. Bearor, V, 22.24; 4. James, V, 22.47; 5. M. Poduschnick, M, 22.79; 6. S. Chance, M, 22.88; 9. Foley, M, 23.86; 12. P. Fearon, V, 25.65.
• 8U individual medley: 5. James, V, 1:54.50; 8. Brooks, V, 1:58,76.
• 8U 100 free relay: 1. V, 1:19.95: (Bearor, Fearon, James, Brooks); 3. V (Husk, Kruse, Smits, Muzzy); 5. V (Buskey, Clark, Maneen, Hutchins).
• 8U 100 medley relay: 2. V, 1:32,91 (Bearor, Fearon, James, Brooks). (Ellie Brooks is pictured, below.)
• 10U 100 free relay: 11. V, 1:17.36 (Isabella Romond, Libby Ringer, Marianne Webb, Adrienne Smits).
• 10U 100 medley relay: 6. V, 1:24.31 (Ringer, Smits, Ellie Eckels, Romond).
• 11-12 50 free: 6. Harris, V, 29.09.
• 11-12 100 free: 8. M. Giroux, V, 1:08.53; 10. Bee Eckels, V, 1:11.19.
• 11-12 50 back: 5. Harris, V, 34.70.
• 11-12 50 breast: 2. Rapoport, V, 35.74; 4. Harris, V, 37.33.
• 11-12 50 free: 6. Giroux, V, 31.81; 11. Ac. Clark, V, 33.16.
• 12U IM: 4. Ac. Clark, V, 1:14.57; 7. Harris, V, 1:16.14; 8. Giroux, V, 1:16.51; 10. Rapoport, V, 1:18.86.
• 12U 100 back: 6. B. Eckels, V, 1:21.93.
• 12U 100 breast: 1. Rapoport, V, 1:10.76; 2. Ac. Clark, 1:22.71.
• 12U 100 fly: 4. Giroux, V, 1:17.61; 6. Clark, V, 1:19.92.
• 12U 200 free relay: 2. V, 1:56.19 (Giroux, Clark, Rapoport, Harris).
• 12U 200 medley relay: 2. V, 2:12.83 (Giroux, Clark, Rapoport, Harris).
• 13-14 50 free: 11. Allie Croke, V, 28.43.
• 13-14 100 back: 9. A. Croke, V, 1:11.70.
• 13-14 50 breast: 6. Holly Staats, M, 35.05.
• 13-14 100 breast: 4. Staats, M, 1:17.14.
• 13-14 50 fly: 6. Staats, M, 30.93; 10 Natalie Rockwell, M, 31.37.
• 13-14 IM: 7. A. Croke, V, 1:11.56.
• 14U 200 free relay: 11. M, 2:06.30 (Rockwell, Catherine Carpenter, Lucy Poduschnick, Staats).
• 14U 200 medley relay: 9. M, 2:19.79 (Maddie Crowne, Rockwell, Staats, Carpenter).
• 15-16 50 free: 4. Leah Croke, V, 26.05; 9. Rakowski, V, 27.15; 11. Beauchemin, V, 27.58; 12. Jewell, V, 27.72.
• 15-16 100 free: 6. Leah Croke, V, 58.83; 8. Rakowski, V, 1:00.21; 10. Beauchemin, V, 1:01.75; 12. Grace LeBeau, V, 1:02.49.
• 15-16 200 free: 5. Rakowski, V, 2:16.12; 7. Beauchemin, V, 2:21.38; 12. Emma Huestis, V, 2:37.81.
• 15-16 100 back: 10. Rakowski, V, 1:12.43.
• 15-16 50 breast: 10. Rachel Merrill, M, 36.98; 12. LeBeau, V, 38.45.
• 15-16 100 breast: 10. Merrill, M, 1:22.66.
• 15-16 50 fly: 7. Croke, V, 29.66; 12. Merrill, M, 30.51.
• 15-16 100 fly: 6. Merrill, M, 1:13.22.
• 17-18 50 free: 6. Hawkins, V, 27.61.
• 17-18 100 free: 4. Hawkins, V, 1:02.72.
• 17-18 50 breast: 2. Hawkins, V, 34.74. 
• 17-18 100 breast: 3. Hawkins, V, 1:18.63.
• 18U free relay: 3. V, 1:50.19 (Rakowski, Beauchemin, Jewell, Hawkins).
• 18U medley relay: 5. V, 2:04.45 (L. Croke, Jewell, Hawkins, Rakowski).
 
THE VERGENNES EIGHT-and-under relay team of Sophia James, left, Ellie Brooks, Petra Fearon and Ella Bearor won the freestyle relay at last weekend’s state championship meet.
 
Courtesy photo
 
BOYS’ RESULTS:
• 6U 25 free: 1. Husk, V, 19.78.
• 6U 25 back: 1. Husk, V, 24.28, state record.
• 7-8 25 free: 3. Flint Crary, V, 17.38.
• 7-8 25 back: 10. F. Crary, V, 25.10.
• 8U 25 breast: 1. S. Giroux, V, 23.44; 7. F. Crary, V, 26.70;
• 8U 25 fly: 6. F. Crary, V, 25.26.
• 9-10 25 free: 4. W. Clark, V, 14.35.
• 9-10 50 free: 4. W. Clark, V, 32.28; 12. Clark Clary, V, 37.49.
• 9-10 25 back: 1. W. Clark, V, 17.19.
• 9-10 25 breast: 3. W. Clark, V, 20.26; 10. C. Clary, V, 21.98.
• 9-10 25 fly: 12. Quinn LeBeau, V, 20.24.
• 10U 100 free relay: 2. V, 1:08.45 (C. Clary, LeBeau, Tiegen Buskey, W. Clark).
• 10U 100 medley relay: 2. V, 1:21.14 (W. Clark, C. Clary, Buskey, Cohen Howell); 8. V (Potter, LeBeau, Smits, De La Cruz).
• 11-12 50 back: 8. Calder Rakowski, V, 38.03.
• 11-12 IM: 12. C. Rakowski, V, 1:24.01.
• 12U 100 back: 7. Ethan Croke, V, 1:22.09.
• 12U 100 fly: 7. E. Croke, V, 1:31.63.
• 12U 200 free relay: 7. V, 2:23.11 (Tyler Kimball, Luke Davis, Grey Fearon, C. Rakowski).
• 12U 200 medley relay: 8. V, 2:45.81 (C. Rakowski, E. Croke, Kimball, Davis).
• 13-14 50 free: 7. Carson Hoffman, V, 26.69; 10. Adam Clark, V, 27.97; 12. Aidan Chance, M, 28.99.
• 13-14 200 free: 7. Ad. Clark, V, 2:24.56.
• 13-14 50 back: 8. Ad. Clark, V, 34.17.
• 13-14 100 back: 7. Ad. Clark, V, 1:14.66; 8. A. Chance, M, 1:16.59.
• 13-14 50 breast: 6. Hoffman, V, 34.07.
• 13-14 50 fly: 4. Hoffman, V, 28.82.
• 13-14 IM: 11. A. Chance, M, 1:17.52.
THE MIDDLEBURY MARLINS swim team won Division IV at last weekend’s Vermont Swim Association championships in White River Junction. Pictured with coach Colleen Rueppel, center, are swimmers Archie Milligan, left, Fraser Milligan, Lucy Poduschnick and Will Carpenter.
Courtesy photo
 
• 15-16 50 free: 5. O. Poduschnick, M, 23.59; 6. F. Milligan, M, 24.45; 7. W. Carpenter, M, 24.46; 8. Devon Kearns, M, 24.83; 9. Stone, M, 25.24.
• 15-16 100 free: 5. F. Milligan, M, 53.79.
• 15-16 50 back: 4. W. Carpenter, M, 29.90; 6. Andy Rockwell, M, 31.07.
• 15-16 50 breast: 5. F. Milligan, M, 29.70; 6. O. Poduschnick, M, 29.89; 7. W. Carpenter, M, 30.43; 10. Kearns, M, 32.15; 11. Stone, M, 32.23.
• 15-16 100 breast: 5. F. Milligan, M, 1:04.78; 7. O. Poduschnick, M, 1:07.41; 9. Kearns, M, 1:11.76.
• 15-16 50 fly: 4. O. Poduschnick, M. 26.59; 5. W. Carpenter, M, 26.69; 6. Kearns, M, 29.01; 10. A. Rockwell, M, 29.52; 12. Jarret Muzzy, V, 30.24.
• 15-16 200IM: 7. A. Rockwell, M, 2:41.80.
• 17-18 50 free: 11. Sausville, V, 25.05;
• 17-18 200 free: 3. A. Milligan, M, 1:48.93.
• 17-18 50 back: 4. A. Milligan, M, 27.69.
• 17-18 100 back: 2. A. Milligan, M, 57.39.
• 17-18 50 fly: 5. Sausville, V, 26.86.
• 17-18 100 fly: 4. Sausville, V, 1:03.7.
• 18U free relay: 3. M, 1:35.45 (A. Milligan, F. Milligan, W. Carpenter, O. Poduschnick); 9. V, 1:50.12 (J. Muzzy, Nate Muzzy, Ad. Clark, Sausville).
• 18U medley relay: 3. M, 1:47.83 (A. Milligan, Stone, F. Milligan, O. Poduschnick); 8. M (A. Rockwell, Kearns, W. Carpenter, A. Chance); 10. V (Ad. Clark, Sausville, Hoffman, Muzzy).
• Open 500 free: 2. A. Milligan, M, 4:55.33; 7. A. Chance, M, 6:26.46.