On Saturday, July 16, the Sewanee TigerSharks hosted nine teams from the surrounding area with a total of 590 swimmers, their coaches, parents, and families for the annual RACE League Championships, the exciting conclusion of the RACE League summer season. The TigerSharks finished in 3rd place, with a combined team total of 1696 points. Shelbyville Swim Club finished 2nd with 1785.5 points, while the Manchester Makos took 1st place with 2053 points. The TigerShark Boys’ Team finished 2nd to Manchester 854 to 1049, while the TigerShark Girls’ finished 3rd with 708 points to the Makos’ 828 points and Shelbyville’s 996.5 points. 

Brothers Konrad and Zolon Knoll dominated their age groups at Championships, earning High Point honors in the 6 & U Boys and 11­-12 Boys age groups respectively. Konrad Knoll took 1st in the 6 & U 25 M Freestyle (26.25) and 25 M Backstroke (28.99), and 4th in the 8 & U 25 M Butterfly (32.15), while Zolon Knoll took 1st in the 11­-12 50 M Breaststroke (40.84), 100 M Individual Medley (IM) (1:16.24), and 50 M Butterfly (32.44). Additionally, Zolon Knoll broke two of his own team records from the season and set three RACE League Championship Meet records in his individual events, breaking the 50 M Breaststroke record set in 2008 by Takato Imai, the

100 M IM record set in 2008 by Dean Blanks, and the 50 M Butterfly record set in 2007 by Reece Boyd. Jackson Frazier (10), set a new RACE League Championship meet record in the 9­-10 Boys’ 25 M Breaststroke and finished 1st with a time of 18.53, breaking his own RACE League Championships Meet record from the 2015 season. Frazier also set a new TigerSharks team record and finished 2nd in the 9­-10 Boys’ 100 M IM with a time of 1:26.49, breaking Zolon Knoll’s previous team record set at RACE League Championships in 2014. Frazier rounded off his meet performance with a 2nd place finish in the Boys’ 9­-10 Butterfly with a time of 17.47.

In the 6 & U Boys age group, Sam Frazier and Sawyer Barry had particularly strong meets, with Frazier finishing 2nd in both the 25 M Freestyle (27.80) and Backstroke (30.24) and Barry finishing 3rd in the 25 M Freestyle (29.92). In the Girls 8 & U age group, Loulie Frazier finished 1st in the 25 M Backstroke (22.31) and took two 2nd place finishes in the 25 M Breaststroke and 25 M Butterfly with times of 27.81 and 22.83, respectively. Other TigerShark swimmers who had exceptional meets with finishes in the top three in one or more of their individual events include: Reese Michaels in the 9-­10 Girls age group, with a 1st place finish in the 25 M Breaststroke (24.62), 2nd place in the 100 IM (1:44.35), and 3rd place in the 25 M Backstroke (22.83); Kiran Malde in the 7­-8 Boys age group with a 2nd place finish in the 25 M Breaststroke (30.11), and two 3rd place finishes in the 25 M Freestyle (20.76) and 25 M Backstroke (27.70); 13-­14 Boys Aidan Smith with a 1st place finish in the 50 Freestyle (28.80) and two 3rd place finishes in the 100 M Individual Medley (1:14.82) and 50 M Butterfly (32.01); 6 & U Girls Anara Summers with a 2nd place finish in the 25 M Freestyle (25.59) and 3rd place finish in the 25 M Backstroke (29.37); Maya Mauzy with a 1st place finish in the 9­-10 Girls 25 M Backstroke (22.05); 13­-14 Girls Zoey Craft with a 2nd place finish in the 50 M Breaststroke (44.18); 11­-12 Girls’ Edie Paterson with a 3rd place finish in the 50 M Backstroke (41.73); 15­-18 Girls Kate Butler with a 3rd place finish in the 50 M Breaststroke (30.33); and Stella Wilson in the 8 & U 25 M Breaststroke with a 3rd place finish in a time of 28.56.

The 8 & U Boys Freestyle Relay team of Beau Cassell, Jack Cassell, Sam Frazier, and Konrad Knoll finished 1st in a very close race with a final time 1:42.55 in comparison to the 2nd place time of 1:42.70 posted by the boys of Fayetteville Area Swim Team. Additionally, many of the TigerShark Mixed Medley relay teams finished 2nd or 3rd. The 9­-10 Mixed Medley Relay team of Maya Mauzy, Reese Michaels, Jackson Frazier, and Emery Preslar finished 2nd (1:21.28) to the Makos (1:21.15); the 11­-12 Mixed Medley relay of Libby Neubauer, Zolon Knoll, Edie Paterson, and David Dolack took 3rd (1:11.14) to the Makos’ 1st place finish (1:09.76) and Fayetteville in 2nd (1:10.47); the 13­-14 Mixed Medley relay of Luciana Mollica, Evan Fox, Aidan Smith, and Zoey Craft took 2nd (1:06.48), while the 15-­18 Mixed Medley relay team of Sophia Hartman, Sam Smith, Jake Wiley, and Kate Butler finished 2nd. In the Freestyle Relays, the 8 & U Girls Freestyle team of Caroline Neubauer, Maddy Van de Ven, Stella Wilson, and Loulie Frazier finished 2nd in a time of 1:29.51; the 9­-10 Girls Freestyle Relay of Reese Michaels, Sienna Barry, Sarah Brewster, and Maya Mauzy finished 3rd (1:23.57); 9­-10 Boys Freestyle Relay of Preslar, Malde, Zachary Anderson, and Jackson Frazier took 2nd (1:18.97); the 13-­14 Girls Freestyle Relay team of Sarah Grace Burns, Jenna Black, Luciana Mollica, and Zoey Craft finished 3rd (1:04.93); the 13­-14 Boys Free Relay team of Evan Fox, Harrison Hartman, Porter Neubauer, and Aidan Smith took 2nd (57.63); and the 15­-18 Boys’ Freestyle Relay team of Larson Heitzenrater, Sam Smith, Jake Wiley, and Garrett Shaw finished 2nd in 52.37.

Many TigerShark swimmers had their best swims of the season at the meet with significant time drops achieved including an outstanding 25.16 second drop by 8 & U Stella Wilson on her 100 M IM, a 17.57 second drop by 8 & U Boys Beau Cassell on his 25 M Breaststroke, a 12.79 second drop by 6 & U Boys Will Roberts on the 25 M Backstroke, a 10.55 second drop by 6 & U Boys Patrick Crawford on his 25 M Backstroke, a 9.02 second drop by 9­-10 Girls Sarah Brewster on the 50 M Freestyle, an 8.50 second drop by David Dolack on the 11-­12 Boys 100 M IM, an 8.06 drop by 9-­10 Boys Zachary Anderson on the 50 M Freestyle, and a 7.01 second drop by Adelie Saussy on the 8 & U Girls 25 M Backstroke. Additionally, 6 & U Rookie swimmers Leo Bunch, Lily Camp, Archer Ladd, Gillian O’Connell, Spencer Saussy, and Wyatt Saussy all swam independently and unaided for the first time this season at the Championship meet.

The Sewanee TigerSharks Swim Team was coached this season by Head Coach Alyssa Summers, and Assistant Coaches Anna Fox, Nan Long, Peter McCarthy, and Max Obermiller. The team will start practices again in mid­-April of 2017 with PreSwim Team practices that lead into the TigerSharks Summer Season. Interested parents and swimmers should check back for details in the early spring on the Sewanee TigerSharks website at www.sewaneetigersharks.swimtopia.com and/or send an email asking for information about how to become a TigerShark to [email protected].