3 Records Downed at the 2020 NCHSAA 1A/2A Meet

2020 NCHSAA 1A/2A Swimming and Diving Championships

• February 6th & 7th, 2020
• Hosted by : Patriot Athletic Conference
• Triangle Aquatic Center – Cary, NC
• 25 yards, prelims/finals
• RESULTS

Carrboro girls won their 2nd title in 2 years while the Pine Lake Prep boys took home their 1st ever team title at the 2020 1A/2A State NCHSAA Championships this past week.

The Class 1A/2A meet is one of 3 North Carolina state championships in swimming & diving, comprising the smallest schools in the state.

Girls Meet

Sophomore Lindy Bilden was a key swimmer as the Carrboro girls took a narrow win over Lincoln Charter in the Class 1A/2A meet. Bilden clocked a 1^st place finish in the 50 free (23.65) and also earned 3^rd place in the 100 fly (55.41). She was a part of both the 200 and 400 free relays where the girls took 1^st place.

Double winners of the girls meet included junior Emily Knorr of Salisbury and senior Emme Nelson of the Community School of Davidson.

Emme Nelson won her 4th-straight Most Outstanding Female Swimmer award as a senior. Courtesy: CSD Swimming

For the senior Nelson, wins came in the 200 IM (2:03.49) and 100 breast (1:02.81). She is the 1A/2A record holder in both events, though she didn’t break either in her last championship meet as a high school swimmer. Nelson was also on the winning 200 medley relay where she swam the breaststroke leg and was announced as the Female Most Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet. This marks her 4th-straight MOS award and capped a career where she didn’t lose a single individual race at the conference, regional, or state level. She will head to Texas A&M in the fall.

Knorr took 1^st in the 500 free (4:52.40) and the 200 free (1:50.56), where she was the only swimmer to break the 1:51 barrier.

Other Event Winners:

• Joslyn Oakley of Langtree Charter won the 1M diving event with a score of 480.85
• Sophomore Ede Kosik of Voyager Academy placed 1st in the 100 free (50.87), the only competitor under 51 seconds.
• Senior Chloe Harris of Lincoln Charter finished with a 55.93 in the 100 back.
• Community School of Davidson earned victory in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:48.18.

Top 5 Team Scores: 

1. Carrboro – 231
2. Lincoln Charter – 220
3. Community School of Davidson – 189
4. Pine Lake Prep – 167
5. Durham School of the Arts – 155

Boys Meet

Courtesy: NCHSAA

On the boys side, a team effort contributed to Pine Lake Prep’s victory. Junior Nathan Adams earned 2^nd place in the 200 free (1:42.77) and a 5^th place finish in the 100 back (54.56); junior AJ Das  3^rd and 4^th place in the 50 and 100 free, where he clocked a 21.90 and 47.36 respectively; and the Pine Lake Prep boys placed top 4 in every relays including 1^st in the 400 free relay, 2^nd in the 200 medley relay, and 4^th in the 200 free relay. That 400 free relay win was the team’s only victory of the meet, showing off the depth that took the title for them.

Junior Jay Baker of Durham School of the Arts won the 500 free (4:29.96) – where he finished over 11 seconds in front of 2nd place finisher Hayden Carpenter. Sophomore Reid Miller of Bradford Prep took 1st with a 20.98 in the 50 free, where he was the only swimmer under 21 second barrier.

Double winners of the boys meet were sophomore Baylor Nelson of the Community School of Davidson and Timothy Connery of Christ the King. Nelson dominated the pack with a 1:47.17 in the 200 IM where he broke his own A/AA State Meet record by over 3 seconds. He also won the 100 fly (48.76), narrowly missing the A/AA State Meet record by .5. Nelson was also a part of the 2^nd place 200 free relay and 4^th place 200 Medley relay. Connery also clocked some impressive performances in the 100 free (44.18) and 100 breast (53.65) where he set new A/AA State Meet records in both events. The time of 53.65 won him the event by over 3 seconds in which he shattered the old record of 56.51. Connery also earned the 2020 Male Most Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet.

Other Event Winners: 

• Junior Campbell Worsley of Community School of Davidson won the 1M diving with a score of 490.90.
• Junior Will Barker of Croatan won the 100 back (49.03).
• Croatan earned victory in 2 out of 3 relay during the meet. They clocked a 1:35.46 in the 200 medley relay, narrowly missing the A/AA State Meet record of 1:35.00. In the 200 free relay, the boys finished in a time of 1:27.07, which earned them a new A/AA State Meet record that was set back in 2012 by Carrboro.

Top 5 Team Scores:

1. Pine Lake Prep – 238
2. Raleigh Charter – 196
3. Lincoln Charter – 184
4. Croatan – 180
5. NC School of Science and Mathe – 144