The girls of Cary Academy dominated North Carolina’s Division I independent high school state championship, while the boys outlasted Charlotte Latin School by just six and a half points.
Girls Meet
Cary Academy won the girls meet with a trio of wins. Individually, freshman Charlotte Hook won the 100 fly, going 54.75 in the final. That came after she set a new state record of 54.63 in prelims. Meanwhile, sophomore Nisma Said won the 100 back, going 56.53.
With the meet’s best backstroker and butterflyer, Cary won the 200 medley relay with ease. Said, Amy Chang, Hook and Helen Chen went 1:47.25, winning by nearly two seconds and getting within a second of a state record.
Saint Mary’s junior Abby Arens was the individual star. She set a pair of state records in dominating wins. Arens went 1:59.54 to set the state 200 IM record, then returned later on to go 1:00.54 and set the state 100 breast record.
Charlotte Latin School’s Lindsay Flynn also won multiple state titles. She was 50.64 to narrowly win the 100 free over Country Day’s Sophie Francis (50.89). Flynn later led off the 200 free relay in 24.01, helping Charlotte Latin win and set a state record. Flynn, Jessica Flynn, Evelyn Peters and Amy Dragelin went 1:36.76 to break the state mark. Dragelin led with a 23.5 anchor leg.
That same foursome returned to win the 400 free relay in 3:29.75, another new state record. Jessica Flynn split a team-best 51.08 on that team, and Dragelin was 51.78.
Other event winners:
- Saint Mary’s junior Caroline Crause won the 200 free in 1:50.26.
- Alexandra White edged Lindsay Flynn for the 50 free title, 23.63 to 23.73.
- North Raleigh Christian freshman MaKayla Ciancanelli won the 500 free in 5:13.75.
Top 5 Teams:
- Cary Academy – 403
- Saint Mary’s School – 290
- Charlotte Latin School – 253
- Charlotte Country Day – 196
- North Raleigh Christian Academy – 166.5
Boys Meet
Though Charlotte Latin School won 7 of 11 events, it was Cary Academy taking the win on the boys side as well. Cary put together a well-rounded team showing, winning only two races en route to the title.
Junior Jack Todd won the 200 free early in the meet. He was 1:47.14 to win by just over half a second. Later in the meet, Cary took home the 200 free relay in 1:29.96. Constantin Zodl, Quinn Vaughan, Oliver Wang and Will Newman put up that time, getting a 21.4 anchor from Newman and a 22.9 leadoff out of Zodl.
Charlotte Latin School broke a state record in the opening event, setting off a big day for them at the top. Jackson Davis, Stephen Kim, Evan Dorsel and Kwame Thornhill went 1:37.04 to break the 200 medley state record.
Later on, Andy Dorsel would win the 200 IM for Charlotte Latin, going 1:51.77 and setting off a multi-event run. In the very next event, Davis took the 50 free in 21.45. Then Evan Dorsel won the 100 fly in 50.90 before Davis returned to win the 100 free in 46.69.
Later in the meet, the sophomore Kim would win the 100 breast in 57.53. That was just .02 off of Michael Chadwick’s state record. In the next event, Thornhill, Evan Dorsel, Kim and Davis went 3:14.66 to win the 400 free relay.
Other event winners:
- Ravenscroft won the 500 free with sophomore Bode Ringenbach‘s 4:41.71.
- Cannon High’s Cam Abaqueta won the 100 back in 53.14. The freshman led a 1-2-3 finish for 9th-graders in the event.
Top 5 Teams:
- Cary Academy – 360.5
- Charlotte Latin School – 353
- Providence Day School – 148
- Cannon High – 236
- Ravenscroft School – 143.5
Jack Toad