Raekwon Noel Topples Records at Middle Atlantic Senior Champs

Middle Atlantic Senior Championships

• March 27-30, 2024
• Carlisle, PA
• 25 yards (SCY)
• Results

Raekwon Noel rewrote the South Jersey Aquatic Club’s record board at the Middle Atlantic Senior Championships last weekend, knocking down five team records over the course of the meet.

Noel, who is committed to swim for Indiana University next fall, closed out his short course season with a series of top performances, securing a total of five victories and nine personal best times on top of his records.

Noel took home the championship title and broke team records in the 500 free, 1000 free and 200 fly. His performance in the 500 saw him win the event with a time of 4:27.11, shaving three seconds off his best time and landing a Summer Junior Championships cut in addition to breaking the team record set by Shane Washart in 2021.

He secured another Summer Juniors cut in the 200 fly, winning in a time of 1:46.88 to break his own team record of 1:48.14 initially set back in 2023. The 1000 free saw Noel post a time of 9:16.29, dropping nearly 12 seconds to shatter the previous record of 9:29.46, set in 2020 by Sean Vizzard.

Noel broke two more team records; he turned in a 3rd-place finish in the 200 back with a time of 1:46.85, breaking a record set by Evan Greer in 2021 and snagging another Summer Juniors cut. He also set a new record in the 100 free as the leadoff for the 400 free relay, touching in a time of 45.34 to help teammates Rocco Mann, Ryan Quinn and Tre Cottrell to a 3rd-place finish overall.

Noel’s remaining victories came in the 100 fly, where he threw down a personal best time of 48.30 to land his final Summer Juniors cut of the meet, and the 200 free, where he narrowly missed his personal best with a time of 1:39.73.

He also posted personal bests in the 50 free (21.02), 50 back (22.67) and 100 back (49.16), all of which were swam during the leadoff leg of relays.

Other Notable Performances

• Keystone Aquatics’ Leah Gingrich, a 34-year-old who graduated from University of Texas in 2012 after four years of competing, secured four victories at the meet. She swept the butterfly events, winning the 100 in a time of 52.83 and the 200 in a time of 1:56.44. Gingrich also won the 500 free in a time of 4:50.92 and the 200 free in a time of 1:48.08. She was runner-up in the 50 free, throwing down a 22.90 to shave .02 seconds off her best.
• Taylor Grimley, an Auburn commit who swims for Germantown Academy Aquatic, turned in a series of top performances and racked up 136 points for her team. She won the 200 IM in a time of 2:02.13, just over a second off her best. Grimley also posted two runner-up finishes: she placed 2nd in the 100 fly (53.01) and 100 back (55.16).
• Suburban Seahawks Club’s Zack Oswald won four of his individual events and posted six personal best times over the course of the weekend. A University of Notre Dame commit, Oswald won the 100 back (48.00), 200 back (1:44.25 – PB), 200 IM (1:51.46) and 400 IM (3:59.97 – PB). He also secured personal bests in the 50 free (20.47) and 100 free (45.63).
• Derek Estep, a member of Keystone Aquatics and a University of Delaware commit, turned in a series of runner-up finishes and posted personal best times in four of his swims. He placed 2nd in the 100 free (45.58), 200 IM (1:51.90 – PB) and 200 free (1:40.19). Estep’s remaining best times came in the 50 free (21.16), 500 free (4:38.84) and 100 breast (58.12).

Top 5 Boys’ Team Scores

1. Jersey Wahoos – 749.5
2. Upper Dublin Aquatic Club – 651
3. South Jersey Aquatic Club – 553
4. Suburban Seahawks Club – 529
5. Diamond State Aquatics – 451.5

Top 5 Girls’ Team Scores

1. Diamond State Aquatics – 601
2. Greater Philadelphia Aquatic Club – 587
3. Upper Dublin Aquatic Club – 574.5
4. Suburban Seahawks Club – 510.5
5. Penn Charter Aquatic Club – 419