2021 VHSL Class 3 Swimming and Diving Championships
- February 25th, 2021
- Christiansburg Aquatic Center, Christiansburg, Virginia
- Short Course Yards (SCY)
- Results on Meet Mobile: “2021 VHSL C3 Swimming and Diving Championships”
Virginia high schools held their state championship meets last week, with Class 3 competing at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center on February 25th. The meet was originally scheduled for two weeks earlier but, due to winter weather in the state, it was postponed twice. While the meet is traditionally held in a prelims-finals format, this year it was held as timed finals, with only the top-16 competing in order to reduce the number of athletes.
Despite the many schools, and the state, electing to compete as normal during the winter season, some schools chose to not allow their athletes to compete due to the risk of Covid-19. Multiple schools in the Richmond and Arlington public high school systems opted out of competition this season. With the school’s opting-out, the overall number of teams and athletes competing at the meet dropped. The most notable school to opt-out was Lafeyette, who finished 4th on the men’s side and 5th on the women’s last year. Among the notable athletes affected by this was Aiden Crisci, who was the 2020 runner-up in both the 200 IM and 500 free.
Men’s Meet Recap
Despite finishing second overall, Independence High School won two of the relays on the day, the 200 medley and 200 free. In the first event, the 200 medley, they won in a Class 3 record-setting time of 1:33.90. The team of Asim Asar, Bailey DeLuise, Aly Zein, and Jackson Collier was the first team in Class 3 to ever finish under 1:34.0, and beat runner-up Western Albemarle by nearly four seconds. The same four later combined to win the 200 free relay in 1:27.70.
As well as winning the relays, two members of Independence’s team would also add individual wins on the day. In the 100 back, junior Asim Asar finished with the top time of 52.10, over a second ahead of runner-up Crash Ackerly, a freshman from Maggie L Walker. One event later Bailey DeLuise, a junior, topped the field in the 100 breast with a time of 56.63. Last year DeLuise was the runner-up in the event.
The 200 free was won by Benjamin Huffman, a junior at Brentsville District. Huffman beat out the defending champion, Samuel Johnson, to win in 1:42.08. Johnson finished second in 1:43.75.
Narrowly missing breaking the 200 IM Class 3 record was Jackson Nester of Carroll County. Nester finished in 1:49.75, just .07 off of the record set by Keith Myburgh in 2018. Later in the meet, he defended his title in the 500 free, winning by almost nine seconds in 4:31.00. Nester is committed to swim at Cleveland State next year.
Colin Murtaugh won a pair of events on the day, winning both the 50 free and 100 fly. In the 50 free, he touched in 21.53, while in the 100 fly he finished in 50.57. Murtaugh is only a sophomore at William Byrd.
Western Albemarle had a strong showing on the 1-meter diving board, with Trevor and Wade Donalson finishing in 1st and 3rd. Trevor finished with a score of 362.45, while Wade wasn’t far behind him, scoring 323.95.
The 100 free was won by a freshman from Liberty Christian, Jerry Gordon. Gordon was almost a second ahead of the runner-up, touching in 47.04.
Top 5 Teams
- Western Albemarle – 374
- Independence – 266
- William Byrd – 167
- Cave Spring – 138
- Fluvanna County – 127
Women’s Meet Recap
Meet champions Monticello started off the meet with a win and a new Class 3 state record in the 200 medley relay. Izzy Bradley, Elisabeth Bendall, Athena Vanyo, and Mariam Mithqal combined to finish in 1:44.17, almost a second faster than the previous record.
Winning both the 100 and 200 freestyles for the second straight year was Independence junior Tatum Wall. Wall, who is committed to swim for Duke, first won the 200 free in 1:49.95. Later in the meet, she won the 100 free, breaking her own Class 3 record and touching in 49.58. The overall state record is 49.15, set by Rebecca Jones in 2009.
Ava Muzzy from Cave Spring finished with the top time in the 200 IM by over three and a half seconds. The sophomore finished in time of 2:01.11. Later in the meet, she won the 500 free as well, touching in 4:54.78. The Class 3 record in both events is held by 2021 ACC Champion and Ava Muzzy’s older sister, Emma Muzzy.
Winning her third straight 50 free title was Izzy Bradley of Monticello. Bradley finished in 23.24, just off her own Class 3 record of 23.19. Later in the meet, she added a second win in the 100 back (54.40).
Christianburg’s Natalie Jones finished with the top score on the 1-meter board by over 100 points. The junior scored 464.75 points, 40 points off of the state record.
Winning her third straight title in the event, Athena Vanyo topped the 100 fly field by over a second, touching in 54.83. Vanyo is a senior at Monticello.
In the 200 free relay it was again Monticello finishing with the fastest time. Individual event winners Bradley, Vanyo and Bendall were joined by Eloise Weary to set a new Class 3 record with a time of 1:36.32, almost four seconds ahead of runner up Cave Spring.
Colonial Heights got it’s first win of the day in the 100 breast, with sophomore Riley Bridgman finishing with the top time of 1:03.47. She won the event last year as a freshman as well.
Winning the final event of the day was Independence, with Alden Zerkle, Kylie Boyle, Ella McOmber, and Tatum Wall finishing in 3:33.60.
Top 5 Teams
- Monticello – 267
- Independence – 239.5
- York – 234.5
- Western Albemarle – 218
- Cave Spring – 185
