The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School swim team had a memorable night in the YMCA pool on Feb. 11 as both the boys and girls finished the season in top form competing in the virtual Cape and Islands League Championship meet. The Vineyarders posted one new school record, three state championship qualifying times, one sectional qualifying time, 15 personal bests and nine season best times. Overall, the boys placed third out of seven teams, while the girls finished fifth.
Ruairi Mullin became the first swimmer in school history to win an individual event in the league meet by placing first in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:52.15, breaking his own school record and qualifying for the state championship. He also qualified for states with a second place swim (a personal best 52.04) in the 100 free. Nathan Cuthbert (57.25 PB) was sixth in the 100 free, followed by Christian Flanders (eighth, 57.52) and Emmett Silva (ninth, 1:03.44 PB).
In the hotly contested 50 free, Flanders placed fourth (25.09 PB) out of 26 swimmers, Cuthbert (25.10 PB) was fifth, Silva (26.99 PB) sixth, Simon Hammarlund (29.91 PB) 18th and Andy Carr (30.10) 19th. Carr added a personal best (1:19.35) fifth place swim in the 100 butterfly. The PB’s kept coming with Hammarlund (1:30.75) finishing sixth in the 100 breaststroke. In the relays, Cuthbert, Silva, Flanders and Mullin (1:44.51) were second in the 200 free and the team of Carr, Flanders, Mullin and Hammarlund (4:06.09) earned another second place in the 400.
Gabby Carr had a standout night for the girls, swimming a season-best and state championship qualifying time of 2:04.97 to place second in the 200 free. In the next event, the 100 free, Carr placed third and qualified for sectionals with another season-best time of 58.74. More than 53 swimmers competed in the girls 50 free. Two Vineyarders made the top 12 and both had personal best times: Lily Jones (ninth, 28.57) and Delilah Hammarlund (11th, 29.23). Olympia Hall flew through the pool to finish fourth in the 100 butterfly with a personal best 1:13.95. In the 100 free, Jones swam a personal best 1:02.01 for seventh place and Eleanor Hyland set a new season mark of 1:14.09 to finish 15th. For the 100 breaststroke, Hall swam fourth in 1:20.34 and Hammarlund eighth with a PB 1:26.12. The girls placed fifth in both relay events. Hall, Hammarlund, Jones and Carr swam a season best 1:57.48 in the 200 free, while Jones, Hyland, Hall and Carr closed out the meet with a time of 4:23.03 in the 400 free.
