Photo: Lolo LaSida
By Marisha Goldhamer
ALEXANDRIA, VA – The Chinquapin Wahoos defeated the Chantilly Highlands Dolphins 317 to 134, extending their undefeated season to 4-0. Alexandria’s only public swim team overcame a rain-filled pool to clinch the top spot in the blue division of the Colonial Swim League (CSL) on July 9.
The Wahoos also topped the blue division in the CSL Relay Carnival on July 10.
The Wahoos opened Saturday’s meet with a victory in the 200-yard mixed age, mixed medley relay. Bella McLemore, Ronan Lauinger, Madison Schang and Tyler Turner were 13 seconds faster than the Dolphins with a time of 2 minutes 12.71 seconds.
The rainy conditions were no trouble for the boys 15-18 squad as they continued their dominant season with a sweep of all four strokes.
Emil LaSida won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 22.82 seconds. Brothers Ronan and Bodie Lauinger took second (23.86) and third (23.89) – just .03 seconds separating their times – as Mikal Helms finished in fourth (25.30).
LaSida also won the 50-yard backstroke (24.97) ahead of Bodie Lauinger (28.65) and Jolan Foronda (28.95) and the 50-yard butterfly (26.13) ahead of Foronda (26.42) and Ronan Lauinger (26.89).
In the 50-yard breaststroke, Foronda (29.20) beat Ronan Lauinger (29.72) by .52 seconds with Helms in third (33.65).
LaSida, Foronda and both Lauinger boys teamed up to win the 200-yard medley relay in 1 minute 41.20 seconds.
The Wahoos senior boys showed the depth of their squad as the exhibition relay team of Paris Johnson, Helms, Blake Conjura and Tristan McCalister touched in 1 minute 59.58 seconds ahead of the Dolphins team at 2 minutes 00.97 seconds.
At Sunday’s Relay Carnival, LaSida, Foronda, Bodie and Ronan Lauiner accomplished their season-long goal of breaking the medley relay record of 1 minute 39.51 seconds. The Wahoos swam the 200-yard race in 1 minute 39.05 seconds, but came second to the Burke Center Penguins who touched in a stellar 1 minute 38.22 seconds to also topple the record.
The senior girls also made a strong showing Saturday with Elisabeth Carroll winning all three of her individual events.
Carroll won the 50-yard freestyle in 28.45 seconds ahead of Maria McLemore (29.37) before leading a Wahoos sweep of the 50-yard backstroke. Carroll touched in 32.14 seconds, just ahead of Catherine Salomons (32.74) and Abigail Altenburg (33.40).
Carroll and McLemore also went 1-2 in the 50-yard breaststroke (37.68 and 39.16) and Salomons topped a Wahoos sweep of the 50-yard butterfly with a time of 31.83 seconds. She was followed by McLemore (32.74), Catherine Cox (33.85) and Altenburg (33.96).
Altenburg, Carroll, Salomons and McLemore combined to win the 200-yard medley relay in 2 minutes 09.59 seconds.
In addition to LaSida and Carroll, three other Wahoos – Bennett Sherry, Jonathan Ramsdell, and Schang – won all of their individual events.
Sherry has led the boys 8 and under squad throughout the season and Saturday he topped the 25-yard freestyle (18.15), backstroke (21.66) and breaststroke (26.97).
Max Kessler-Gowell grabbed his share of points with a win in the 25-yard butterfly (27.90), second in backstroke (24.28) and third in freestyle (20.28). Derrick Grajkowski completed the Wahoo sweep of the backstroke, touching third in 29.82 seconds, before snagging third in butterfly (32.34). Daniel Freinburg grabbed a third-place point in breaststroke (31.43).
Sherry, Freiburg, Kessler-Gowell and Grajkowski won the 100-yard medley relay with a time of 1 minute 57.51 seconds.
The 8 and under boys squad also showed depth as the exhibition relay team of Santiago Madalo, Thomas Chong, Mateo Lorenzen-Schmidt and Max Postow turned in a time of 2 minutes 26.35 seconds, faster than the Dolphins’ 2 minutes 37.63 seconds.
Ramsdell continued his strong season for the boys 13-14 squad. He topped the 50-yard freestyle (25.84) with Wahoo Eddy Paz in third (27.73), the 50-yard breaststroke (31.65) and the 50-yard butterfly (28.07) with teammate Alex Wittmer in third (33.62).
Wittmer also won the 50-yard backstroke in 32.66 seconds.
Wittmer, Ramsdell, Paz and Willem Schultz won the 200-yard medley relay in 2 minutes 09.38 seconds.
Schang and the 11-12 girls opened with a sweep of the top four places in the 50-yard freestyle. Schang touched in 29.75 seconds ahead of Julia Davis (33.54), Grace Wittmer (33.93) and Eleanor Robb (37.24).
Davis (39,90), Robb (40.03) and Wittmer (41.28) followed up with a 50-yard backstroke sweep before Schang led a sweep of the 50-yard butterfly in 33.04 seconds. Wittmer’s 41.34-second fly just beat Robb (41.96).
In the 50-yard breaststroke, Schang went 1-3 with Davis (37.55 and 45.10).
The 200-yard medley relay team of Robb, Schang, Eleanor Medina and Davis easily outswam the Dolphins, touching in 2 minutes 35.06 seconds.
The other Relay Carnival standout performance was by the 9-10 boys squad. Ethan Sherry, Turner, Karon Moten and Sawyer Blais swam the 100-yard medley relay in 1 minute 09.38 seconds, three seconds faster than any other team in the CSL on Sunday.
On Saturday, the 9-10 boys swept the 50-yard freestyle. Moten touched in 31.50 seconds, followed by Turner (32.50) and Sherry (34.52).
Moten and Turner also went 1-2 in the 25-yard butterfly – just .05 seconds separating their times (17.71 and 17.76).
Sherry won the 50-yard backstroke in 43.22 seconds, and Turner was second in the 50-yard breaststroke (48.20).
Moten, Turner, Sherry and Blais beat the Dolphins with a 100-yard medley relay time of 1 minute 18.34 seconds.
The girls 13-14 squad swept the 50-yard backstroke. Evangeline Billips touched in 33.87 seconds ahead of Bella McLemore (36.66) and Camila Zuinga (38.70).
Billips also won the 50-yard freestyle (29.84) before placing third in the 50-yard breaststroke (42.17).
Zuinga picked up a third place point in the freestyle (31.56) and the butterfly (35.78).
McLemore, Billips, Zuniga and Olivia-Grace Boyd won the 200-yard medley relay in 2 minutes 31.19 seconds.
The 11-12 boys squad was met with a challenge from the Dolphins, but Alex Guevara won the 50-yard breaststroke in 39.90 seconds.
Guevara also touched second in the 50-yard backstroke (33.41) ahead of teammate Luca Lorenzen-Schmidt (39.68) and was second in the 50-yard butterfly (36.63).
Christopher Paz and Christopher Billips put up points for the 11-12 squad. Paz was second in the 50-yard freestyle (31.53) and third in butterfly (37.34), while Billips was second in the breaststroke (43.78) and third in freestyle (32.28).
Guevara, Lorenzen-Schmidt, Paz and Billips combined for a winning 200-yard medley relay time of 2 minutes 27.59 seconds.
The younger girls squads also faced tough competition from the Dolphins.
Ryan Shaw came second in the 8 and under 25-yard freestyle with a time of 20.41 seconds. Beatrice Mills placed second in the 25-yard backstroke (24.28), Sophie Wharton was third in the 25-yard breaststroke (30.17) and Avery Murray was third in the 25-yard butterfly (25.87).
Micaela Zuinga stood out for the 9-10 girls. She won the 50-yard freestyle in 37.30 seconds, the 25-yard butterfly in 18.81 seconds and took second in the 50-yard backstroke (48.48).
Freya Montes de Oca won the 50-yard breaststroke for the third week in a row with a time of 47.22 seconds.
Isabel Martorana also grabbed a third place point for the 9-10 girls in the freestyle (40.58).
The meet closed with two exciting 200-yard mixed age freestyle relays. For the boys, Moten, Guevara, Ramsdell and LaSida won by 6 seconds in a time of 1 minute 51.06 seconds.
The girls race was won by just over a second with Medina, Micaela Zuniga, Evangeline Billips and Carroll touching in 2 minutes 13.15 seconds.
The Wahoos will look to finish the season undefeated as they face the ManorGate Marlins in Centerville on July 16.
