Chargers, Eagles duel in pool
By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on January 24, 2012 1:48 PM
The hard part is over.
But the next part isn't easier, either.
A state qualifier in two events, Wayne Country Day's Robert Glass had a different objective during Monday night's swim meet contested at the B.G. Darden Natatorium. The sophomore wanted to improve his technique and shave some more seconds off his personal-best times.
One out of two ain't bad.
Glass logged a ninth-place finish in the boys' 50-yard freestyle (27.98 seconds), but returned later to grab seventh in the 100 free with a time of 1:04.34. He dropped a remarkable three seconds, just days after wiping two seconds from a PR set at New Bern.
"I'm trying to work on my starts a little bit," said Glass. "Today, I swam a little bit too deep underneath the water, so I need to try a different tactic and get above water as soon as possible ... just improve on the technical side.
"Last week, I sort of surprised myself when I qualified (for states) in the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle. I never really expected to make it in the 100, but was planning to make it in the 50 ... barely made it under the (state) qualifying time."
Glass wasn't the only Charger to reduce time during the highly-competitive, 10-team meet hosted by Parrott Academy.
Bethany Stoutamire, Kate Thompson, Katy Fletcher, Charlotte Yarboro, Anna Rains, Ben Eisenhauer, Steffen Stoutamire and Mike Chen each posted PRs in their respective sprint events. Jessica Eisenhauer logged a seventh-place time in the 100-yard breaststroke and anchored the 200 free relay, which ended up ninth.
"This was a very competitive meet and we were pleased with the way our swimmers raced," said WCDS head coach Bonnie Hughes.
Wayne Christian senior Chase Darden, who has qualified for the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 1-A/2-A state meet, took fifth in the 50 free (27.32) and 11th in the 100 free (1:06.57).
Fellow Eagle Cameron Foss posted 18th-place times in the 50 and 100 free. Danielle Gentry turned in a ninth-place mark of 31.68 in the girls' 50 free. Teammates Brittney Kornegay, Molly Glover, Amy Clarke, Kristina Rousay and Jordan Anderson also competed in the same event.