BREMERTON — Port Angeles picked up a hard-earned 95-74 Olympic League swim meet victory over Bremerton on Wednesday at the Bremerton Family YMCA.
“The victory, however, wasn’t easily earned, as the Roughriders only secured one out of three wins in relay events and two out of eight in individual races,” coach Sally Cole said. “Despite the challenge, Port Angeles showed impressive depth, consistently claiming second and third places to rack up points and secure the win.”
The meet opened with the 200-yard medley relay, where the Riders fought tooth and nail against Bremerton. Danika Asgeirsson swam a tight first leg, finishing just .08 seconds behind Bremerton’s lead.
Brooke St. Luise hit the water next, battling back with a strong breaststroke to edge Port Angeles into the lead. Bremerton’s Gabby Patti, a state-level competitor, quickly reclaimed the advantage, and although Lynzee Reid made a valiant push in the anchor leg, PA came in a close second, just .70 seconds shy.
In the 200 freestyle, Bremerton’s Gabby Patti again proved unbeatable, finishing a full 24 seconds ahead of her competitors.
But Port Angeles answered with a strong second-place finish by Brooke St. Luise.
who also clinched a district qualifying time. Emerson DuBois followed with a third-place finish, while Mia Francis took fourth, collectively adding essential points to the Riders’ score.
The Roughriders’ consistency shone in the 200 individual medley, with Asgeirsson, Reid, and Chloe Kay-Sanders claiming second, third, and fourth respectively. The trio continued to amass valuable points, showcasing team depth.
The Roughriders grabbed their first individual win of the night in the 50 freestyle, as Lizzy Shaw sprinted to victory with a season-best time and a district qualifying time. Sally Kasten added to the success, securing second place in the race.
The 100 butterfly featured another PA trio in the top four, with Amayah Nelson leading the way in second place. Chloe Kay-Sanders clocked a personal best to take third, and Damun Seera shaved more than four seconds off her previous time to place fourth.
In the 100 freestyle, Shaw continued her strong performance with a second-place finish, while Reid came in third, both keeping the points rolling in PA’s favor.
The 500 Freestyle was a standout event for the Riders, as Nelson led a clean sweep.
DuBois and Lucy Townsend took second and third respectively, capping off a dominant showing in the distance event.
The Roughriders’ only relay victory came in the 200 Freestyle Relay, where the squad of Shaw, Asgeirsson, Reid and Nelson powered their way to a first-place finish. The PA “B” team, featuring Mallory Hartman, Bella Sains, Grace Kathol and Townsend, added crucial points by finishing third.
As the meet drew to a close, St. Luise and Asgeirsson each secured second-place finishes in the 100 backstroke and 100 breaststroke, respectively. The final race of the evening, the 400 freestyle relay, saw the Roughriders cap off their night with another second-place finish, thanks to the efforts of DuBois, Shaw, St. Luise and Mia Francis.
The Roughriders swim at Olympic today.
North Kitsap 134, Sequim 45
POULSBO — Melia Nelson qualified for the district swim meet in style, setting a personal-best time for the Wolves in winning the 500-yard freestyle for the Wolves.
“This was the No. 1 swim of the meet where Melia and one of the NK swimmers battled hard for the entire 500,” coach Sarah Thorson said.
“Melia had a district time and personal best of six minutes, 24.38 seconds, taking first place in the event with North Kitsap coming in second with a time of 6:25.68.”
Ava Shinkle did the same in her 100-butterfly race, winning the event and setting a new personal best while qualifying for the district meet in 1:06.15.
Our girls battled hard and our beginner swimmers stepped up to fill some varsity swim slots with a few girls on our roster being sick or injured,” Thorson said.
The Wolves host Klahowya today at the Sequim YMCA.
Boys Tennis
Port Angeles 5, Bremerton 2
BREMERTON — The Riders traveled to Bremerton for their third match in as many days and defeated the Knights behind the strength of their doubles teams.
“We’ve gotten a lot of points this year from our doubles and today was no different,” said coach Brian Gundersen. “Bremerton has a couple of talented singles players, so the wins we got in doubles were the difference.”
Gundersen singled out Grant Butterworth and Carter Gundersen as his players of the match. “Carter and Grant have been so steady for us this year. Their consistency and teamwork have won a lot of matches so far and today was no different, coach Gundersen said.
