Notre Dame freshmen swimmers strive for state

With only junior Keegan Stritzel and sophomore Mark Schuchardt serving as the upperclassmen, the Notre Dame boys' swimming team is as young as it gets.

Yet it is not without potential, as demonstrated not only in a tri-meet on Sept. 5 that saw the Bulldogs (129) beat Poplar Bluff (97) and Saxony Lutheran (32) but also with their showing in the Cape Rock Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 9, in the SEMO Aquatic Center.

Of the four local schools in a 13-team meet, Notre Dame finished the highest at eighth place, followed by Jackson (9th), Cape Central (10th), and Saxony Lutheran (13). The Bulldogs were ahead of the Indians by a 40-point margin.

Notre Dame all-freshman relay team of Hudson Dennis, Kaiden Cracraft, Tristian Aguila, and Ben Pursell finished 7th in the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:50.13, clearing the state time mark of 2:05.49. They also finished fourth in the 200-yard freestyle relay with a 1:38.31 time, clearing the 1:54.49 state consideration mark.

While it may be a surprise, it was the expectation for this young group.

“Our goal was to go a little bit faster as we go throughout the year but it definitely was our goal to make a state time,” Dennis said.

Dennis made state times in the 50y freestyle (22.81) and 100y butterfly (55.18). Cracraft made state time in the 500y Freestyle (4:59.56) and 200y IM (2:05.73). Dennis and Cracraft have competed in relays together but it was the first time with the other two. All four freshmen swim for club teams, giving them experience and background going into the high school level.

“We just motivate each other in practice, gotta be positive, cheer them on in races,” Dennis said. “It’s all positivity.”

Another notable performance from the Cape Rock Invite came from the hosts. Cape Central junior Phineas Theall won the 100y butterfly with a time of 51.45, passing the state consideration mark by 10 seconds. Theall was a Semoball Award winner after earning All-State honors for the second straight year at the Class 1 state swimming championships last season.

__Notalble performances__

__200y Medley Relay (State consideration time: 2:05.49)__

Notre Dame: Hudson Dennis, Kaiden Cracraft, Tristian Aguila, and Ben Pursell — 1:50.09, 7th

Jackson: Jan Handke, Jace Glenn, Wade Lavalle, Tim Deyong — 1:51.27, 9th

Cape Central: Phineas Theall, Wiley Edmundson, Kent Sheridan, Ellis Brune — 1:59.31, 10th

Saxony Lutheran: Tucker Hill, Joe Azar, Matthew Franz, Will Steurer — 2:03.98, 12th

__200y Freestyle (State consideration time: 2:00.69)__

Tom Hasz (Saxony Lutheran) — 2:00.47, 8th

__200y IM (State consideration time: 2:18.09)__

Kaiden Cracraft (Notre Dame) — 2:05.73, 6th

Wade Lavalle (Jackson) — 2:07.37, 7th

__50y Freestyle (State consideration time: 24.19)__

Hudson Dennis (Notre Dame) — 22.81, 6th

Tim Deyong (Jackson) — 23.84, 12th

__100y Butterfly (State consideration time: 1:01.99)__

Phineas Theall (Cape Central) — 51.45, 1st

Hudson Dennis (Notre Dame) — 55.18, 4th

__100y Freestyle (State consideration time: 53:89)__

Tim Deyong (Jackson) — 53.65, 8th

__500y Freestyle (State consideration time: 5:34.39)__

Kaiden Cracraft (Notre Dame) — 4:59.56, 6th

Phineas Theall (Cape Central) — 4:59.61, 7th

Wade Lavalle (Jackson) — 5:10.21, 8th

__200y Freestyle Relay (State consideration time: 1:54.49)__

Notre Dame: Hudson Dennis, Kaiden Cracraft, Tristian Aguila, Ben Pursell — 1:38.31, 4th

Cape Central: Phineas Theall, Kent Sheridan, Kent Sheridan, Wiley Edmundson — 1:48.04, 8th

Saxony Lutheran: Wesley Balsamo, John Rea, Jack Brawer, Will Vieth — 1:50.52, 9th

__100y Backstroke (State consideration time: 1:03.79)__

Jan Handke (Jackson) — 1:02.65, 10th

__400y Freestyle Relay (State consideration time: 4:08.99)__

Jackson: Tim Deyong, Jan Handke, Kevin Cai, Wade Lavalle — 3:46.16, 8th

Saxony Lutheran: Jack Brawer, Matthew Franz, Tucker Hill, Will Steurer — 4:08.72