YOUNGHOUSE TO SWIM IN PAN PACIFIC MEET

The biggest swimming meet of Jon Younghouse's athletic career is just about upon him.

Younghouse, a Cape Girardeau Central High School graduate, will compete this week in the Pan Pacific Championships in Sydney, Australia.

A senior-to-be at the University of Texas, Younghouse qualified for the prestigious meet by finishing second in the 400 freestyle at last year's U.S. Summer Nationals.

The Pan Pacific Championships is the biggest meet in the world during a non-Olympic year and the competition will be held in the same pool as the 2000 Olympic Games, which will also be in Sydney.

Younghouse, who was named the male MVP at the Missouri State Swim Championships his senior year at Cape Central, has been one of the top swimmers for national powerhouse Texas over the past several seasons. Earlier this year, he earned two All-American honors as he helped lead the Longhorns to a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Younghouse was sixth in both the 1,650 freestyle and 500 freestyle.

The 1996 Cape Central graduate also earned two All-American honors as a sophomore when he was fourth in the 500 freestyle and eighth in the 1,650 freestyle.