Red Bank YMCA Sweeps Y Nationals Team Titles in Barn-Burner Finishes

2019 YMCA LONG COURSE NATIONAL SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• July 30th-August 3rd, 2019
• Eppley Recreation Center, College Park, Maryland
• LCM (50m)
• Meet site
• Results
• Psych Sheets
• Meet Mobile:
  • “2019 LCYNationals” for the main meet
  • “2019 LCYNationals TT only” for time trial swims

It’s a good day to be a swimmer at the Red Bank Branch YMCA in Red Bank, New Jersey. The team swept all 3 titles (combined, girls, and boys) at the 2019 YMCA Long Course National Championships. While the combined score was a runaway, both the girls’ and boys’ meets came down to the last race, with the Red Bank boys winning by a mere half-a-point in the final standings. That win was the accumulation of a lot of efforts throughout the week, but a big difference maker on the boys’ side came from the Rennard brothers in the opening race of the session, the 800 free. Sammy Rennard finished 3rd in 8:26.33 in what is likely his last-ever YMCA Nationals swim, placing half-a-second ahead of the top seed Nick Andrews; and his younger brother Theo Rennard finished 6th in 8:34.42. Theo held off a big late surge from Powel Crosley’s Adam Lamping to hold on to 6th place, and the meet title, for Red Bank.

In the day’s final relay, Powel Crosley took 2nd in 3:31.82, beating Red Bank Branch’s 3:53.13 for 5th place, but Greater Spartanburg swam 3:30.46 to win comfortably and assist Red Bankk in locking down the title. The winning Spartanburg relay included Luke Smith, Bode Neale, Michael Juengel, and Evan Stanislaw.

In the girls’ meet, the Red Bank Branch 400 free relay relay of Megan Judge, Caroline McGann, Mary Mahoney, and Natalie Heim combined for a 3:54.43. That beat ME Lyons by about 6-tenths in a relay that was a dead-heat entering the final leg. ME Lyons would have needed a win in that relay, and some help from Spartanburg, to win the meet, but Red Bank took care of business to secure the title sweep.

While not pertinent in the battle for the team title, each of the 800 frees at the start of the session wound up with a winner swimming a new Meet Record.

In the girls’ race, Abby Doss swam an 8:53.20 to win, which was almost 9 seconds better than her seed. That broke a decade-old record of 8:55.46 done by Laura Simon at the 2009 National Championship meet. She’s headed to NC State in the fall of 2020. That was 1 of 2 individual wins she had in the session, with the other coming in the 200 IM where she swam 2:20.18.

In the boys’ race, the record-setter was Nathan Borges of the Somerset Valley YMCA in New Jersey, who swam an 8:18.81. That broke another decade-old record, set by Ty Perkins from the South Family YMCA in Ohio at the 2009 Championship. Max Nonnenmacher took 2nd in 8:20.88, which was also easily under the old record of 8:25.05. Both boys have not publicly committed.

Other Day 5 Winners:

• Megan Glass of the Blue Ash YMCA completed her sweep of the butterfly events with a win in the girls’ 200 fly in 2:16.47. The Michigan commit is swimming in her final YMCA National Championship meet, and previously won the 50 fly (27.47) and 100 fly (1:00.49). McKenna Campbell from Greensboro finished 2nd in 2:16.70.
• Lukas Scheidl from the Somerset Hills YMCA used a big front-half to win the men’s 200 fly in 2:04.41. That’s a new lifetime best for him by 4-tenths of a second. Later in the session, he added a win in the 200 IM in 2:06.78. He also won the 400 free earlier in the meet.
• Paige Hetrick of the Bradford Family YMCA won her 4th individual event of the meet by topping the 100 free in 56.70. She was out in 26.69, opening more than half-a-second lead on the field at the turn.
• Henry Schutte of the Rapid Area YMCA in Michigan won the men’s 100 free in 51.69. Last year, Schutte wound up in the B final of the 100 free at this meet, but swam the 2nd-fastest time. With the defending champion Jack Alexy not racing this year, and Schutte having a better morning swim, he was able to capture gold. Michael Fazio took 2nd in 51.83.
• Emma Shuppert, another 18-year old from Blue Ash, won the girls’ 50 back in 29.23.
• Justin Heimes from Perkiomen YMCA in Pennsylvania won the boys’ 50 backstroke in 26.93, out-touching Michael Horkan, who took 2nd in 27.01.

Team Scores

Combined:

1. Red Bank Branch YMCA – 799
2. Greater Spartanburg YMCA – 503
3. Cheshire YMCA – 486
4. Somerset Valley YMCA – 484
5. ME Lyons Anderson YMCA – 444

Girls:

1. Red Bank Branch YMCA – 401
2. ME Lyons Anderson YMCA – 393
3. Somerset Valley YMCA – 378
4. Blue Ash YMCA – 306.5
5. Cheshire YMCA – 282

Boys:

1. Red Bank Branch YMCA – 398
2. Powel Crosley Jr YMCA – 397.5
3. Somerset Hills YMCA – 285
4. Greater Spartanburg YMCA – 283
5. Greenwich YMCA – 243