In between races on the pool deck Thursday, Shoemaker senior Kellen McInelly –– unprompted –– walked up to Harker Heights freshman Caiden Whitfield and offered a few words of encouragement.
“You’ve got this,” McInelly said at the end of a brief conversation with Whitfield before the two shook hands.
On the medal stand, Killeen’s Brandon Barrington looked over to his left and gave a fist-bump to a fellow competitor, giving props where props were due.
Why?
“Even though we are all on different teams and we are all different grades, I’d say we are a big community. Swimming as a whole is a community,” SHS freshman Blayne Cutbirth explained. “Like, if my goggles broke behind the blocks, I guarantee I could go over to a competitor and they would give me their goggles and let me swim my race before I give them back to them.”
With the camaraderie and team spirit dialed to 100 percent, Killeen ISD’s swimmers also put their talents to the test against teams from Temple, Copperas Cove, Hutto, Bryan and Waco Midway inside Temple ISD’s Hardin Swim Center during the District 12-6A meet.
The top six relays and individuals in each event earned spots into the Class 6A Region III meet in two weeks at the Rockwall ISD Aquatic Center, and KISD will be well represented.
Cutbirth finished first in the girls 100-yard breaststroke and second in the 100 butterfly, Melvin earned an individual silver in the girls 100 freestyle, Heights’ Mckenzy Ryder took bronze in the girls 50 free, the Knights Colton Genovese was third in the boys 500 free and Barrington nabbed the bronze in the boys 50 free to highlight KISD’s individual hardware haul.
In all, a combined nine relays and 15 swimmers across 16 events qualified for regionals.
The top eight were recognized at the podium on Thursday with the top three earning medals, while many more took pride in knowing the hit or eclipsed personal bests.
“Honestly, I thought I was going to get third place in my 100 free and then I looked up at the board and it was second, and I was like ‘Wow!’” said Melvin, who also qualified in fifth in the 200 individual medley, and in two relays –– the 200 medley and 400 free. “Today is really one of the more stressful days but it’s also really fun, because you get more of a bond with your team. If you win, if you lose, it doesn’t matter. You’re together, and my teammates did really, really well today.”
Cutbirth, who also qualified with the Lady Grey Wolves 200 medley and 200 free relays, lowered her personal best breaststroke time by about 1 second, which is what she said she was aiming for in a close race.
“I more so go into a race thinking I want to get my best time, rather than worrying about winning it,” she said.
Barrington also accomplished what he set out to do.
“Last year, I wanted to place in the 50, but I wasn’t fast enough. This year, I made it, so I’m pretty happy,” he said. “It wasn’t my fastest, but it got me to where I needed to be.”
A list of regional qualifiers from each school is below. More photos from the meet can be viewed on the KISD Flickr page here.
Harker Heights
Boys
200 medley relay, (Gavin Malbrough, William Donathan, Colton Genovese, Harry Na), third
Harry Na, 50 free, fifth; and 100 free, sixth
200 free relay, (Caiden Whitfield, Gavin Malbrough, Gage Morse, Xavier Froome), sixth
400 free relay, (Harry Na, Eduardo Pacheco De La Cruz, William Donathan, Colton Genovese), fourth
Xavier Froome, 50 free, sixth
William Donathan, 100 free, fourth
Colton Genovese, 500 free, third
Perry Swenor-Valdes, 100 backstroke, fifth
Caiden Whitfield, 100 breaststroke, fourth
Girls
200 medley relay, (Lillian Halladay, Vienna Wolfe, Cailey Melvin, Mckenzy Ryder), third
400 free relay, (Lillian Halladay, Vienna Wolfe, Cailey Melvin, Mckenzy Ryder), second
Cailey Melvin, 200 IM, fifth; and 100 free, second
Mckenzy Ryder, 50 free, third
Lillian Halladay, 50 free, fourth; and 500 free, fourth
Killeen
Boys
Walterrey Parra, 200 free, sixth
Brandon Barrington, 50 free, third
Girls
200 free relay, (Eliana Kitson, Kayla Burse, Alisson Barrios Morales, Anahi Del Pozo Landin), sixth
Shoemaker
Boys
200 medley relay, (Omar Aguilar, Stephen Nelsen, Kellen McInelly, Brandon Blas), sixth
400 free relay, (Brandon Blas, Aidyn McKie, Tyree Morgan-Crear, Kellen McInelly), sixth
Omar Aguilar, 200 free, fourth
Stephen Nelsen, 200 free, fifth; and 500 free, fifth
Kellen McInelly, 200 IM, fifth; and 100 butterfly, fourth
Girls
200 medley relay, (Alessandra Urquidi Franco, Blayne Cutbirth, Madelyn Dixon, Kalianys Mora Garcia), fourth
200 free relay, (Alessandra Urquidi Franco, Blayne Cutbirth, Madelyn Dixon, Kalianys Mora Garcia), fourth
400 free relay (Lylah Rodriguez, Katie McInelly, Alessandra Urquidi Franco, Kalianys Mora Garcia), sixth
Madelyn Dixon, 200 IM, sixth; and 100 free, fifth
Blayne Cutbirth, 100 butterfly, second; and 100 breaststroke, first
