Crews, Pouch Smash Records In Back-And-Forth Thriller at Nevada 3A HS Champs

Truckee’s boys and Boulder City’s girls won Nevada class 3A state titles over the weekend, with AJ Pouch, Kaikea Crews, Rose Pouch and Maddy Lewis all setting state records.

Full results

Girls Meet

Senior Rose Pouch won four events and broke two 3A state records to help Boulder City win an 11-point thriller on the girls side.

Pouch swept the 200 IM and 100 fly for Boulder City. Her 2:05.06 win in the 200 IM took two tenths off the former 3A state record, and her 56.74 in the 100 fly cut two tenths off that record. Pouch helped Boulder City win three straight event titles to open the meet. She led off the 200 medley relay, joining Aimee Garcia, Tara Kelsey and Quinci Thomas to go 1:51.70 for the win.

Garcia would take the next event, the 200 free, in 1:55.63 for Boulder City. That was a win by more than ten seconds. Pouch added the 200 IM win right after to make it three straight. Garcia would return to win the 500 free in 5:07.58, and Garcia, Kelsey, Thomas and Pouch capped off the meet with a 3:41.64 win in the 400 free relay.

Truckee High made it a tight battle, using the state’s best sprinter to win three of their events. Sophomore Emma Purdy won the 50 free in 24.92 and the 100 free with a 54.44. Purdy would also lead off the winning 200 free relay. She joined Brooke Saathoff, Courtney Engberg and Caitlin Smith to break the state 3A record in 1:41.47. That relay are all underclassmen who should return next season after taking three tenths off the state mark this year.

Truckee also had the only diver in the girls meet: Kira Thomas, who scored 325.25 points to win the state title.

Other event winners:

• Mojave’s Noriah Cook went 1:00.05 to win the 100 back.
• Maddy Lewis won the 100 breast for Sage Ridge in 1:03.98, breaking her own 3A state record.

Top 5 Teams:

1. Boulder City – 146
2. Truckee – 135
3. South Tahoe – 49
4. North Tahoe – 47
5. Mojave – 46

Boys Meet

The boys meet was a high-stakes duel between Truckee sophomore Kaikea Crews and Boulder City senior AJ Pouch. Each set two individual state records in a series of back-and-forth blows, but it was Crews’ Truckee team that came through with an 8-point victory.

Truckee struck first, getting a 200 medley relay win from Crews, Aaron Bronstone, Evan Opsal and Dylan Cole in 1:39.15. They topped Boulder City (without Pouch on the relay) by five seconds.

But Boulder City took the next two races in a row, getting a 1:47.18 200 free win from sophomore Joseph Purdy and a state 3A record 1:50.42 win in the 200 IM from Pouch. Pouch dominated that race, winning by more than nine seconds.

Truckee returned fire in the 50 free, getting a 22.88 win from Opsal.

Later on in the meet, Crews took his first event win, leading a 1-2 of the 100 freestyle. Crews was 44.99 to smash the old 3A state record of 46.4. He won that event by more than six seconds, with teammate Cole second.

Boulder City got a 500 free win (4:47.92) from Purdy, then took home a dominant 200 free relay title in 1:34.31 with Pouch anchoring. That was Truckee’s lone relay without Crews.

Then it was a back-and-forth volley to end the meet. Crews smashed another 3A state record with a 48.69 win in the 100 back, before Pouch answered with a 55.63 win in the 100 breast, taking three tenths off the record. In the final event, Boulder City topped Truckee 3:19.30 to 3:20.38 with Pouch and Crews both anchoring, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Truckee’s points lead.

Other event winners:

• North Tahoe’s Luke Hodes beat a four-man diving field with a score of 286.05.
• Valley High’s Aidan White took the 100 fly in 54.03.

Top 5 Teams:

1. Truckee – 135
2. Boulder City – 127
3. Sage Ridge – 53
4. Virgin Valley – 48
5. Adelson – 31