Jacob Pebley Takes 100 Back Title at Connecticut Senior Champs; Lilly Archibald Drops Big PBs

2024 Connecticut Long Course Senior Championships

• July 11-14, 2024
• Wesleyan University Freeman Athletic Building, Middletown, Connecticut
• Long Course Meters (50m)
• Full Meet Results

One of the best tools in the toolbox for a young coach without a big resume is the ability to flex a little bit on their athletes and show them that what they’re teaching is based on experience.

US Olympian Jacob Pebley, the head age group coach at Yale-adjacent Bulldog Swimming, did that last weekend at the Connecticut Swimming LSC Championships, winning the 100 backstroke in 57.16. He beat out Bulldog Swimming alum Brendan Conners, who just finished his freshman season at Alabama.

Conners finished 2nd in 57.55.

While Pebley’s presence in the pool in his first meet in over two years was a thrill for some of the younger swimmers at the meet, Xavier Ruiz of the Ridgefield Aquatic Club, a North Carolina commit, found himself atop the most podiums with 5 event wins at the meet.

That included the 100 breast (1:02.11), 200 breast (2:15.12), and 400 IM (4:27.75) individually, though none of them were best times.

He helped lead his club to the boys’ team title, part of a sweep of the team awards at the event.

Top 5 Boys’ Teams

1. Ridgefield Aquatic Club – 871.5
2. Cheshire Y Sea Dog Swim Club – 664
3. Zeus Swim Team – 403
4. Bulldog Swimming – 307
5. Farmington Valley YMCA Tsunami – 276

Top 5 Girls’ Teams

1. Ridgefield Aquatic Club – 664
2. Cheshire Y Sea Dog Swim Club – 599.5
3. Greenwich YWCA Dolphins Swim Team – 347
4. Bulldog Swimming – 333.5
5. Westport Weston Family Y – 324

On the girls’ side, Lily Archibald and Bridget Kelly from Ridgefield picked up 6 and 5 wins, respectively.

114 individual points made Archibald the meet’s high scorer, winning the 50 free (26.11), 100 free (56.61), 200 free (2:05.85), 100 fly (1:01.03), and 200 IM (2:24.12). All of those aside from the 100 fly were new lifetime bests for her, and the 50 and 100 free swims are both US Open cuts.

Archibald is committed to swim at Rice beginning fall 2025, where she will arrive as one of the most-impactful recruits in program history.

Kelly, meanwhile picked up a win in the 800 free in a new personal best of 9:22.74 and also split a best time of 57.86 leadinf off Ridgefield’s 400 free relay, flexing her wide range. Kelly is a high school junior committed to swim at Georgetown in fall 2025.