With contributions from Jesup Szatkowski
The men of the Live To Play (LTP) Racing Club, Cooper Pitts, Nicholas Wukovits, Emmanuel Emovon, and James Ducker, set a new 17-18 South Carolina swimming LSC record in a 200 medley relay time trial this weekend at 2016 South Carolina SC State Championships. The relay swam the event in 1:34.80, taking down a 25-year-old mark, a 1:35.02 set by Y-Spartaquatics in 1991.
Pitts, a Virginia Tech commit, split 24.01 in the backstroke leg; Wukovits, a Miami University commit, split 25.52 in the breast; Emovon, a Georgetown commit, split 22.44 in the fly leg; and Ducker, an Old Dominion commit, split 22.63 in the free.
Wukovits hit another milestone during the meet, taking down the meet record in the 100 breast with a 55.85. He came away from the competition with four other individual victories: the 50 free with 21.13, the 200 breast with 2:04.03, the 100 free with 46.88, and the 200 IM with 1:52.89 .
Mount Pleasant won with the overall club state championship, unseating Y-Spartaquatics and breaking their 15-year victory streak. This was Mount Pleasant’s final state championship under that name; on March 1, they will merge with LTP to form the South Carolina Swim Club.
The men’s high point award for the meet went to Team Greenville’s Tal Davis, who won the 200 free in 1:39.04, the 400 IM in 3:56.46, the 200 fly in 1:49.56, the 500 free in 4:30.72, and the 200 back in 1:49.30.
The women’s high point award went to junior national teamer and YMCA national champion Savanna Faulconer of Y-Spartaquatics, a Florida commit. She won the 100 breast in 1:04.69, the 400 IM in 4:20.52, the 200 fly in 2:04.13, the 200 breast in 2:19.00, the 500 free in 5:03:50, the 1000 free in 10:14:47, the 1650 free in 17:16.66, and the 200 IM in 2:05.42.
Her teammate Ali Galyer, a Kentucky commit and YMCA national champion, also had a stellar meet, sweeping wins in the 100 free (51.31), the 200 free (1:51.01), the 100 back (55.84), and the 200 back (2:02.44).
One very notable swim in the younger age groups came from Mount Pleasant Swim Club’s Kaila Pardus, who clocked a blazing 1:03.48 to win the 100 breast. Her swim missed the LSC record by just .32. That time also cracks the USA Swimming All-Time Top 100 for Pardus, a 13-year-old at the bottom of her age group.
Sub 26 in a fifty breast is beast to say the least. Congrats guys!
Savanna Faulconer also won the 500 free (5:03:50), 1000 free (10:14:47) and 1650 free (17:16:66)
Also in the meet were records broken by a 10 year old boy in the 50 fly, 100 fly, and 50 free (I believe he was from YSSC) and a new state record in the 10&under boys 200medley relay by the YSSC boys.
The little ones were swimming just as hard as the rest of the older ones! Can’t wait to see what they all do in their season-ending meets in March!