Jay earns six top seeds

The Patriots are in position to reach state in six events.

A team sectional crown is very much up in the air.

Jay County High School’s girls swim team earned six top seeds during the IHSAA swimming sectional prelims it hosted Thursday.

Delta and Norwell trail Jay County with two No. 1 seeds apiece. Winchester’s lone swimmer Ella Baldwin, who trains with Jay County, is the top seed in the 100 backstroke (1:04.11).

The three-day meet is scheduled to resume at 6 p.m. today with diving, and 4 p.m. Saturday with the swimming championship and consolation heats.

The top eight qualify for the championship finals, while places nine through 16 will swim in the consolation finals.

Jay County, which is three-time defending sectional champions, kicked off Thursday’s festivities by earning the top seed in the 200-yard medley relay on the efforts of Eliza Bader, Ashlyn Dow, Rieley Brewster and Mara Bader. They had a time of 1 minute, 55.38 seconds, which is more than five seconds ahead of No. 2 seed Norwell.

Seniors Eliza Bader and Dow both had a pair of top seeds in individual events. Bader posted the fastest time in both the 50 freestyle (25.21 seconds) and 100 butterfly (59.85) and will be the swimmer to beat Saturday. Dow led the field in both the 100 freestyle (54.95 seconds) and 100 breaststroke (1:09.06) to earn her top seeds.

The Baders and Dow along with Lilli Clemmons will be the top seed in the 200 freestyle relay as they had a time of 1:44.44, more than six seconds better than Norwell.

Six other individuals will swim in the championship heats.

Mara Bader is seeded second in the 100 breaststroke behind Dow, and she’ll be third in the 200 individual medley. Brewster earned the second seed in the 100 backstroke and is fourth in the 100 butterfly. Clemmons is seeded fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 50 freestyle and 100 backstroke, while Elayna Paro will be fifth in both the 200 and 500 freestyle events.

Hannah Laux is seeded seventh in the 100 butterfly and eighth in the 200 IM, the latter of which is one place behind teammate Zion Beiswanger.

Jay County’s 400 freestyle relay team of Clemmons, Beiswanger, Paro and Rieley is seeded second, slightly more than two seconds behind Norwell.

Emily Dues will compete in the consolation finals of the 100 freestyle (ninth) and 100 backstroke (10th), while Beiswanger is seeded ninth in the 100 breaststroke.

Union City sophomore Elly O’Connor, who trains with the Patriots, is seeded second in the 100 freestyle and third in the 50 freestyle.

Baldwin is seeded third in the 100 butterfly.