Jay blasts Tigers (01/10/07)

Jay County didn't stay at .500 for long.

The Patriot girls swim team slipped to 5-5 with a loss to Bellmont Thursday, but bounced right back Tuesday with a 200-104 slaughter of the Hagerstown Tigers. The boys team was nearly as dominant in picking up its second win of the year by a 190-104 score.

Briann Saxman, Michelle Landfair and Cori Vormohr led the Jay County girls team, each picking up a pair of victories as it won 11 out of 12 events. The Patriot boys got a couple of wins from junior Tom McCord as they took first place nine times.

Saxman led the most dominant event for the Patriots, a one-two-three sweep of the 500-yard freestyle. She pulled out to the early lead, and by the time the field reached the 100-yard mark teammates Christa Castillo and Lauren Murrell had secured second and third places respectively. They finished in that order, with Saxman winning in 6-minutes, 25.97 seconds, Castillo in 6:50.28 and Murrell with a career-best by 13 seconds in 7:05.28.

Saxman picked up a career-best of her own in the 100 backstroke, winning by more than two seconds in 1:18.73.

McCord's first win for the Jay County boys (2-6) came in a one-two finish in the 200 freestyle. He dominated throughout and won in 2:02.06, and Chance Milligan surged in the final 50 yards to take second.

In the 100 backstroke, McCord put up a winning time of 1:02.73.

Vormohr and Landfair were each in control in both of their victories.

Vormohr put up the best time of her career with a 25.68 in the 50 freestyle and won the 100 freestyle in a run-away at 57.58. Landfair won both the 200 freestyle and 100 butterfly by more than six seconds in times of 2:23.13 and 1:15.02 respectively.

The Patriots won all the relays on the day, with Castillo, Murrell, Vormohr and Landfair teamed to win the girls 200 medley relay in 2:12.33. Vormohr, Saxman, Murrell and Ivy Simons took the 400 freestyle relay in 4:24.21, and Saxman, Tina Gingrasso, Caitlin Ruchgy and Ashley Horn won the 200 freestyle relay at 2:02.57.

The other two victories for the Jay County girls each came with one-two efforts.

April Acker won diving with 157.95 points, putting her just ahead of teammate Tricia Skiver's career-best 154.85. In the 200 individual medley it was Gingrasso in first place at 2:46.27 ahead of Horn (2:49.83).

Stephanie Skiver added a pair of top career times with fifth-place efforts in the 200 freestyle and 100 breaststroke.

Steven Kelly and Donny McCowan matched Acker and Tricia Skiver with a one-two finish in boys diving. Kelly put up a winning total of 177.9 points, and McCowan was second with 171.3.

Sam Miller won the 100 freestyle by nearly nine seconds in 54.59, and was in on all three winning relays. He joined McCord, Lance VanSkyock and Aaron Hudson in the 200 medley relay for first at 1:57.96, and teamed with Hudson, Chance Milligan and Scott Walker in the 200 freestyle relay to win in 1:48.74. Miller, McCord, Milligan and Walker put up a time of 3:44.04 to take the 400 freestyle relay.

Milligan came up with a fairly close victory in the longest race of the evening, holding off Jordan Matheney by less than three seconds in the 500 freestyle with a time of 6:00.21. Hudson added a victory with his winning 1:11.58 in the 100 breaststroke.[[In-content Ad]]