Lady Hornets’ depth helps ease the way to title
EDITOR’S NOTE: Because the look back at each day in Bryant athletic history has been so favorably received during the time when there was no sports during the COVID-19 shutdown, BryantDaily.com will continueposting past stories of Bryant athletics either posted on BryantDaily.com (from 2009 to the present) or published in the Bryant Times (from 1998 to 2008).
The quality depth of the Bryant Lady Hornets proved to be overwhelming as they[more] swamped the competition at the South District championship swim meet at the Bishop Park Aquatic Center on Friday.
The Lady Hornets had four swimmers score points in six of the nine multi-entry events at the meet with Lindsey Butler, Kaitlin Howey and the 200 yard medley relay team earning all-district honors with first-place finishes.
Bryant amassed 474 points. Magnolia was a distance second with 259 points followed by Hot Springs Lakeside (201), Little Rock Christian (197.5), Benton (142.5), Arkansas Baptist (98), Arkadelphia (84), Lake Hamilton (74), El Dorado (70) and Camden Fairview (36).
Butler won an individual event and contributing a leg to the winning relay quartet, joining Libby Thompson, Katie Higgs and Reagan Smith on a time of 2:06.05. Individually, she won the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 1:01.18. She was also second in the 50 free with a time of 25.10.
Howey was the top diver on the one-meter board, earning a score of 121.20.
In the relays, Bryant contingents garnered second-place points in both the 400 free and the 200 free. In the former, Julianna Shelton, Devin Hester, Sarah White and Kalee Jackson clocked in at 4:31.52. In the latter, Higgs, Smith, Jackson and Butler combined on a 1:51.03.
Higgs turned in a 1:06.93 in the 100 yard butterfly to add second-place points.
Butler’s win in the 100 back came in one of the events in which the Lady Hornets had four swimmers score. Higgs was third in 1:07.53 with Lauren Wood eighth in 1:21.14, and Mollie Robinson 10th in 1:26.27.
In the 200 free, Jackson was third in 2:18.56 with Mollie Robinson eighth (2:39.50), Jordan Tarvin 10th (2:42.07) and Mikayla Douglas 11th (2:44.62).
Smith led the quartet of scorers in the 200 individual medley. She was third in 2:52.45 with Shelton fourth (2:54.09), Bailey Peairson fifth (3:01.30) and Catarena Falco sixth (3:27.73).
Hester, Doubles, Tarvin and Deidra Reeves each scored in the 500 free. Hester was fourth in 6:58.95 with Douglas sixth (7:19.61), Tarvin seventh (7:39.73) and Reeves ninth (9:53.71).
Thompson took fifth in the 100 breast stroke leading a Bryant group that included Tiffany Robinson (eighth, 1:32.77), Grace Byars (10th, 1:39.32) and Courtney Wells (11th, 1:39.80).
In the 100 free, the scoring foursome was Jackson (sixth, 6:58.85), Smith (eighth, 1:07.86), Shelton (10th, 1:08.97) and White (11th, 1:09.04).
In two more races, the Lady Hornets had three swimmers in the scoring. Along with Higgs in the 100 fly, Tiffany Robinson was sixth in 1:24.65 and Hester was seventh in 1:26.07. Along with Butler in the 50 free, Thompson was 11th (30.20) and White 12th (30.27).
The Lady Hornets will compete in the Class 7A State championships at UALR on Feb. 22-23 with diving on the first day and swimming on the second.
