A league of their own: Area wrestlers, swimmers ascend podium, rack up medals at state

With another round of state meets in the books, here's a look at some of the local programs whose student-athletes medaled in the top three of their respective competitions in wrestling and swimming last weekend.

WRESTLING

Allen

Death, taxes and Allen wrestling winning state—for the past decade-and-a-half, at least.

The Eagles extended their prolific UIL championship streak to 14 consecutive years on the boys side, warding off a game effort from second-place Arlington Martin on Saturday at the Berry Center in Cypress. Allen was just 1.5 points ahead of the Warriors heading into the second day of the meet but managed to come away with a 16-point edge in the final standings, 181-165

The Lady Eagles, meanwhile, captured their third straight state title but had some company in doing so after tying with El Paso Eastwood for first place in the girls' standings with 67.5 points.

"We changed the lineup up a little bit. We struggled a little bit in the quarterfinals and lost some close matches. We had a kid get injured and then another in the semifinals, but they stepped up and really performed great through the medal rounds," said Jerry Best, Allen head coach. "To perform the way our guys did in the medal rounds was pretty unheard of."

Best has coached the Eagles for the entirety of their dynasty on the wrestling mats but called his team's 2022-23 campaign one of the more challenging throughout the team's historic run, battling illnesses and injuries that continued right up to the state meet. But that didn't deter a resounding homestretch for Allen, which went 10-0 during Saturday's medal round.

"Our kids came together and were pumping each other up. They really wrestled as a team and wrestled for each other, and it showed," Best said. "Going 10-0 in the medal rounds isn't something that happens."

In total, 10 Eagles or Lady Eagles finished top three in their weight classes, including four individual state champions.

That has become a familiar refrain for junior phenom Jasmine Robinson, who's among the top pound-for-pound high school wrestlers in the country. After capturing state titles as a freshman and sophomore, Robinson made it 3-for-3 on Saturday with a dominant showing in the 152-pound bracket. Robinson pinned all four of her opponents at the state in two minutes or less — through three campaigns on varsity, she is yet to have a match go the distance at state.

"She's getting better and better. She's a sponge for the sport and showed some takedowns and work on top that she hadn't shown in the past," Best said.

As Robinson continues to add to her legacy, seniors Caden Brown and Ryan Nichols finished off their high school careers on a winning note.

Nichols had earned consecutive state runner-up finishes as a sophomore and junior before ascending one spot higher on the podium on Saturday as the 6A state champion at 215 pounds. Despite a recent bout with food poisoning, Nichols continued his winning ways at state with two pins and a decision prior to edging Keller's Andrew Jurasek in the final, 3-2.

"Ryan got that monkey off his back and wrestled a smart match in the finals," Best said. "I think he probably could have majored or pinned his opponent, but he did what he had to do to win. He's been a great asset to our program and is a great kid."

Brown thrived in similarly close quarters in his championship match at 144 pounds. He outlasted Martin's Julian Garnica on points, 5-4, to add some extra distance between the Eagles and Warriors in the race for first place overall. Brown finished sixth at 132 pounds last season as a junior.

"He's battled injuries over the years," Best said. "He had to finish out the season with a torn labrum and then injured the meniscus in his knee in the semifinals. He sucked it up big time and his performance out there was a big reason why we were able to win the championship. He set the tone for the team."

Sophomore Kelby Bernard, meanwhile, built off his state runner-up finish as a freshman and came out on top of the 120-pound bracket on Saturday. Bernard was a runner-up at regionals the week prior but regrouped to string together a commanding stretch of wins at state before topping EP Franklin's Ian Abdallah in the finals, 3-1.

"Kelby has made some big strides with his wrestling. He's learning more match strategy and when to turn things on," Best said. "He's a great kid who works hard and listens. He's a sponge for wrestling."

The Eagles got plenty of help elsewhere in pursuit of their latest state title, with junior Gabe Romans finishing third at 126 pounds, junior Joseph Liescheski notching third at 138, sophomore Warren Smith earning bronze at 165 and freshman Aiden Cooley placing third at 190, while freshman Grace Romans (100) and junior Esther Peters (235) took home bronze medals as part of the Allen girls' title run.

Lovejoy

A mere six points separated the top four finishers in the 5A boys team standings, with Lovejoy taking second overall with 109 points — just three behind state champion Amarillo Tascosa.

The Leopards entered the meet anxious to build off last season's run to their first-ever state title but still managed to exit Cypress with plenty of hardware intact. In addition to the team's second-place trophy, Lovejoy had three wrestlers muster top-three individual finishes, including another gold medal for junior Sam Reynolds.

The two-sport standout, who doubles as a star offensive lineman on the football field, successfully defended his state championship in the 285-pound bracket. He did so in convincing fashion, winning via fall in all four of his matches at state.

Fellow junior Payton Pierce nearly joined Reynolds atop the podium for the second straight year but came away with a second-place finish at 215. Pierce, who won a state title at 220 as a sophomore, made short work of his first three opponents at state before being edged on points, 8-2, by Justin Northwest's Charles Reitz.

Senior Jackson Dubree, meanwhile, brushed off a setback in the semifinals at 190 pounds and won his final two matches at state to secure a bronze medal.

McKinney Boyd

After falling one spot short of qualifying for state as a sophomore, Boyd junior Cameron Girard staked his claim as one of the top 165-pound grapplers in the state. Initially finishing second in his district before winning regionals, Girard's ascent culminated in a second-place finish at state.

Girard scored a trio of decision wins to open his run in Cypress, getting the better of Vandegrift's Niklas Alvarenga (8-0), Bridgeland's Jaime Craven (2-1) and Harker Heights' Jack Hughes (5-3) on points before falling short in the finals against unbeaten Katy standout Jeremy Manibog.

SWIMMING

McKinney North

By the time McKinney North junior Camille Murray graduates high school, she may very well hold every record within the Lady Bulldogs' swim program. She's already made staggering progress — in her junior year alone, according to head coach Stephanie Cusack, Murray broke school records in the 200-yard freestyle, 200 IM, 100 butterfly, 100 freestyle, 500 freestyle, 100 backstroke and as part of the 400 freestyle relay.

And that isn't the only record book that Murray is rewriting.

As a sophomore last year, she broke the 5A record in the 100 backstroke with a 53.82 — a time she twice bested during last weekend's swim through the UIL state meet from the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin. Murray saved her best for last, clocking a 53.13 in the finals to successfully defend her state title in the event.

"Camille had a great start. She moves through the water perfectly and her walls are fantastic," Cusack said. "You could see how determined she was to get that record."

Murray finished more than three seconds ahead of the field in the 100 backstroke final. Her record time is less than a second behind the state's top overall mark in the race, recorded back in 2017 by The Woodlands' Lucie Nordmann at 52.48.

Murray's big win capped a busy state meet for the North swimmer, also capturing silver in the 100 butterfly with a 54.24 and swimming the last leg of the Lady Bulldogs' 400 freestyle relay alongside sophomore Sabine Brown, sophomore Rachel Sellers and freshman Olivia Penman (3:48.68, 19th place).

"Her work ethic is outstanding. She's willing to lead the freshmen and sophomores, despite only being a junior," Cusack said. "She helps out in every way she can and always has a positive mindset, as well as a willingness to find ways to extend that mindset. For as high-caliber an athlete as she is, she's always willing to learn more."

Prosper Rock Hill

Rock Hill's swim team hasn't been around for long, recently concluding just its third season of varsity competition. But in that short span, the Blue Hawks have impressed plenty at the state level.

Rock Hill's girls team placed second overall last season while still in 5A, and the program exited Saturday's 6A state meet with a gold medal following junior Luke Sitz's win in the 1-meter diving competition.

Sitz preceded his run to state with first-place finishes at the district and regional meets but had just the sixth-highest score among the 24 state qualifiers heading into Austin. But the competition quickly became Sitz's to lose, posting the top score during the preliminary round of dives before distancing from the field in the finals with an overall mark of 599.75 — more than 33 points ahead of second place.

Prosper

Prosper junior Jacob Wimberly made quite the first impression during his debut at the 6A state meet last season as just a sophomore, winning the 100 butterfly with a time of 48.37.

Wimberly shattered that mark during his preliminary race on Friday, clocking a 46.99 to set a new 6A record in the event. Unfortunately for the Prosper standout, that time stood for less than 24 hours.

Wimberly was right in the ballpark during the finals with a time of 47.04 but was edged by Fort Bend Clements' Hayden Bellotti at 46.67.

A mere four-hundredths of a second separated the two medalists during the prelims, with Wimberly's 46.99 outpacing Bellotti's 47.03. Another back-and-forth race materialized during Saturday's final, with Wimberly netting a silver medal for his efforts.

Wimberly prefaced his performance in the 100 fly with a fifth-place swim in the 50 freestyle. He clocked a 20.35 — just four-tenths of a second shy of first place.

Lovejoy

The Lady Leopards may very well be in the midst of something special with sophomore Maria Faoro.

On the heels of a breakout freshman season that culminated in a 5A state title in 1-meter diving last year, Faoro was back atop the podium last weekend after defending her championship in the event as a sophomore.

In going 2-for-2 at state, Faoro finished more than 40 points ahead of the field following last Saturday's final round of dives, totaling 471.25 points at the state meet. It's the highest final score for a 5A girls diver at state since 2017.

Faoro wasn't alone in representing Lovejoy on the podium, as junior Grant Hu captured a pair of silver medals following second-place swims in the 200 freestyle (1:38.88) and 500 freestyle (4:26.65). Hu finished second to the same athlete on both occasions — Lubbock's Jones Lambert, who holds the 5A record in both events.

It's the second consecutive year that Hu has medaled in multiple events at state, finishing second in the 500 free and third in the 200 IM last year as a sophomore. His effort this season contributed to a 17th-place team finish for the Lovejoy boys.