Cambridge Walks Away with New State Qualifiers against North Gwinnett and Lassiter
On November 15th, the Bears traveled to West Gwinnett Aquatic Center to compete against North Gwinnett, Lassiter, and Discovery Academy. At the end of the night, the Bears fell short against these 5A and 6A opponents, but gained an Iron Bear and a number of new best times and state cuts!
Boys
North Gwinnett - 719
Lassiter - 572
Cambridge - 453
Discovery - 142
Girls
North Gwinnett - 634
Lassiter - 629
Cambridge - 497
Discovery - 75
In the boys 200-free A-relay (John Murphy, Yan Berezitsky, Oscar Ryzhkov, Tayne Naude) took second place with a finish in a state time of 1:46.24. The B-relay (Pranav Kolathaya, Tate Robertson, Raj Malik, Brian Guy) taking eighth.
In the girls event, the A-relay (Caroline Gaines, Alana Drevet, Jennifer Griner, Amber Naude) took second with a time of 1:54.63. The B-relay (Ana-Clare Grann, Maya Berezitsky, Audrey Lampa, Alexis Walkenhorst) took eighth.
In the boys 200-free, Tom Berezitsky took eighth, Raj Malik took ninth, James Kates took 10th, and Campen Dawes took 16th with a new best time.
In the girls event, Caroline Gaijo took fifth, followed by Leila Kader in ninth, and Maya Berezitsky in 10th.
In the boys 200-individual medley, Bryson Mynatt had a huge time drop and took 11th place, Aneesh Ayyagari also had a time drop and took 13th, and Tom Berezitsky took 14th.
In the girls event, Alana Drevet took eighth, Leila Kader took 11th, and Alexis Walkenhorst took 14th with a new best time.
In the boys 50-freestyle, Oscar Ryzhkov finished in third with a new best time of 23.62, just off the state qualifying time requirement. Yan Berezitsky took fourth, Brian Guy took 12th, Shane Merrill swam a new best time and took 19th, Pranav Kolathaya swam a new best time and took 25th, and Avi Saxena took 34th with a new best time.
In the girls 50-freestyle, Amber Naude won the event with a time of 24.61. Veronika Kolesnikov took 11th and Mihika Ayyagari took 16th.
In the boys diving event, Carter Solomon scored 140 points and earned 5th place, and Jack Flores scored 102.80 and took seventh place.
For the girls, Brooklyn Petit took the top score with 327.30 points, followed by teammate Taylor Eastman in fifth place.
In the boys 100-butterfly, Tayne Naude finished with a time of 55.49, which qualifies for state and earned him second place. Oscar Ryzhkov took fourth with a state qualifying time of 56.01, also a new best time. John Murphy took 10th place.
In the girls event, Jennifer Griner took third with a state qualifying time of 1:02.32. Audrey Lampa took fifth, Ana-Clare took 11th, Christine McVicker took 12th, and Ella Fajen took 13th.
In the boys 100-freestyle, Tayne Naude took fourth with a new best time of 51.17, followed by Brian Guy with a new best time in 12th, and Avi Saxena in 31st.
In the girls event, Caroline Gaines took third with a state qualifying time of 57.91, followed by Molly Melchiors in fifth, Maya Berezitsky in 14th, and Sela Guy with a new best time in 27th.
In the boys 500-freestyle, Yan Berezitsky took second, and Aneesh Ayyagari took fifth with a new best time with a huge time drop.
For the girls, Alana Drevet took second, Caroline Gaijo took fourth, Ana-Clare Grann took sixth with a new best time, and Ella Fajen in 10th.
In the 200-freestyle relay, the A-team (Oscar Ryzhkov, Bryson Mynatt, Yan Berezitsky, Tayne Naude) took first with a state time of 1:33.72. The B-relay (Raj Malik, Aneesh Ayyagari, Pranav Kolathaya, Tom Berezitsky) took 10th, and the C-relay (Shane Merrille, Caden Whalen, James Kates, Campen Dawes) took 13th.
In the girls event, the A-relay (Jennifer Griner, Caroline Gaines, Caroline Gaijo, Amber Naude) took first with a state time of 1:42.55, with Jennifer Griner swimming a state qualifying lead-off 50-freestyle. The B-relay (Ana-Clare Grann, Alexis Walkenhorst, Maya Berezitsky, Molly Melchiors) took sixth and the C-relay (Sela Guy, Christine McVicker, Leila Kader, Ella Fajen) took 13th.
In the boys 100-backstroke, Pranav Kolathaya took ninth, Tate Robertson took 10th with a new best time, Shane Merrill took 14th with a new best time, Campen Dawes took 15th, and Caden Whalen took 19th.
In the girls event, Amber Naude clocked a state time of 58.58, earning second place, with Caroline Gaines finishing right after in third also with a state qualifying time. Veronika Kolesnikov took 11th.
In the boys 100-breaststroke, John Murphy took seventh, Bryson Mynatt took 12th with a new best time, and Caden Whalen took 18th.
In the girls event, Jennifer Griner took second with a new best state qualifying time of 1:12.38, which secured Griner the first Iron Bear title of the season! Molly Melchiors took fourth, Audrey Lampa took 12th, and Sela Guy took 17th.
In the last event of the evening, the boys A-relay in the 400-freestyle (John Murphy, Tate Robertson, Brian Guy, Bryson Mynatt) took fourth, the B-relay (Shane Merille, Aneesh Ayyagari, James Kates, Tom Berezitsky) took 6th.
The team recognized the contributions of a couple of athletes for their performances in the meet. Carter Solomon, Jack Flores, Bryson Mynatt and Jennifer Griner were recognized as athletes of the meet! Solomon and Flores got the natatorium excited about diving and cranked up the energy in the space! Their spirit and positive energy was infectious for everyone. Mynatt swam new best times in events that challenged him and we are so proud of him! Griner earned the first Iron Bear title of the season and that deserved extra recognition!
The captains recognized our "meet chefs" as Amber Naude and Shane Merille! They really "cooked" that night and the team noticed!
The Bears will take on Westminster in the first region match-up of the season on Tuesday! Come and cheer on your Bears! Swimmers and divers will be competing together for the rest of the season!