PLAINFIELD —
Terre Haute South freshman Chandler Bray won the 200-yard individual medley and the Braves placed second as a team behind favored Avon in Saturday’s finals of the IHSAA Plainfield Sectional for boys swimming.
Avon accumulated 511 points, with South next at 423, Plainfield third at 244 and Terre Haute North fourth at 230. Greencastle was fifth with 193, while South Putnam and West Vigo finished 10th and 11th respectively.
“I knew Avon was a clear favorite going in,” South coach Jeff Thompson told the Tribune-Star. “We made some points up on Thursday [in the sectional preliminaries] and put ourselves in position where we could win today. But it meant that Avon was going to have to make mistakes.”
That didn’t happen, but finishing second was not a bad showing for the Braves.
Bray’s time in the 200 IM was 1 minute, 54.94 seconds. He’ll move on to the state finals Friday (and possibly Saturday) at the Indiana University Natatorium on the IUPUI campus in Indianapolis.
“Chandler actually broke the [age] 13-14 state record previously owned by Kyle Whitaker [in the 200 IM], so that was a pretty cool deal,” Thompson pointed out. “Chandler had a great day. His 100 breast[stroke] time [58.73, good for third place] was a little off what it was the other night. But I think his mind was all wrapped around that 200 IM today. He had a goal and he went out and did it.”
“Before the race even started, I was very nervous,” the 14-year-old Bray said of his 200 IM performance. “After the first 50 [yards], which is my weakest part of the IM, I was ahead. I knew then it was my race to lose. I had a really solid middle 100. Then in the last 50, I started hurting really bad — my arms and my legs mostly.”
Still clinging to a lead over Avon sophomore Grant Lewis, Bray realized he needed to fight through the pain if he wanted to capture his first sectional championship.
“I put my head down and went [as fast as possible],” Bray continued. “I was pretty happy at the end.”
Bray’s goals for the state finals are to improve his times and place in the top three in the 200 IM.
Other top-four finishers for South on Saturday were its 200 medley relay squad (second in 1:37.53); junior Christian Wilhelm in the 200 freestyle (second in 1:43.88) and 500 freestyle (second in 4:43.72), sophomore Dalton Mitchell in the 200 IM (third in 1:57.25) and 100 backstroke (third in 53.82); junior Josh Ford in the 200 IM (fourth in 1:59.76); senior Alex Davis in diving (second with 408.80 points); senior Collin McCord in the 100 butterfly (fourth in 54.63); its 200 free relay squad (third in 1:32.55); and its 400 free relay squad (second in 3:12.55).
Thompson said both of Wilhelm’s times were school records.
In addition to Bray in the 200 IM and 100 breaststroke, South will send Wilhelm (200 and 500 freestyles), its 200 medley and 400 free relay squads and Mitchell (100 backstroke) to the state finals.
Also, Davis will advance to the diving regional Tuesday evening at Avon.
“It was a great team performance,” Thompson summarized.
Meanwhile, North’s top-four finishers were junior Courtland Jones in the 100 freestyle (third in 49.48), senior Matt Priester in the 500 freestyle (fourth in 4:49.56), its 200 free relay foursome (fourth in 1:32.89) and its 400 free relay foursome (fourth in 3:23.48).
“[Fourth in the team standings] is as good as we expected to do,” North coach Mike Williams assessed afterward. “We knew we were up against some tough teams. … It would have been nice to catch Plainfield [for third].”
Williams, who mentioned that the Patriots carried only 12 athletes on their roster for this sectional, said seniors Priester, James Welch, Stephen Koos and Josh Dadson contributed clutch performances Saturday.
“We’ve got some recruiting to do,” Williams admitted while looking ahead to next season. “We’ve got some serious recruiting to do to get our numbers back up. … We’re going to get out and kinda beat the bushes and look in the middle schools for some kids who want to be part of a great program.”
Also worth noting, Greencastle had a double winner in junior Nash Firebaugh, who finished first in the 50 freestyle (22.22) and 100 butterfly (51.30).
On an awards note, Thompson was named the sectional’s Coach of the Year after the meet.
“That’s just great swimmers, great parents and great assistant coaches making me look good,” he said with a chuckle. “That’s all that is.”
Saturday
Team scores — Avon 511, Terre Haute South 423, Plainfield 244, Terre Haute North 230, Greencastle 193, Danville 144, North Putnam 125, Tri-West 121, Cascade 100, South Putnam 88, West Vigo 56.
Top 8 in each event
200 medley relay — Avon 1:35.15*, Terre Haute South 1:37.53, Greencastle 1:42.12, Danville 1:47.41, Tri-West 1:49.91, North Putnam 1:50.64, Terre Haute North 1:52.44, Plainfield 1:52.97.
200 freestyle — Parks Jones (A) 1:43.10, Christian Wilhelm (THS) 1:43.38, Nick Allen (P) 1:45.32, Quinn McPhail (A) 1:47.20, Courtland Jones (THN) 1:48.57, Westin Fink (A) 1:48.78, Dakota Rhodes (P) 1:49.69, James Pawlowski (P) 1:53.35.
200 IM — Chandler Bray (THS) 1:54.94, Grant Lewis (A) 1:56.28, Dalton Mitchell (THS) 1:57.25, Josh Ford (THS) 1:59.76, Christian Lorenz (A) 2:00.01, Matthew Priester (THN) 2:03.14, Ray Wang (A) 2:03.30, Dane Gray (NP) 2:05.98.
50 freestyle — Nash Firebaugh (G) 22.22, Grant Callahan (D) 22.25, Chris Tice (P) 22.31, Joe Rank (A) 22.71, Zackary Czerwonky (A) 22.74, Collin McCord (THS) 22.92, Michael Goldhammer (A) 23.03, Luke Peoples (THS) 23.13.
Diving — Evan Cooper (TW) 442.90, Alex Davis (THS) 408.80, Daequan Quinn (A) 343.55, Aaron Lux (P) 341.75, Kyle Trent (C) 335.25, Kasey Hedrick (D) 314.85, James Humphrey (THN) 300.80, Dyllon Harris (THS) 297.20.
100 butterfly — Nash Firebaugh (G) 51.30, Grant Lewis (A) 52.09, Chris Tice (P) 52.84, Collin McCord (THS) 54.63, Zackary Czerwonky (A) 54.66, Colin Mothersead (A) 54.68, Connor McCord (THS) 56.88, Nathan Gardner (G) 57.06.
100 freestyle — Greg Sprout (A) 48.74, Matt Stowe (A) 49.28, Courtland Jones (THN) 49.48, Dakota Rhodes (P) 50.33, Joe Rank (A) 50.38, Elijah Brattain (G) 51.49, James Pawlowski (P) 51.89, Collin Dowell (THS) 51.94.
500 freestyle — Parks Jones (A) 4:41.98, Christian Wilhelm (THS) 4:43.72, Westin Fink (A) 4:48.58, Matthew Priester (THN) 4:49.56, Josh Ford (THS) 4:56.99, Jordan Landau (A) 5:00.88, Connor McCord (THS) 5:14.45, Matt Neilson (D) 5:19.26.
200 free relay — Avon 1:28.64, Plainfield 1:30.20, Greencastle 1:31.50, Terre Haute South 1:32.55, Terre Haute North 1:32.89, North Putnam 1:38.66, South Putnam 1:38.74, Cascade 1:40.47.
100 backstroke — Matt Stowe (A) 53.50, Nick Allen (P) 53.70, Dalton Mitchell (THS) 53.82, Dane Gray (NP) 56.46, Nick Bingaman (A) 57.00, Nathan Gardner (G) 57.15, Jesse Scalf (A) 57.18, William Hubbs (THN) 1:01.70.
100 breaststroke — Christian Lorenz (A) 56.82, Colin Mothersead (A) 58.46, Chandler Bray (THS) 58.73, Quinn McPhail (A) 59.52, Grant Callahan (D) 59.88, Lucas Sturgess (THS) 1:04.12, Michael Crowell (THS) 1:04.58, Robert Brandkamp (TW) 1:08.71.
400 free relay — Avon 3:11.93, Terre Haute South 3:12.55, Plainfield 3:18.39, Terre Haute North 3:23.48, Danville 3:30.52, North Putnam 3:36.82, Cascade 3:42.18, Greencastle 3:43.08.
* — denotes sectional record
High School
South freshman Chandler Bray leads Braves to second at swimming sectional
- High School
-
-
West Vigo advances to sectional championship with walk-off win in ninth
High school baseball sectional games between West Vigo and Edgewood have had a tendency to be unpredictable over the years, but the Vikings and Mustangs outdid themselves in that area Thursday evening — and Thursday night.
-
BOYS TRACK REGIONAL: North gets three winners, South two at Evansville
Terre Haute North had three winners, Terre Haute South two, and the Patriots and Braves finished second and third respectively at the Evansville Regional for boys track on Thursday at Evansville Central.
Hurdlers Cam Stewart and Cole Seward and discus thrower Lee Davis were the winners for North, enabling the Patriots to finish with 60 points to 59 for the Braves. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Martinsville adavances in Class 4A THS Sectional
Martinsville slipped past Mooresville 4-2 in the only game played Thursday in the Class 4A Terre Haute South Sectional for high school baseball.
-
South Vermillion pitches team to sectional title, wins for her dad
South Vermillion snapped one streak and extended another Thursday night to win Class 3A Sectional 28 8-5 over Brown County at Edgewood High School.
-
Green's grand slam helps Shakamak to sectional win
Patrick Green pitched the first four innings for his seventh win of the year and made things easier for himself with a second-inning grand slam as Shakamak opened the Class A Shakamak Sectional with a 9-1 win over Clay City on Thursday.
-
Rockville, Attica winners in Class A sectional baseball action
Host Rockville defeated North Vermillion and Attica came from behind to overhaul defending champion Turkey Run on Thursday in the first round of the Class A Rockville Sectional for high school baseball.
-
North baseball pulls away from South in sectional opener
In high school baseball little things mean a lot, and the crack in the door doesn’t have to be open very wide.
Terre Haute North burst through that crack in the bottom of the second inning Wednesday evening at Terre Haute South, scoring seven two-out runs and going on to a surprisingly easy 12-2 victory over the host Braves. -
Blank, Mundy named McMillan Award winners
Posing side-by-side for photos following Terre Haute North High School’s Senior Awards ceremony, seniors Calvin Blank and Chanli Mundy couldn’t look more different.
-
West Vigo baseball advances with 10-0 win behind Stewart's two-hitter
West Vigo got off to a good start in Class 3A high school sectional baseball action Wednesday evening at Dick Ballinger Field.
The Vikings scored four runs in the first inning of the first sectional game and went on to defeat Brown County 10-0 in five innings with Kevin Stewart hurling a two-hitter. -
Terre Haute South tennis claims regional crown
It was a lot tougher than some thought it would be, but the Terre Haute South girls tennis team won the Greencastle regional for the second year in a row Wednesday evening at DePauw University Tennis and Track Center.
-
Big group of Wabash Valley boys head to Evansville looking for state berths
The top four finishers in each event from last week’s Terre Haute North, Evansville Central, Jasper and Princeton boys high school track and field sectionals will converge on Evansville Central today for regional competition.
-
West Vigo comes up short against 19-9 Brown County softball
West Vigo got off to a good start but Brown County finished better in Class 3A high school softball sectional semifinal action Tuesday night at Edgewood.
The Eagles bested the Vikings 7-5 and will meet South Vermillion, a 12-7 winner over Owen Valley, for the sectional championship on Thursday starting at 6 p.m.
-
Valley baseball teams have been keeping busy heading into sectionals
When high school baseball sectionals begin around the Wabash Valley today, one complaint that’s not expected to be heard from any coach is that his team has had too much time off.
-
Northview powers way past Terre Haute South in sectional semifinal
Northview unleashed power rarely seen in high school girls softball Tuesday night to eliminate Terre Haute South 8-1 in the Class 4A Sectional at Martinsville High School.
The Knights hit three home runs in an eight-run third inning to reach the championship game. -
Terre Haute North dominates field at regional
Keirra Porter took first place in two individual events and helped Terre Haute North win one of its relays as the Patriots captured the Evansville Central Regional team championship in girls high school track and field Tuesday night.
-
PREP ROUNDUP: South tennis cruises into regional final
Terre Haute South didn’t lose a game en route to blanking Seeger 5-0 in girls high school tennis Tuesday to advance to today’s championship match against Crawfordsville in the Greencastle Regional.
-
Terry enjoys strong year with Wildcats, and still enjoying suiting up to play
South Vermillion’s Tim Terry is the longest tenured coach in Wabash Valley high school baseball as his Wildcats are set to begin sectional play Thursday against Owen Valley.
But on the Yankees, a 35-and-over team in the Terre Haute Men’s Senior Baseball League, Terry is “just a youngster” if you ask Larry Roesch, his 68-year-old teammate on the Volkers Group Yankees. -
West Vigo softball holds off nemesis Edgewood in softball sectional
Ice cream was enough of a reward Monday night after the West Vigo Vikings beat eight-time defending champion Edgewood 6-2 in extra innings in the opening game of the Class 3A softball sectional at Edgewood High School. But that’s not what Vikings want.
-
PREP ROUNDUP: Shakamak's Green hits two homers in win over West Vigo
Shakamak improved to 22-3 on the season behind a complete-game effort from Brett Yeryar, and Patrick Green hit two solo home runs in a high school baseball game Monday.
-
Terre Haute North offense unable to get going in loss to Mooresville
Jack Kirchner chose to give credit Monday night to Mooresville pitcher Taylor Chitwood, not to the Greg Maddux-size strike zone she seemed to enjoy.
But if there were no excuses forthcoming from Kirchner and his Terre Haute North High School softball team, it wouldn’t have been hard to find a spectator or two to come up with extenuating circumstances about the Patriots’ 4-1 loss at the Class 4A Martinsville Sectional. -
Terre Haute North looking strong going into girls track regional
Terre Haute North might need an off night for anyone to catch them in the girls track regional at Evansville Central.
The Patriots are as well-rounded as they’ve ever been, and two relay teams are state contenders with times ranking No. 2 in Indiana among times recorded all spring.
Terre Haute South, Northview and Sullivan have athletes among the contenders in multiple events as well. -
South tennis ready for potential challenge in regional
Terre Haute South and Northview take respective records of 10-5 and 11-5 into the Greencastle Regional today.
-
Softball sectionals up for grabs
All three Vigo County high schools and Northview appear to have a realistic chance of winning sectional championships in softball this week.
-
Terre Haute South, Northview vie for tennis regional title
Terre Haute South and Northview take respective records of 10-5 and 11-5 into the Greencastle Regional today.
Coach Bill Blankenbaker’s Braves will play Seeger at 4:30 p.m., while coach Emily Goff’s Knights will take on Crawfordsville about 6 p.m. -
Vikings win in extra innings at Rockville
West Vigo scored six runs in its first two innings Saturday, then needed a ninth-inning single by Lucas Fagg to escape with a 7-6 extra-inning win in nonconference high school baseball at Rockville.
-
TH South beats Northview in Big Four makeup baseball game
Terre Haute South wrapped up a share of the MIC baseball title and finished up the Big Four Classic with an 8-1 victory over Northview in less than 24 hours on Saturday morning.
-
Olds pitches South to share of MIC baseball title
Friday night, winning the second game 5-0 and earning a share of the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball title.
Damon Olds was dominant on the mound for the Braves, striking out 14 and walking just one while pitching a three-hit shutout. -
South wins first half of doubleheader against Lawrence North
Host Terre Haute South kept its Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball title hopes alive — and clinched no worse than second place in the process — by downing Lawrence North 4-1 in the first game of a doubleheader Friday night.
The second game, which started after Senior Night festivities between games, ended past the Tribune-Star deadline. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Calleja pitches West Vigo past South Vermillion
Brandon Calleja had 13 strikeouts to lead West Vigo to a 5-1 victory against South Vermillion in high school baseball Friday.
Brandon Behringer went 2 for 4 with two RBI for the Vikings, who secured second place in the Western Indiana Conference.
Kaden Lawson had double for South Vermillion (15-7), which finished 4-2 in the WIC. -
Seibert returns from injury to win three events as Braves win sectional crown
His baseball equivalent might be Rick Sutcliffe of the 1984 Chicago Cubs.
When Tyler Seibert returned to the Terre Haute South track and field lineup Thursday for sectional action at Terre Haute North, it was like the midseason trade the Cubs made for Sutcliffe that earned them a playoff spot. - More High School Headlines
-
Officials: Truck Hit Bridge Before Collapse
Raw Video: Washington State Bridge Collapse
Bridge Collapse Survivor: 'Rough Day'
First Person: Mom Discusses Famous Tornado Photo
Sheriff: No Sign Killing of 2 Kids Was Planned
Jersey Shore Open for Business
Boy Scouts Approve Plan to Accept Gay Boys
Raw: Utah Teen Arrested in Death of His Brothers
Raw: Scuffles in London After Hacking Death
Two Suspects in Murder Known to London Police
Obama Defends Drone Strikes, With Limits
Officials: Tsarnaev Friend Linked to Slaying
Raw: Jurors Deadlock on Jodi Arias Penalty
Boy Scouts Decision "First Step" Say Activists
Johnson: Don't Blame Islam or UK Policy
Today in History May 24
Closer Look at Okla. School Where Children Died
Raw: Memorial Day Flags Placed at Arlington
Britain Attack Believed Linked to Radical Islam
Obama:Sexual Assault Threatens Trust in Military
AK-47-wielding thug may be the most bumbling crook ever
Oklahoma Survivors, Heroes Survey Damage
Trout's cycle a boost for Angels
Raw: New Video of Deadly Oklahoma Tornado
Kim Kardashian Flaunts Pregnant Bikini Body in Greece
NBA star pledges $1M to help tornado recovery
Shakira's Shocking Talent
Morgan Freeman falls asleep on air
GRAPHIC: Blood-Soaked Machete Killer Caught on Tape
Elin Nordegren Furious With Lindsey Vonn For Parading Kids in Public
Camera Captures Climber As He Loses Grip And Falls
Helen Mirren Meets with Dying Boy in Queen Elizabeth's Place
Crowd Chants '¡Si, Se Puede!' After Passage of Immigration Bill
DWTS Crowns a Winner
Police Ram House to End Hostage Standoff
Demi Moore a Rocks Bikini at Harry Morton's Family House
Anthony Weiner: I'm running for New York City mayor
Kate Middleton's Dress Flies Up
VIRAL: Baby makes epic soccer goal
The Hangover Baby All Grown Up
