Regular season finished for prep swim and track atheletes

Humboldt Beacon

By Mark Lourenzo

Beacon Correspondent

The regular season is winding down for the high school spring sports scene and for some sports the schedule is completed. The regular season finale for HDN high school swimmers was held last Thursday at Eureka High and the following day the same location saw the track and field regular season wrap up with the HDN All-Conference Championships. Both events had plenty of drama as aspiring prep atheletes put it all on the line.

The Fortuna High swim team has been very strong this season with many wins to their credit. The final event of the season was a chance to put an exclamation point on that success, although the event wasn't billed as anything more than the finale, a chance to qualify for the upcoming North Coast Sections.

Fortuna possessed the smallest team in numbers of the big three schools competing but captured more than their share of glory versus the teams from Arcata and Eureka. Numbers proved to be a factor as the biggest team, Eureka won the event with 163 points, Arcata followed with 142 and Fortuna grabbed 3rd place with 130 points. North Coast Prep also particpated with a small team.

Despite the 3rd place showing the Huskies came away

with the most wins in the event and the team leaders paced the effort. Senior Caitlin O'Rourke led the way on the girls side with wins in the 50 yard freestyle and the 100 yard backstroke. O'Rourke also participated in relay races that resulted in a 1st place in the 200 yard medley and a 2nd place in the 400 yard freestyle.

Helena Kreb and Brianna Thompson also had good results on the day as Kreb won the freestyle at 100 yards and joined relays that captured a 1st and a 2nd place. Thompson was a big part of two winning relay teams and grabbed 2nd place behind teammate O'Rourke in the 50 yard freestyle. Alyssa Moreno, Barbara James, Emma Close and Kylie Coleman also were part of individual and relay success.

As good as the girls team did the Fortuna boys may have one upped them. The boys won out in six of eight indiviual events, although they did not have the numbers to complete in the relays. Kyle O'Rourke, Ben Bagnell and Tyler Underwood all put up double wins on the day. O'Rourke won in the drag race for swimmers, the 50 yard freestyle. He then showed he could go the distance with his win in the 500 yard freestyle.

Not to be outdone, Underwood did his double at both the 100 yard events, winning the freestyle and the backstroke at that distance. Bagnell won at the 200 yard distance of the freestyle and showed versatility by winning the 200 yard individual medley. A very sucessful day for the team and head coach Shawn Kinser-Coleman was pleased with the effort. The only question to be answered would be if anyone would make the NCS postseason?

Caitlin O'Rourke answered that question when asked right after the event, "I did OK today although I did not make NCS, so that was a little disappointing. I felt fine, I guess I was just a little faster last year,” commented O'Rourke about her making NCS the prior season. Fact was, no HDN swimmer made the North Coast Sections this year as atheletes qualify based on their times in the different events.  

The HDN Individual Championships held last Friday at Albee Stadium in Eureka also had their share of glory and disappoinment for the atheletes. With the HDN team championships and NCS berths decided the week before at the Crescent City event, Friday's event was all about capturing individual glory, a win in an event meant a All-County White Star for the athelete.

Mallorie Franco was the only Fortuna athelte to log a double win in the event. Just as she had done the week before, Franco won in the girls high jump (5 foot 4 inches) and the triple jump (34 feet and 1/2 inch). The results gave her a sweep of the events at the two championship venues for HDN atheletes. Amber Glenn pulled off a great result in the girls shot put.

She has been near the top of the standings in the event all season but on Friday she out distanced two time defending HDN champion, Hoopa's Alanna Nulph, with a throw of 37' 8.5" to become the new HDN champion. The throw was not only a personal best but broke a long standing Fortuna High record in the event.

Nochella Ozard had an impressive result in the girls 1600 meters. She won going away at the distance, in a time of 5:27.7, to win her White Star. Arcata's Alli Maher was shadowing Ozard until half a lap to go when Nochella put in a final kick to win comfortably.

The duel between the two was much closer the week before at the HDN Championships in Crescent City. "Last time she was on my tail the whole time so I had to keep up the pace", commented a winded Ozard right after the win. Huskies Skylar Rice and Donovan Lackey earned All-County status on the boys side. Rice had been favored to win at both the 110 and 300 meter distances in the hurdles, however contact with the #7 hurdle in the 110 high hurdles cost him the win.

His duel with Del Norte's Joseph Alexandre was a thriller at the distance but 2nd place was not what he had in mind. Nonetheless Rice came back later and became All-County Champion at the 300 meter distance.

Lackey ran an impressive race in the 400 meters when he passed Arcata's John Hunter on the last turn and legged out the win with a time of :51.9. Brian Sisson, Michael Bonham, T. J. Rice, Lance Hunt, Heather Morris, Kelsey Jacobs and Rhiannon Roper each earned medals for their 2nd and/or 3rd place finishes in various events. That wraps up the HDN track and field season although most of the fore-mentioned atheletes will be competing in the upcoming NCS Championships at Rancho Cotate in Rohnert Park this Saturday. Good luck to all the local atheletes!