Throughout the Durango Summer Invite swim meet on June 9-10, swimmers from the Mesa Verde Aquatics Club and the Cortez Leopard Sharks teams consistently finished races at the top of the standings.
Among the most successful local swimmers was MVAC standout Erin Lawrence, who dominated the division for girls ages 9-10. She won the 100-meter freestyle (1:19.93), 50-meter butterfly (43.14), 200-meter individual medley (3:14.76), 50-meter backstroke (42.41), 100-meter individual medley (1:30.07), and 100-meter backstroke (1:30.13). Lawrence also finished second in the 200-meter freestyle (2:54.70) and the 50-meter breaststroke (49.29).
Also winning at least four events was Cortez Leopard Sharks team member Cody Farias, who competed in the boys’ 13-14 age division and finished first in the 100-meter freestyle (1:09.20), 200-meter backstroke (2:50.83), 200-meter individual medley (2:48.93), and 200-meter breaststroke (3:16.20).
MVAC’s Anna Lawrence finished first in the 100-meter butterfly (1:28.09) and first in the 200-meter butterfly (3:40.87) in the girls’ 13-14 age division, while Cortez Leopard Shark Delta Suckla placed first in the 200-meter individual medley (3:20.05) and the 200-meter breaststroke (3:28.55) in the girls’ 11-12 age division. Anna Lawrence also finished third in the 100-mter freestyle (1:14.79) and the 50-meter freestyle (33.82).
Other event winners representing Cortez clubs included Cortez Leopard Shark Tyler Cutrone, who won the 200-meter backstroke (2:35.02) in the boys’ 15-and-over age division, and MVAC team member Dannika Goodall, who placed first in the 100-meter butterfly (2:12.74) in the girls’ 9-10 age division.
Cortez Leopard Shark Braden Schmittel placed second in the 100-meter freestyle (1:24.32), 100-meter individual medley (1:39.45), 100-meter backstroke (1:40.80), and 50-meter breaststroke (54.87) in the boys’ 11-12 age division, and teammate Bailey Duran touched the wall third in the 100-meter freestyle (1:10.29) in the girls’ 15-and-over age division.
MVAC’s Austin Anderson finished second in the 200-meter individual medley (3:58.13) and second in the 200-meter breaststroke (3:48.29) of the boys’ 11-12 age division. His brother, Miles Anderson, placed second in the 200-meter individual medley in the boys’ 9-10 age division.
Longtime MVAC swimmer Sam Bagge placed second in the 100-meter freestyle (1:06.04), second in the 50-meter freestyle (29.80) and third in the 100-meter backstroke (1:21.87) in the girls’ 15-and-over age division. Maddy Ludington placed second in the 100-meter breaststroke (1:43.52) competing in the same age group as Bagge.
MVAC’s Piper Baxstrom notched four Top 3 finishes in the girls’ 11-12 age division, Brigg Decker registered two Top 3 finishes in the boys’ 13-14 age division, Tyler Jackson earned two Top 3 finishes in the boys’ 11-12 age division, and Lucas Decker, Bodie Fischer, and Lavender Blacow each notched one Top 3 finish in their respective age groups.
Durango Swim Club finished first in the team standings with 660 points, MVAC finished second with 215 points, and the Cortez Leopard Sharks placed third with 151 points. Seven teams competed in the meet.
