Two state qualifying times, two new school records
Published 12:07 am Tuesday, April 13, 2021
Star Photo/Dawn Lambert Junior Cyclone swimmer Elijah Smith takes a quick breath as he competes in the 50-freestyle. Smith broke the school record in the event with a time of 23.78 and qualified for the state swim meet in the process.
Star Photo/Dawn Lambert Elijah Smith plows through the water as he competes in the 100-Free Style as he achieved a personal-best of 53.40 in the event.
Star Photo/Dawn Lambert Elizabethton's Elijah Smith prepares to launch from the starting platform during the regional swim meet at the Kingsport Aquatic Center.
Star Photo/Dawn Lambert Cadie Digby strokes with all her might during the 50-Butterfly. The effort paid off as the Elizabethton swimmer broke a school record in the process.
Star Photo/Dawn Lambert Cadie Digby of Elizabethton put in an outstanding effort in the 100-Butterfly during the regional swim meet at the Kingsport Aquatic Center. Digby put her name on the wall as the new record holder for the event at Elizabethton High School.
Star Photo/Dawn Lambert Elizabethton freshman swimmer Cadie Digby set a school record in the 100-butterfly with a time of 1:09.78. It has been 10 years since a swimming record has been broken at EHS.
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BY KELLI BROUSSARD
It’s been a decade since the Cyclones Swim Team updated their record board. This weekend’s Northeast Tennessee Swimming Regional Championships at the Kingsport Aquatic Center resulted in what will be the addition of two new names to the board in the Elizabethton High School pool area.
On Saturday, freshman Cadie Digby broke the school record in the 100 Butterfly with the other female members of the team cheering her on. Her time of 1:09.78 makes her the fastest woman in Elizabethton history in that event.
She dropped a jaw-dropping 4.41 seconds from her previous best time to place 5th overall, but that wasn’t the only significant improvement she made on the day.
Just minutes earlier she placed 7th in the 200 Individual Medley with a time of 2:34.79, an improvement of 7.33 seconds.
Junior Elijah Smith will also find his name on the wall after becoming the fastest swimmer in Elizabethton history by turning in a time of 23.78 in the 50 Freestyle.
That time also makes him the second swimmer this season to qualify for the Tennessee State Swimming Championships.
He joins teammate Kody Broussard who qualified for State in the 500 Freestyle earlier this season and added an event to his State agenda on Sunday when he turned in a personal best qualifying time of 1:00.17 in the 100 Butterfly.
Smith also earned a personal best time of 53.40 in the 100 Freestyle, dropping 2.03 seconds in that event.
RJ Brewer rounded out the men’s performances with personal best times in both his 100 and 200 Freestyle, dropping an inspiring 12.85 seconds in the latter.
Saturday was the first competition in the sport for Brewer’s sister, sophomore Ally, who swam the 50 and 100 Freestyle and scored a valuable three points for the team by placing 15th in the shorter distance.
Digby’s sister, team Captain Susanna, improved in both her 50 Free (5th place) and 100 Backstroke (8th placed) on Saturday by cutting .58 and 1.21 seconds respectively to finish her high school swimming career.
Fellow team Captain, sophomore Olivia Markley, ended the season on a high note when she accomplished her season-long goal of breaking the 7-minute mark in the 500 Free.
She dropped a jaw-dropping 13.11 seconds in the event for a time of 6:57.33 and a 10th place finish. Junior Taylor McDougall also improved in her 100 Free by shaving .26 seconds off her previous best time for a 1:10.63.
The women impressed in their relays as well, dropping four seconds in the 200 Medley Relay and 12.68 seconds in the 400 Free Relay to place 4th in both each. Combined, the eight-member team scored a combined 189 points to place 6th overall out of the eleven teams represented in the meet.
Broussard and Smith are back to training for two more weeks to prepare for the Tennessee State Championship meet which will take place on Saturday and Sunday, April 24th and 25th at the Kingsport Aquatic Center.
