The Grand County High School (GCHS) swimming team hosted Hurricane and Millard at the Moab Recreation and Aquatic Center on Friday, Nov. 30, where the sheer numbers the larger schools possessed proved too much for the Red Devils to overcome. In the boys division, Millard scored 358 points, while Grand had 326 and Hurricane had 166. For the girls, Hurricane scored 364, while Millard had 283 and Grand had 144.
The boys had a handful of individual finishes near the top, while the girls struggled much more keeping pace with their larger counterparts. For the girls, Kiersten Kimmerle took first in the 100-yard backstroke at 1:31.44, giving them their only event victory. She also took seventh in the 200-yard freestyle at 2:44.07, ahead of teammate Neelie Relph in ninth at 2:47.10.
For the boys, Braxten Pierce claimed victory in the 100-yard freestyle at 51.59, ahead of teammates Corbin Arbon in second at 57.72 and Connor Ainge in third at 1:00.86. The boys also won the 200-yard medley as Pierce and Arbon were joined by Pat Pakkarato and Alex Lacy to swim a 1:51.42. in the 200-yard freestyle relay, Pierce, Pakkarato and Arbon were joined by Ainge for a second-place 1:41.00
Individually, Pakkarato had a pair of second-place efforts, in the 100-yard butterfly (1:00.44) and the 100-yard breaststroke (1:09.91). Lacy placed fifth in the butterfly at 1:05.83. Arbon led the pack of Red Devils in the 50-yard freestyle, coming in second at 24.56, ahead of Lacy in fourth at 26.68, and Ainge in fifth at 27.08.
The boys also had the fifth-through-eighth place finishers in the 200-yard freestyle: Preston Barlow in fifth at 2:21.47; Trayken Robertson in sixth at 2:24.48; Cody Johnston in seventh at 2:36.94; and Stryder Young in eighth at 2:52.92. Barlow also placed fifth in the 500-yard freestyle at 6:45.18.
In the girls relay events, the Lady Red Devils placed third in the 200-yard freestyle relay at 2:18.04 with the quartet of Kimmerle, Relph, Sadie Farnsworth and Grace Johnston. Kimmerle, Relph, Johnston and Izzy Becerra placed second in the 400-yard freestyle relay at 5:26.64. The Lady Red Devils did not compete in the 200-yard medley relay. The boys sent a young group out for the 400-yard freestyle as Young, a freshman, joined sophomores Ricky Shumway and Duncan Clark, and fellow freshman Luke Shafer, to swim a third-place 5:07.23.
The Red Devils were scheduled to compete in Castle Dale against Emery and North Summit on Tuesday, Dec. 4, before returning home for a dual against Carbon on Saturday, Dec. 8, beginning at 10 a.m.
Pierce, Kimmerle earn wins in individual events
When: Saturday, Dec. 8, at 10 a.m.
Where: Moab Recreation and Aquatic Center, 374 N. Park Ave.
