MUKILTEO — While a sterling Jackson performance might have stolen thunder from more than one team at the district swim meet, the Tomahawk swim and dive team walked away with three performances of their own that won’t be forgotten anytime soon.
Although the spotlight was on Jackson’s roughly half-dozen all-American consideration swim times on Nov. 8, the final day of the three-day meet, Tomahawk diver Sarah Clark shattered her recent school record diving performance and set a new meet record at Kamiak with a score of 408.80. The score eclipsed Kamiak’s Fiona Weeks — the meet runner-up and Clark’s nemesis at last year’s state contest — by nearly 40 points.
Senior Kami Girard and sophomore Jewel LeValley also set school records at the district meet, as both girls broke records held by Girard. After closing hard on Girard’s three-year-old record in the 500 freestyle at the end of her freshman season, LeValley finally passed the mark in district finals, swimming a 5:22.95. Girard didn’t need another state-qualifying time in the backstroke after qualifying during preliminaries. But the senior swam a best-ever 1:01.84 to break the school record and take a district championship in the event.
While LeValley’s time in the 500 freestyle was a school record, it was not a state qualifying time. Instead, she’ll compete at state in the 200 freestyle, in which she earned a wild-card berth on her 2:00.64 swim, about one-10th of a second from a state time.
Girard and LeValley will also be teammates on the state 400 freestyle relay, where they’ll be joined by Megan Shoemaker and Kendall Vincelette in the event.
Vincelette, who already swam state-qualifying times in the butterfly and 100 freestyle, took second place in the butterfly.
The girls will also be joined by sophomore diver Marysa Eastman, who took third at districts. She had already qualified for state by score at an earlier district diving competition.
The Tomahawks placed fourth as a team at districts with 365 points, behind Jackson (456), Snohomish (379) and Shorewood (373).
