On December 2nd, the Vestavia Swim and Dive team went down to Auburn, Alabama to compete in the AHSAA State Championship for swimming and diving. The State meet brought swimmers from all over the state along with some strong competitors like Huntsville, Bob Jones, and Orange Beach to name a few. This year, Vestavia Hills brought 19 swimmers and divers to the State Championships. The boys finished as State Runner-Up, the highest finish ever in school history. The following students scored individual points for the team:
Girls Diving: Clara Karr (12th place)
Boys Diving: Pierce Bolton (7th place) and William Plaisance (11th place)
Girls Swimming: Riley Reid (6th place in 50 Freestyle), Angela Zhang (13th place in 200 Freestyle), Emily Jin (15th place in 50 Freestyle)
Boys Swimming: Ari Azrad (State Champion in 200 Freestyle, 2nd in 100 Butterfly), Patrick Ball (11th place in 200 Freestyle, 9th place in 100 Backstroke), Hunter Carroll (6th place in 200 Freestyle, 9th place in 500 Freestyle), Andrew Hilsmier (6th place in 50 Freestyle, 5th place in 100 Freestyle), Bennett Lowther (7th place in 50 Freestyle, 8th place in 100 Freestyle), Cade Rubin (10th place in 200 IM, 7th place in 100 Butterfly), Aiden Tillis (9th place in 200 IM, 3rd place in 100 Freestyle)
A few Vestavia Hills swim and dive school records were broken at this meet. Junior Aiden Tillis swam a time of 4:46.65 to break the 500 Freestyle record at Vestavia Hills High School. Additionally, the 400 Yard Freestyle Relay shattered the school record with a time of 3:10.60. Ari Azrad (Junior) led off with a split of 46.07, Andrew Hilsmier (Freshman) dove in right after him with a 48.37 split, then Aiden Tillis (Junior) who had swam a school record earlier split a 47.99, and finally Hunter Carroll (Senior) anchored the relay with a split of 48.17. The future of swimming and diving is looking very promising for these boys.
Relays for both the boys and girls scored big points. In the State Championship, relays are worth double points. The following students were on relays that scored points for the team:
11th place in 200 Freestyle Relay: Emily Jin, Kathryn Fulton, Emmelyne Bostic, and Jasmine Zhang
13th place in 400 Freestyle Relay: Emily Jin, Jasmine Zhang, Angela Zhang, and Kathryn Fulton
3rd place in 200 Freestyle Relay: Bennett Lowther, William Lazenby, Patrick Ball, and Cade Rubin
2nd place in 400 Freestyle Relay: Ari Azrad, Andrew Hilsmier, Aiden Tillis, and Hunter Carroll
Coach Aaron is the sponsor for the Vestavia Hills Swim and Dive team. Coach Aaron has done a lot for the swim and dive program in the past years. While our numbers are increasing, he is always trying to recruit more swimmers and divers to join the team. If you or anyone you know might be interested in joining the team, please contact aaronco@vhcs.us. The swim and dive team is a close community that is very welcoming! As always, go Rebels!
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