For the ninth-consecutive year, Southlake Carroll's Boys Swimming & Diving team placed first at the state championship. This year, the girls team joined them on the top tier of the podium with a score of 298, the highest team score ever recorded in their UIL classification. Both the boys and girls teams have earned first place together twice before, in 2012 and 2013.
“First and foremost, it is a blessing from God to have the opportunity to coach here in Southlake,” Head Coach Kevin Murphy says. “I do not believe that we would have ever had this much success without His hand in our process.”
And as everyone in Southlake knows well by now, Carroll Swimming & Diving has had plenty of success. This marked the 11th state title for the boys team. The girls diving team earned first and second place as they did last year, with Hailey Hernandez claiming gold and Bridget O’Neil earning runner up.
“The divers did absolutely amazing, stayed focused the whole time and they felt prepared,” Diving Coach Carolyn Hryorchuk says. “I’m very proud since each diver did their personal best.”
The boys diving team also substantially contributed, with Jackson Miller taking second and Phillip Kleiman coming in ninth place.
Overall, Murphy describes the title-earning state performance as a team effort. All six of Carroll’s relays made National Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association (NISCA) High School All-American. Girls swimmer Kit Kat Zenick earned second in the 50 free and fourth in the 100 fly, setting new school record times in both. She also led the girls 400 free relay (with Riley Francis, Natalie Whalen and Ashley Zettle), earning first place and setting another school record. Corbyn Cormack also added to Carroll’s record book with a stunning first-place performance in 100 breaststroke, as well as taking second behind Carroll’s Natalie Whalen in the 200 IM.
The boys team also saw success all around, toppling runner up Woodlands’ score by over 30 points. They took second place in the 400 free relay with Landon Armstrong, Kevin Repice, Jakob Williams and Chris Lindley with a season-best time of 1:33.21. Armstrong also earned fourth in the 100 free, with Matt Hahn not far behind in seventh place.
“Their attitude and courage throughout the meet, from the very first race in the preliminaries to the very last race of the finals, established them as the victors this weekend,” Murphy says.