(KINGMAN, Ariz.) Gilbert Christian swim began its 2024 invitational season on a strong note, placing third in a nine-team field at the Northwest Arizona Invite over the weekend.
The GCHS girls' squad, which scored 115 points in the meet, finished second behind champion Lake Havasu, while the boys' tally of 55 points earned a third-place ranking, after Lake Havasu and Mohave.
Sixteen different Knights contributed points at the Kingman-hosted event, and over half of the team's swims resulted in season-best times.
The Gilbert Christian girls' relays made an impact at the invitational, with a trio of top-three finishes. The 400-yard freestyle team consisting of senior Mileigh Allan, senior Katie Hansen, junior Kaylie Gault, and senior Karissa Bailie collected the top-prize with their 4:09.40 effort, shaving nearly 14 seconds off of their seed time. The 200-yard medley (Allan, Bailie, Addison Goodwin (JR), Brooke Horton (SO)) followed suit, tallying big points for the Knights with a second-place (2:06.74) swim in the finals, while the 200-Free relay (Jaclyn Korb (JR), Allan, Horton, Bailie) grabbed third-place bragging rights (2:00.25).
Hansen had an excellent outing for GCHS in her solo events, winning the 100-Free in 1:00.70, and the 100-Back in 1:08.07. Also notching crucial top-10 finishes in the 100-Free race were Korb (1:06.35) and Bailie (1:07.47), who placed third and seventh, respectively, for the Knights.
Junior standout Kalia Numeron collected her fair share of points in the pool, logging first in the 100-Butterfly (1:05.62), and second in the 200-IM (2:33.59).
Horton raced in one of the day's most grueling events, the 500-Free, where she shaved nearly 25 seconds off of her seed time to place second overall (5:32.69). She bested the field by nearly half of a minute.
On the boys' side, junior Kyler Tolson's individual accolades continued to pile up, as he took the crown in the 200-Freestyle (1:52:55) and in the 100-Backstroke (57:40). He also swam in the 200-Medley relay with sophomore Carter Fermoyle, senior Drew Carson, and sophomore Bryan Pinkerton, which earned GCHS fifth-place points.
The boys fared well in the 200-Free and 400-Free relays, as senior Albert Brady, Carson, Fermoyle, and junior Alex Lindsay teamed up to register a pair of third-place finishes for the Knights.
The swim team is back in action this Thursday against Catalina Foothills and Casa Grande (host). The meet is scheduled to begin at 4:00pm.
-GO KNIGHTS-
