Heading into Saturday’s finals, Mill Creek head swim and dive coach Rick Creed knew that having success in relay events would be crucial to achieving a top team finish.
Both his teams did just that, as solid showings in the relay events, especially down the stretch, gave the girls’ team a second place finish and the boys’ a third place showing at the Gwinnett County Championships Saturday at the West Gwinnett Pool in Norcross.
“Relays were a huge part of it and all the kids stepped up and had a huge meet,” Creed said.
While the girls’ team had two first-place individual finishes – both by senior Rachael Dudley in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke – and two second-place finishes by fellow senior Frederique Lefebvre, the boys’ team only had one individual finish in the top three, with junior Chris Powell placing second in both the 100 freestyle (46.82) and the 50 freestyle (21.27).
It was relays that helped lift the boys’ team to third place overall, with the Hawks taking first in both the 200 free (1:27.42) and the 400 free (3:12.37). The time in the 400 free set a new school record by four seconds.
“Every relay swam tonight was our best times of the year for both teams,” Creed said. “Our kids really came together and stepped up tonight,” he added.
The Hawks finished with 797.5 team points, ahead of fourth place North Gwinnett and just behind second-place Collins Hill. The Parkview boys’ took top honors with a convincing performance, finishing with 1,045.5 points.
The girls’ team finished second behind Brookwood for the second year in a row, since taking top honors over the Lady Broncos in 2010. The Lady Hawks finished with 921.5 points, well ahead of third-place Parkview and short of Brookwood’s 987.5 points.
Relays were also a key component in the girls’ success Saturday, as they took second in the 200 freestyle relay (1:38.7) and third in the 400 free. The 400 free relay was the final race of the night and proved to be the closest one as well as the Lady Hawks found themselves in a three-way battle with Brookwood and Peachtree Ridge.
Mill Creek battled with Peachtree Ridge for first through the first three legs, but it was Brookwood that got the best of both teams and came out on top after the final leg. The three relay teams were separated by just fractions of a second, with Brookwood (3:34.29) just edging out the Lady Lions (3:34.44) and the Lady Hawks (3:34.89).
When it comes to individual performances, Dudley, a Naval Academy commitment, left Saturday with two county meet records and three school records. Her time of 55.89 seconds in the 100 back was both a school record and county meet record, while her first-place finish in the 100 butterfly (54.61) set a new standard at the county meet as well, but fell short of the school record Dudley currently owns.
Dudley’s splits in the 200 free relay and 400 free relay were also school records.
“That’ exciting for me, because I don’t really consider myself a sprinter,” she said.
Other highlights for the girls’ team included the second-place finishes by Lefebvre in the in the 200-yard individual medley (2:06.43) and the 500 free (5:00.17).
Mill Creek boys’ team captain Brody Snyder broke the one minute barrier in the the 100 breastroke for the first time in his career. The senior placed fourth in the event with a time of 59.95 seconds.
