By By Todd Thompson, Hartselle Enquirer
Hartselle diver Matt Ramey finished second at the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s state swimming and diving championships last weekend at the University of Alabama, while three Hartselle swimmers also posted solid times in preliminary events.
Hartselle and Priceville finished 24th in the boys’ standings, but Hartselle did not score in the girls’ portion of the meet that was held at the University of Alabama Aquatic Center in Tuscaloosa.
Ramey, who competed in the state meet after being limited after suffering a rotator cuff injury during the summer, finished second behind defending champion Robert Raley of Murphy.
Raley finished with an overall score of 364.60, while Ramey finished with 396.80 points.
Limited to just 10 weeks of training in preparation for the state meet, Ramey gave Hartselle 17 points with his second place finish.
Hartselle had three swimmers compete in the state. All three equalled or were close to their seeded qualifying times, but none of the three reached the finals.
Tiffany Pittman finished 18th in the 100-meter breaststroke in her first appearance in the state meet. The seventh-grader finished with a time of 1:18, just three seconds off her seeded time of 1:15.39.
Blaine Holt and Clay Austill, both eighth graders, also competed in the state meet for the first time.
Holt competed in both the 200 individual medley and the 100 breaststroke. He was 38th in the 200 IM with a time of 2:27 and added a 39th place finish in the 100 breast by clocking in at 1:10.
Austill equalled his seed time in the 100 butterfly of 1:05 to finish 35th. He was 31st in the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:04.
Priceville’s Everett Sorrells was eighth in the boys’ 100 breaststroke. He recorded a time of 1:04.72 to pick up all of the Bulldogs’ 17 points.
Falkville’s Erin Vest qualified for the state meet in two events - the 50 freestyle and the 100 freestyle - but she did not advance to the finals.
Bob Jones won the boys’ state championship for the fifth straight year with a 46-point advantage over runner-up Auburn High School.
The Patriots’ 400-meter relay team finished strong by breaking a state record in the final event of the meet. The previous record had stood since 1989.
Grissom won the girls’ state title - the 17th state championship for the school’s swimming program.
The Lady Tigers finished 29 points ahead of Auburn High School in the team standings.