On Friday, March 3, the Northampton varsity swim team arrived at Parkland High School, the home of the 2017 PIAA District XI Championship meet, with 15 swimmers ready to compete against the best of the best from surrounding schools.

Swimming in the AAA division, the competition for Northampton was undeniable, but at the close on Saturday evening, Northampton had earned five medals, set two new school records and achieved numerous personal best times.

After a winning season, the boys team had high hopes for District 11 Championships and seniors Michael Bauer and Gavyn Frankenfield did not disappoint.

In the first individual boys event of the championship meet, Frankenfield left the vast majority of the field in his wake as he achieved a third-place finish in the 200 freestyle event. As if a bronze medal were not enough, Frankenfield also broke a long-standing Northampton Senior High School record with a time of 1:46.25.

During Saturday’s events Northampton’s Michael “Big Mike” Bauer claimed gold in the 100 freestyle event and broke yet another school record with his rocket fast 46.14 win. Breaking the Northampton High School record in the 100 free was obviously a top priority for Bauer.

When asked what was going through his mind when he saw he had won the event, he commented, “I didn’t even notice that I got first, I was just looking for the team record.”

With this win, Bauer advances to the PIAA State Finals at Bucknell University on March 17 and 18.

Bauer also claimed a silver medal during Saturday’s events in the 100 backstroke. In a hard-fought race, Bauer finished second, just six-tenths of a second behind the gold medal winner from Emmaus High School.

For the girls team, sophomore Brynne Rockovits graced the medal stand twice, both times for fourth place medal. On Friday, Rockovits demonstrated the versatility of her swimming with a strong fourth place finish and a time of 2:12.41 in the 200 individual medley. Saturday’s contest saw another fourth place medal for Rockovits and a time of 1:00.76 in the 100 backstroke.

While training continues for Bauer as he prepares for this state championship race, for most swimmers the district meet marked the official close to another swim season. Amid the celebration, tears and smiles at the close of the 2017 Championship meet there was also a strong sense of accomplishment for the Northampton team. As one of the underclassmen swimmers commented in passing, “It was emotional and exciting and we were all really happy with what we had done.”