After repeating as District 11 champions, the Parkland girls swimming team is looking to cash in on some gold at the PIAA championships this weekend at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg. The boys team also has opportunities to come home with something shiny hanging around their necks.
This year’s format is different from previous seasons because of COVID precautions. Initially, only gold medal winners from districts were going to be able to compete at states but a recent decision, which ended up not allowing any other Parkland swimmers to qualify, did allow others to qualify based on district times. This year’s event is also different in that the 3A meet will be limited to one day rather than the usual two-day meet and has been moved from Bucknell University to Cumberland Valley.
Keep your eyes on junior Kayla Johnson and senior Olivia Stephenson at states. Johnson nearly broke the district record held by former Parkland swimmer Siena Salvaggio in the 50-yard freestyle, finishing just .27 seconds off the record. Her time has Johnson seeded third in the event at states, while she is also seeded fifth in the 100-yard freestyle event. Johnson will also compete on two relay teams in the 200-yard medley relay and the 200-yard freestyle relay.
Stephenson also qualified in two events, winning gold at districts in the 200 and 500-yard freestyle events. The senior swimmer will also compete as a member of the 400-yard freestyle relay team.
Madison Tewksbury is the fourth seed in the 100-yard breaststroke at states where she will renew her friendly rivalry with Emmaus’ Lauren Sharp, who made it into the breaststroke as a time qualifier. The two are close friends and finished one-two in both the breaststroke and the 200-yard IM at districts, with Tewksbury winning the breaststroke gold medal and Sharp winning the IM. In relays, Tewksbury is part of the 200-yard medley relay team and the 200-yard freestyle team.
On the boys’ side, diver Ethan Radio was the first member of the Parkland team to qualify for states when he won district gold in diving. The junior diver comes in with the fourth highest score from district meets across the state.
Parkland was unable to qualify in any relay events for boys, but John Fahrney qualified in the 500-yard freestyle and will swim in the first heat of the event at states.