Powell/Lovell team third at State Swimming

In the four years Lovell High School seniors Paige Thomas and Croix Tryon have competed for Powell High School, the team has finished third every year at the state swimming and diving meet. With Green River (296 pts) and Lander (260 pts) duking it out over first and second again this year at State, Powell has remained a steady force in third place (185 pts).
Lovell swimmers Thomas and Tryon finished the last high school meet of their careers with good performances at the state 3A meet in Gillette last weekend.
Coach Bob Smartt had this to say about the Lovell swimmers this week:
“Lovell HS seniors Paige Thomas and Croix Tryon were an important part of 10 seniors leading the Powell/Lovell Combined Swim and Dive team this year. Both athletes served as co-captains for the team. The combined team senior class was the first class in 25 years to be able to ascend the state team podium each of their four competitive years.
“Paige Thomas placed eighth at State in the 100 butterfly event (1:06.95), and she barely missed scoring in the 200 individual medley, taking 13th place (2:31.6). This constitutes the fourth year that Paige scored individually at the state championships.
“Paige also made a big contribution to the team’s relays: on the 200 medley relay her 50 butterfly leg (28.10) was the third fastest butterfly split of the meet. On the 200 freestyle relay, Paige swam a fast 50 yard leg of 27.13 seconds. Croix Tryon finished 15th in the 100 breaststroke (1:19.28) and 19th in the 100 butterfly (1:11.20). Croix was a major contributor to the team’s conference championship, scoring 14 points in her butterfly and breaststroke races.
“Paige and Croix showed their leadership in the water, on the pool deck and with their strong academics. With 10 of our 16 state qualifiers graduating, we are hopeful for a big freshman class, including new swimmers and divers from Lovell.”
The Lovell school district decided to end the middle school swim program in October. Powell is an option for those athletes who choose to swim, but there will be no transportation provided by the school.
State results:
200 Medley Relay
5 POW, 1:59.40, 20 pts
1) Christensen, Patricia SO, 2) Fisher, Aubree SR, 3) Thomas, Paige SR, 4) Powell, Addy SO
200 Freestyle Relay
5 POW, 1:48.65, 20 pt
1) Hayano, Kiyoko SR, 2) Thomas, Paige SR, 3) Brence, Charlee SR, 4) Diver, Kaitlin SO
100 Butterfly
8 Thomas, Paige, 1:06.95, 5 pt
200 Individual Medley (prelims)
13 Thomas, Paige, 2:31.68
100 Butterfly (prelims)
19 Tryon, Croix, 1:11.20
100 Breaststroke (prelims)
15 Tryon, Croix, 1:19.28
Team Scores
1. Green River, 296
2. Lander, 260
3. Powell, 185
4. Cody, 135
5. Douglas, 131
6. Kemmerer, 90
7. Worland, 62
8. Evanston, 50
9. Buffalo, 46
10. Riverton, 41
11. Rawlins, 40
12. Lyman, 34
13. Sublette County, 6
14. Newcastle, 1