Matt Phelps
Sports Beat
Mercer Island sports have been dominated by aquatics this summer. From the Mercerwood Shore Clubs Midlakes championship to the Beach Club team moving back to division I to the Mercer Island High School boys swim team taking the national title, Islanders have excelled in the water. This week is no exception as aquatic sports are once again in the news.
Three Island
swimmers at Zones
Mercer Island swimmers Kyle Schaeffer, Duncan Howard and Ethan Hallowell all competed at this year’s Western Zones All Star Meet in Farmington, N.M., Aug. 7-11. The meet was comprised of 16 teams from 13 western states with 680 total athletes competing.
The three athletes who qualified were chosen to be a part of the 45 athletes representing the Pacific Northwest Swim Team (PNS).
The 13- and 14-year-old boys’ 200-meter freestyle relay team with both Howard and Hallowell finished first and then took second place in the 200-meter medley relay event. Hallowell also had a first-place finish in the 100-meter freestyle with a time of 54.82 seconds along with four second-place wins in the 50-meter freestyle (25.53), 400-meter freestyle (4:15.44), 100-meter backstroke (1:02.89) and the 200-meter backstroke (2:12.38). The 200 backstroke and 400 freestyle times are after the altitude adjustment.
The venue was especially challenging this year as the 5,500- foot altitude made it difficult for most of the sea level trained athletes. Altitude adjustments were given for swims over 200 meters, which will go toward the swimmers’ personal best times, but did not go toward their placement in the meet.
Next year’s Western Zones All Star Meet will be held at Mt. Hood in Oregon, which will be a lot closer to home for local swimmers.
Island sends 40 athletes into the Danskin
This past weekend, 40 Islander women competed at Genesee Park in Seattle and Lake Washington during the Danskin mini triathlon.
The Danskin event, in its 18th season, played host to 5,000 women. And while it is true that the race is not just in the water, it takes a great amount of endurance and athletic ability to complete this event.
The following Islanders swam a half of a mile, biked 12.5 miles and ran 3.5 miles.
Mercer Island residents participating were: Patricia Darling, Patricia Aldape, Rachel Paysse, Susan Denmark, Shirley Rock, Eileen Coyne, Molly Hancock, Annette Fitzpatrick, Virginia Musante, Robyn Smith, Margaret Mitchel, Ann Rutledge and Karen Jones. Others were Marilyn Jensen, Cheryl Hayes, Lisa Steffensen-Gamrath, Kim Kasabali, Mary McCormick, Paula Fitzgerald Boos, Lori Schwefel, Judy Kimelman, Maureen Swift, Amy Melick and Pamela Haynes. Also: Sara Fox, Dee Mullins, Sarah E Edwards, Natalie Debray, Allison Keeler, Kay Velasquez, Regina Huricks, Megan Winger, Crystal Venskus, Blair Gove, Rosemarie Boos, Alison Kimble, Sara Stern, Stephanie Daifuku, Kylie Boos and Alyssa Jensen.
Nancy Gould-Hilliard and Cinthia Hallowell contributed to this column.
