Bluegrassrivals

The Bowling Green swim team captured its seventh straight region title Saturday, bursting away from the field at the Region 1 swimming and diving meet at the HealthPark in Owensboro.
Bowling Green totaled 654 points, more than doubling up second-place Daviess County’s 273. Owensboro Catholic finished third with 251 points.
“We did a good job all day long,” BG coach Dee Wilkins said. “Winning six regions in a row, you know you’re going to have a target on your back. We handled the pressure really well.”
Bowling Green swept the boys’ (292 points) and girls’ (362) titles, winning eight individual events.
Greenwood finished fifth overall with 244 points, second on the girls’ side with 153 and fifth in the boys’ competition with 91.
South Warren placed ninth in the combined totals with 104 points, including 96 from the girls to finish sixth.
“The region has gotten a lot stronger,” said Jay Smith, who coaches Greenwood and South Warren. “It’s gotten a lot better and a lot bigger. There were 500 kids there today and 30 high schools.
“To say Greenwood was in the top five on both sides and South to be ninth in the second year, that’s pretty good.”
BG started the meet with a bang, winning and setting region records in both 200-yard medley relays.
The girls’ relay team consisted of Cassady Puckett, Paige Fields, Dana Reynolds and Lauren Walker.
Harrison Griffin, Will Kilgore, Mac Slattery and Andrew Mason made up the boys’ team, which broke the region record for the third year in a row.
“We started out great in those first two events,” Wilkins said. “That really set the tone the way we wanted it.”
Griffin and Fields were named the meet’s outstanding male and female swimmers, winning two events apiece.
Griffin won the 200 freestyle and the 100 backstroke, while Fields claimed the 200 free and 100 breaststroke.
Puckett finished first in the 100 back, as did the 400 freestyle relay team of Walker, Reynolds, Fields and Danielle Prosser.
The Greenwood girls moved up the rankings with several solid performances, including Alexis Swift’s second in the 100 back and fourth in the 50 free. Giuliana D’Adamio finished third in the 500 free.
The Lady Gators’ relay teams finished second in the 200 medley, third in the 400 free and sixth in the 200 free.
Eric Spiller paced the boys’ team with a sixth-place finish in the 100 back and eighth place in the 200 individual medley.
The South Warren girls made a strong showing with Emily Wood, who won the 500 free and finished second in the 200 free.
The Lady Spartans’ Natalie Perkins also took second place in the 100 breaststroke, while the girls’ relay teams finished fifth in the 200 medley and sixth in the 400 free.
Other overall area finishes included Barren County and Glasgow tying for 17th with 29 points. Allen County-Scottsville finished 21st (15 points), Franklin-Simpson 22nd (10) and Logan County tied for 23rd (five).
The top two finishers in each event automatically qualify for the state meet, which is Feb. 23-25 in Louisville. At-large bids for each event will be announced by Monday.
Bowling Green will enjoy the win for a short time, Wilkins said, before turning its attention to the next step.
BG finished fourth overall at last year’s state meet.
“We’ll let them celebrate the victory, but we’ll get back in the water (today) to swim out all of those races,” Wilkins said. “You kind of have to flush them out of your system and then start preparing for the next couple of weeks.”