Nandua swim’s strong performance earns several spot at VHSL State Championships

By Luke Brankley

The Nandua swim teams posted a strong showing in recent meets against Lake Forest and Sussex Central, with the girls and boys combining for multiple victories and several athletes earning qualification standards for the Virginia High School League State Championships.

The Nandua girls opened the week with a 66–27 win over Lake Forest and followed with a 70–22 victory against Sussex Central. The Nandua boys defeated Lake Forest 53–28 before falling to Sussex Central by a score of 52–41.

Several Nandua swimmers recorded qualifying times for VHSL States. Sarah Bentley qualified in the 200 Freestyle, while Bentley and Molly Sams both qualified in the 100 Butterfly. The girls team finished the meets with two individual state qualifiers—Bentley and Sams—and two relay teams qualifying for states: the 200 Medley Relay and the 400 Freestyle Relay.

Bentley qualified in six individual events: the 50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free, 500 Free, 100 Butterfly, 100 Breaststroke, and the 200 Individual Medley. Sams qualified in the 100 Butterfly.

The Nandua girls also recorded multiple first-place finishes, including the 200 Medley Relay (Molly Sams, Chloe Bacchi, Sadie Reiter, and Sarah Bentley), the 200 Freestyle Relay (Bacchi, Campbell Bays, Reiter, and Bentley), and the 400 Freestyle Relay (Ashlyn Ebenezer, Bays, Maddy Askew, and Sams).

Individual first-place finishes for the girls included Bentley in the 200 Freestyle and 100 Butterfly; Chloe Bacchi in the 200 Individual Medley and 100 Breaststroke; Sadie Reiter in the 100 Freestyle; Maddy Askew in the 500 Freestyle; and Molly Sams in the 100 Backstroke.

On the boys’ side, Nandua claimed first place in the 200 Freestyle Relay with Lucas Stodghill, Lucas Elliott, Orion Loredo, and Hayden Williams. Loredo also won the 50 Freestyle, while Williams took first in the 500 Freestyle.