craigdailypress.com

Before the season started Bulldogs coach Jim Vorhies nicknamed Parker Moore, a sophomore, the "Big dog."

With the regular season over, Moore believes he has lived up to his nickname, but is shocked the team hasn't been able to qualify any swimmers for state meet set for May 19-20 in Fort Collins.

"The season has gone fairly well," said Moore. "I am surprised that we haven't qualified for state yet. We haven't been doing as well as we could."

The team still has one more chance to qualify swimmers for the state meet as it travels to the Class 4A Western Slope Swim Meet Friday and Saturday in Montrose.

"I think that this weekend we should be able to get state times," said Moore. "We are changing some guys around and we have been dropping times the last few weeks."

The team is close in qualifying in the 200-meter freestyle relay. And the 200-meter medley relay.

The freestyle relay team of Josh Shipley, a junior, Javier Ochoa, a sophomore, Steven Veizaga, a senior, and Moore have hit a time of 1:43.00 during the season but need to reach a 1:40.00 in order to qualify for state.

"This weekend, everybody gets really pumped and times are a lot faster," said Moore. "In order to qualify for state, we will have to get a long start and have a fast swim. We just need to put all the stuff together that we have been learning."

The 200-meter medley relay team (Shipley, Ochoa, Veizaga and Moore) have hit a time of 1:53.00, but is still three seconds off a state time qualifying time.

"Team wise, we should be right in the middle of the pack after seeing the competition this year," said coach Vorhies. "We have a couple of boys who should sink in for some individual events with Jeff Olree, a sophomore, in the 100-meter breaststroke and Moore in the 50 freestyle."