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Moffat County swimmers 4th at conference finals, finish regular season with state times in 9 events

From left, Moffat County High School swimmers Jacob Briggs and Nathan Cooper and coach Meghan Francone await the start of a race during the MCHS home meet. Moffat County boys swimming placed fourth at the Western Slope Conference Championships.
File Photo

Moffat County High School boys swimming 4A CHSAA State Championships qualifying times

Swimmer(s) — Race, Lowest Time (Event in which time was reached) Jacob Briggs — 50-yard freestyle, 23.75 (Western Slope Conference Championship Meet) Cody Evaristo — 100 backstroke, 1:01.95 (Western Slope Conference Championship Meet) Brooks Birkinbine — 100 breaststroke, 1:08.26 (Jeffco Invitational) Jacob Briggs — 100 free, 53.36 (Western Slope Conference Championship Meet) Brooks Birkinbine — 100 free, 53.45 (Western Slope Conference Championship Meet) Brooks Birkinbine — 200 free, 1:59.24 (Montrose Invitational) Brooks Birkinbine — 500 free, 5:24.94 (Jeffco Invitational) Jacob Briggs/David Prescott/Nathan Cooper/Brooks Birkinbine — 200 free relay, 1:40.06 (Jeffco Invitational) Cody Evaristo/Brooks Birkinbine/Jacob Briggs/David Prescott — 200 medley relay, 1:52.89 (Western Slope Conference Championship Meet) Brooks Birkinbine/Nathan Cooper/David Prescott/Jacob Briggs — 400 free relay, 3:44.91 (Western Slope Conference Championship Meet)

After a long stretch of accomplishments, Moffat County High School boys swimming has yet to slow down.

Bulldog aqua athletes took fourth Saturday to round out the Western Slope Conference Championship Meet, their final event before the 4A CHSAA State Championships.

Even with multiple qualifying times for state throughout the schedule, Moffat County proved they weren’t done yet, as they hit the standard in two more races.

Jacob Briggs and Steamboat Springs’ Brooks Birkinbine each made state times in the 100-yard freestyle race. Briggs had a 53.57 during the Friday preliminaries before cutting it further in the finals, placing fifth at 53.36, Birkinbine sixth at 53.45.

Briggs, Birkinbine, Nathan Cooper and David Prescott also reached a state berth in the 400 free relay, making a 3:44.91 in prelims, ultimately placing fifth.

The Dogs’ best placement was in the 200 medley as Birkinbine, Briggs, Prescott and Cody Evaristo nabbed third and the team’s lowest time to date at 1:52.89, a race in which Moffat County has been state-assured since the beginning of the season, the finals of the league championships the fifth occasion MCHS boys have hit the mark.

Evaristo and Cooper also joined Devin McIntosh and Ethan Powers in the 200 free relay, placing fourth at 1:45.49.

Briggs also lowered his state time in the 50 free, fifth at 23.75., Evaristo doing the same in the 100 backstroke, fifth at 1:01.95., while Birkinbine was fourth in 100 breaststroke at 1:10.20.

Taking their best times of the season individually were Powers in the 50 free; Brandon Beason in the 100 free; Beason and Trevor Hume in the 100 back; McIntosh in 100 breast; Cooper in 100 butterfly, and Evaristo, John Cutler, Hume and Karson Cox in the 200 free.

Altogether, Moffat County will compete in eight of the nine events the team has qualified in, due to restrictions on how many individual races a swimmer can do. Bulldogs will swim in all three relays — seeded 25th in the 200 medley, 23rd in 200 free and 24th in 400 free — Briggs in the 50 and 100 free (seeded 32nd in both), Birkinbine in 100 breast (38th) and 500 free (35th) and Evaristo in 100 back (35th).

The state championships will start Friday afternoon at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

 


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