A strong field provided a good opening test for the Ankeny boys’ swimming team as the Hawks hosted the Ankeny Sprint Invitational on Tuesday at Trail Point Aquatics Center.
Waukee, the two-time defending state champion, easily won the meet with 453.5 points. Valley, last year’s third-place finisher at state, took second with 379 points.
Ankeny placed third with 359 points. The Hawks were followed by Dowling Catholic, Southeast Polk and Newton/Colfax-Mingo/Pella as the six teams finished in the same order as last year’s meet.
“Today was a great opportunity to see where we were at,” said Ankeny coach Justin Crouch. “Obviously, there was some good competition. I really had a good time watching the boys get out there to race with great effort, excitement and intensity. It will be important to remember the approach we took tonight as I felt it was excellent. If we can continue to put work like this in every day, I will feel like I have done my job.”
Lance Swanepoel provided two of Ankeny’s three victories. He won the 50 butterfly in 22.51 seconds and the 25 freestyle in 9.56.
Owen Schwebach took second behind Swanepoel in the 50 butterfly, posting a time of 23.11. He won the 50 freestyle in 21.94.
Calvin Howard placed fourth in the 25 freestyle. He was clocked in 10.83.
Ankeny’s Owen Evans took fifth in the 50 freestyle in 23.28. He also placed sixth in the 100 freestyle in 51.60.
Brock Peterson also earned a pair of top-six finishes. He placed sixth in the 100 individual medley in 56.87 and fifth in the 50 backstroke in 25.97.
The Hawks got eighth-place finishes from Noah Schafer in the 200 freestyle (1:55.71), Finn Stukerjurgen in the 100 freestyle (52.15) and Roe Denny in the 50 butterfly (25.94).
Ankeny opened the meet with a second-place finish in the 200 medley relay. The foursome of Swanepoel, Schwebach, Peterson and Howard posted a time of 1:39.82.
The Hawks also took second in the 200 freestyle relay. The team of Swanepoel, Evans, Schafer and Schwebach was clocked in 1:30.60.
Ankeny later placed third in the 400 freestyle relay. The quartet of Schafer, Stukerjurgen, Evans and Peterson posted a time of 3:29.83.
“At the end of the day, the results are what they are,” Crouch said. “I feel good about where we are, but we do have some weaknesses. We were far from perfect tonight. The great news is we have 10 more meets to get it right before we need to be at the top of our game. By the end of the year, I think we can be something pretty special. It will not happen without continued hard work and effort, though.”
Waukee won seven events, including all three relays. Asher Havenhill took both the 100 IM and the 50 backstroke for the Warriors.
The Hawks will travel to Waukee on Dec. 1 for a dual meet against the Warriors.