Xavier swimmers make a splash

CEDAR RAPIDS - Xavier High School may not have a swim team, but its presence was felt at the girls' state swimming meet.

Sophomores Sarah Gannon and Lauren Havertape competed at the state meet.

Swimming for Washington, Havertape qualified for in the 50-yard freestyle, 100 butterfly and the medley relay for the second year in a row. Gannon, who swims for Kennedy, qualified in the 500 free for the second straight season.

Havertape earned first-team MVC all-division in the 50 free, 100 butterfly and 200 and 400 free relays. Gannon was second-team in the 500 free.

Havertape was one of the top swimmers for Washington at state, placing ninth in the 100 fly with a time of 58.88 seconds. It was one of her top events all season. She finished eighth in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:50.22. Washington placed 15th overall at state.

'In the medley relay, we got really close to our record from last year,” Havertape said. 'It has been fun swimming with these girls all season.”

Gannon had a strong showing in the 500 free with a time of 5:21.19, placing 18th. Last year, Gannon placed 24th in the same event. Kennedy won the regional meet on Oct. 31 and carried this momentum into the state meet. They finished ninth overall and broke the top 10 for the first time since 2010.

'It was awesome to be able to help my team move up from last year's 16th place finish to this year's ninth in the state overall,” Gannon said. 'We have a young and talented team that is building year after year, which is very exciting.”

Just because the season is over does not mean these girls will be taking their training lightly. Gannon will be swimming with Cedar Rapids Aquatic Association roughly five times a week until next fall, as well as participating in CrossFit during the summer. Havertape also will be swimming for a club during the off-season.