ORHS swimmers have a big weekend at state meet
The Oak Ridge High School boys had a big weekend as they finished seventh overall and third among public schools as the 2023-24 high school swimming season concluded Saturday with the TSCA state championships.
The two-day event was held Friday and Saturday at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
The Wildcats also had two swimmers honored with all-state status.
Junior Andrew Chou and senior Stephen Zhukov were both named all-state for the second consecutive season.
Zhukov finished second in the 200-yard freestyle. He also took third in the 500-yard freestyle after breaking his own school record in the event in the preliminaries.
He was also a member of the Wildcats’ 200-yard medley relay team that finished 12th at the state championships. He teamed with Andrew Chou, Mason Greenhalgh and Colin Suddeth.
Oak Ridge’s 400-yard freestyle relay team (Chou, Suddeth, Connor O’Neill and Zhukov) finished second.
Zhou finished third in the 200-yard individual medley and fifth in the 100-yard backstroke.
Oak Ridge Coach Chad Hodge commended his athletes for their effort at the midstate.
“Our boys did really well; this is the third straight year that we finished in the Top 10,” Hodge said.
“We’re losing Stephen, and that’s a big loss for us from a leadership standpoint.
“We’re also losing seven other seniors, and that’s a lot of points to make up, and a lot of people to replace,” he said. “Our kids will have a lot of work to do between now and next September.”
Meanwhile, Anderson County junior Avery Coker medaled in both the boys 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard freestyle. He was 10th in the backstroke, and finished 12th in the freestyle.
Donavan Rainey competed in both the girls 200 IM and the 100 breaststroke, and she cut her previous best times in both events, according to Coach Stephanie Coker.
Landon Rainey was also in action at state as he competed in the 200 free and 100 free. Like his sister, he improved upon his previous bests in his events.
Clinton senior and team captain Isaac Childers went out on a high note for the Dragons.
He swam the 50 free and posted a time of 22.86 seconds, finishing 40th in a field of 91 swimmers.
He also finished 64th in the 100-yard breaststroke, and shaved 0.75 seconds off his previous best time. He touched the wall in 1:05.82.
Clinton Assistant Coach Laura Knott said Childers has left a lasting mark on the Dragons’ aquatics program.
“He is one of the strongest swimmers that I’ve ever worked with, and I’ve coached swimming for a long time,” Knott said. “He’s a leader and he’s a person of character.
“He’s helped develop our other swimmers, and he’s also recruited a lot of our swimmers. Everything he does is for the glory of God. He realizes where his talent comes from.”