PIHS swimmers finish eighth at PVC meet
BANGOR — The high school swimming season is wrapping up. On Friday and Saturday the Presque Isle High School swim team competed in the 34th annual Penobscot Valley Championship at Husson University.
ON THE BLOCK 
— Presque Isle’s Grace Short prepares to swim her leg of the 200-yard individual medley at the Penobscot Valley Conference Swimming Championships on Saturday at Husson University. Short’s teammates, Erikka Murley (left) and Sarah McEachern look on. The relay team will be taking part in the States on Tuesday, Feb. 21 at Bowdoin College.
Both the boys and girls teams placed eighth at the event, and some swimmers had podium finishes. The first 12 in each event were awarded ribbons.
Senior Erica Hemphill finished third in both the 50-yard (26.46 seconds) and 100-yard freestyles (58.26).
The 200-yard medley relay team of E. Hemphill, Grace Short, Erikka Murley and Sarah McEachern placed seventh (2:13:02 minues).
In the 200-yard freestyle Murley, McEachern, Short and E. Hemphill finished sixth, breaking the school record with a time of 1:58.34.
Murley placed ninth (1:11.94) in the 100-yard butterfly.
In the girls 100-yard breaststroke Short placed sixth (1:21.52).
In the boys’ meet on Friday night Issac Estey finished fifth (1:00.14) in the 100-yard butterfly. Nate DeWitt was 11th (1:06.54). Estey also had a seventh in the 100-yard breastroke (1:09.69).
The boys’ 200-yard medley relay team of Dustin Drabek, Alex Hemphill, Estey and DeWitt placed ninth with a time of 2:04.57.
The 200-yard freestyle relay team of DeWitt, A. Hemphill, Keegan Ennis and Estey set a school record (1:46.42) and finished sixth.
The Wildcats’ next meet is the States at Bowdoin College on Feb. 20 and 21.
E. Hemphill will be swimming the 50- and 100-yard freestyle. Murley will be swimming the 200-yard individual medley and 100-yard butterfly and Short will swim the 100-yard breaststroke. Presque Isle will also enter all three relays in both the girls and boys meets.
The boys who have qualified for States are Estey swimming the 100-yard butterfly and breaststroke. Dewitt will swim the 50-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly. A. Hemphill will swim the 50-yard freestyle.
