White water pack own the one-lap-dash

22 January 2022
Freestyle swimmer at NSW 2022 Senior State Age

Photo credit: Chloe Osborn Click-Clo Photography

After swimming a slick 1:03.58 PB in the morning’s heats session, Bella Grant (Trinity Grammar) had a point to prove in the Women’s 16 Years 100m Backstroke finals. Sans Souci Sea Devils’ Tameeka Johnson took an early lead at the 50m mark but had to work hard to maintain it, Grant pushing her along all the way to the flags. Johnson earned the top spot on the podium in 1:03.24, just a hand ahead of Grant (1:03.57). Manly’s Emily Ryan touched in 1:06.95 to earn third place.

It was a tight battle between lanes four and five in the Women’s corresponding 17 Years event. Anneke van Zoggel (SOPAC) and Emily Jones (Hunter) pulled away from the competition and went head-to-head, challenging each other into the wall. van Zoggel executed a sensational race and claimed victory in a quick 1:02.88. Silver and bronze went to Emily Jones (1:03.32) and Emily Dobbins (Novocastrian) respectively, Dobbins claiming her spot on the podium from lane seven.

The comeback king Jamie Mooney (Wagga Wagga) cruised into the top position on the podium in what was an electric Men’s 17 Years 400m IM event. Callum Thomas (Loreto Normanhurst) secured an early commanding lead over the field, using his breaststroke skill to his advantage. But the tide wanes and turns in a 400m IM, and nothing is guaranteed. Mooney turned the competition on its head from lane seven, delivering a powerful freestyle leg in his final 50m which won him gold in 4:34.37. Callum Thomas (Loreto Normanhurst) earned second place in 4:36.17, followed by Blake Waugh (Revesby Workers) in third in 4:40.71.

Back in the water in his Olympic event after a break from the pool, Se-Bom Lee (Carlile) was in superb form in the Men’s 18 Years & Over 400m IM. Swimming a race of his own, Lee charged ahead of the field to claim gold in 4:19.87. Joining Lee on the podium were silver medallist, Jacob Simpson (Revesby Workers) 4:36.64 and bronze medallist Josh Kingston (Campbelltown) 4:37.71. A robust field in this final, dual Paralympian and 200m IM SM9 silver medalist, Tim Hodge (Auburn), also turned out a great race tonight, bringing it home in an easy 4:55.29.

Night two’s Swimmer of the Night, Olivia Wunsch (Carlile) came to State Age to leave her mark. The golden girl claimed victory from lane three in the Women’s 15 Years 100m Breaststroke in 1:15.31 after securing a phenomenal win in the 15 years 400m Freestyle event earlier in the evening (4:18.82). The crowd cheered our 15 year old breaststroke talent into the wall, Knox Pymble’s Piper Gregory-Reid touching in 1:16.42 to claim second place just ahead of Amelia Simm (Tamworth City) in 1:16.53. Later in the evening, Wunsch would go on to secure her third gold medal of the session in the Women’s 15 Years 50m Freestyle in 25.59 – just 0.4 seconds off the NSW Record held by decorated Olympian Emma McKeon.

Marcus Da Silva Swimmer of the Night NSW State Age 2022
Marcus Da Silva Swimmer of the Night

Competitors in the one-lap-dash Men’s 15 Years 50m Freestyle event powered down their lanes, a moving pack of white water. Marcus Da Silva (City of Sydney Aquatic) emerged from an even field at the 25m mark and quickly gained momentum to glide straight into the wall in 23.46, just 0.43 seconds above the NSW Record, earning himself the gold medal and Swimmer of the Night. An impressive race across the board, James Gauci (SOPAC) touched in 23.91 to claim a close second place, ahead of Joshua Kerr (Manly) in third (24.30).

Although not his pet event, night one’s Swimmer of the Night, Haig Buckingham (SOPAC) executed a smooth and convincing 200m Breaststroke in the Men’s 17 Years event. Buckingham’s fitness was definitely tested in the last 25m, but he was able to push through and touch the wall in 2:17.24 to win gold. Wests Illawarra contenders Alistair Gorgijovski and Bailey Crehan both performed when it counted, earning silver and bronze respectively in 2:22.53 and 2:26.71.

The atmosphere was electric during the Men’s 18 Years & Over 200m Breaststroke, with Matt Wilson (SOPAC) headlining his Olympic event. Angus Menzies (Knox Pymble) was unflappable, strong and measured in his stroke from the start. Menzies maintained a comfortable lead over Wilson for most of the race, but true to form, Wilson cranked up the heat in the final 50m, driving a sensational battle to wall with Menzies eventually touching first in 2:15.28. Wilson took home silver in 2:15.66, while Joshua Collett (Bond, V) and Thomas Hargreaves (City of Sydney Aquatic) shared the final spot on the podium in 2:17.95 and 2:25.09 respectively.

An increasingly-popular event, the Women’s 1500m Freestyle has no doubt inspired a generation of female distance athletes across the nation after witnessing its Olympic debut in Tokyo. Competitors aged from 12-14 years old all swam together in this final, vying for medals in their individual age groups. Chloe Brodrick (Tuggeranong Vikings) and Annika Fowler (Manly) maintained a consistent lead from lanes three and four, ahead of contender Rafaela Kopellou (Revesby Workers) who backed up after a gutsy gold medal swim in the Women's 14 Years 200m Butterfly. Fowler made a power play at the 100m bell, and kicked her pace into overdrive. Body lengths ahead of her competitors, Fowler got her hand on the wall first in a sensational 17:31.33. Chloe Brodrick finished her race next in 17:37.88, followed closely behind by Macy Beuzeville (Warringah Aquatic) 17:45.66.

The 2022 NSW Senior State Age action continues today - day four. You can watch it live or on-demand on SwimTV. Get your event pass for just $5.99.

22 January Congratulations

  • Swimmer of the Night
  • Marcus Da Silva (City of Sydney) for his performance in the Men's 15 Years 50m Freestyle - 23.46

  • Medalists
  • Men’s 15 Years 400m Freestyle

    1 Samuel Higgs (Warringah Aquatic) 4:06.82

    2 Marcus Da Silva (City of Sydney Aquatic) 4:08.06

    2Matthew Lowe (TSS Aquatic, V) 4:08.09

    3 Kai Taylor (Sans Souci Sea Devils) 4:12.82

     

    Women’s 16 Years 100m Backstroke

    1Tameeka Johnson (Sans Souci Sea Devils) 1:03.24

    2 Bella Grant (Trinity Grammar) 1:03.57

    3 Emily Ryan (Manly) 1:06.95

     

    Women’s 17 Years & Over 100m Backstroke

    1 Anneke van Zoggel (SOPAC) 1:02.88

    2 Emily Jones (Hunter) 1:03.32

    3 Emily Dobbins (Novocastrian) 1:04.57

     

    Men’s 16 Years 400m IM

    1 Samson Barisic (SOPAC) 4:42.30

    2 Scott Swinburn (City of Sydney Aquatic) 4:47.32

    3 Tyler Johnson (Bathurst City) 4:53.61

     

    Women’s 14 Years 200m Butterfly

    1 Rafaela Kopellou (Revesby Workers) 2:17.96

    2 Millie Edwards-Bradshaw (Coffs Harbour) 2:22.76

    3 Isabelle Hanger (City of Sydney Aquatic) 2:24.67

     

    Men’s 13-14 Years 200m Butterfly

    1 Luke Higgs (Warringah Aquatic) 2:14.88

    2 Joseph Kim (Knox Pymble) 2:15.66

    3 Kane Edwards (Novocastrian) 2:16.08

     

    Men’s 17 Years 400m IM

    1 Jamie Mooney (Wagga Wagga) 4:34.37

    2 Callum Thomas (Loreto Normanhurst) 4:36.17

    3 Blake Waugh (Revesby Workers) 4:40.71

     

    Men’s 18 Years & Over 400m IM

    1 Se-Bom Lee (Carlile) 4:19.87

    2 Jacob Simpson (Revesby Workers) 4:36.64

    3 Josh Kingston (Campbelltown) 4:37.71

     

    Women’s 15 Years 100m Breaststroke

    1 Olivia Wunsch (Carlile) 1:15.31

    2 Piper Gregory-Reid (Knox Pymble) 1:16.42

    3 Amelia Simm (Tamworth City) 1:16.53

     

    Men’s 15 Years 100m Breaststroke

    1 Bailey Screen (Warringah Aquatic) 1:05.09

    2 Waylon Hayashi (Woden) 1:08.13

    3 Brayden Woodford (Wests Illawarra) 1:09.06

     

    Men’s 16 Years 100m Backstroke

    1 Tane Bidois (Knox Pymble) 57.02

    2 Alexander Foreman (Kincumber Pacific Dolphins) 57.98

    3 Kai Lilienthal (Knox Pymble) 58.60

     

    Women’s 14 Years 100m Freestyle

    1 Jessica Cole (Wests Illawarra) 58.29

    2 Sofia Bisello (SOPAC) 59.40

    3 Zara Kasprowicz (Warringah Aquatic) 59.95

     

    Men’s 13-14 Years 100m Freestyle

    1 Nicholas Stoupas (Cranbrook) 53.95

    2 Jaxson Smith (Revesby Workers) 54.91

    3 Alexander Clarence (AquaBlitz Toongabbie) 55.32

     

    Women’s 12-13 Years 200m Backstroke

    1 Salani Sa’aga (Knox Pymble) 2:28.71

    2 Taylah Markulin (Kincumber Pacific Dolphins) 2:30.51

    3 Audrey Mak (Leichhardt) 2:30.55

     

    Women’s 16 Years 400m IM

    1 Bianca Fuller (Kinross Wolaroi) 5:02.13

    2 Ava Jankovic (Valley Aquatic) 5:02.54

    3 Bella Grant (Trinity Grammar) 5:02.77

     

    Women’s 17 Years & Over 400m IM

    1 Kayla Hardy (Cruiz) 4:47.77

    2 Francesca Fitzhenry (Carlile) 4:51.16

    3 Jacinta Essam (Ginninderra) 4:54.24

     

    Men’s 17 Years 200m Breaststroke

    1 Haig Buckingham (SOPAC) 2:17.24

    2 Alistair Gorgijovski (Wests Illawarra Aquatic) 2:22.53

    3 Bailey Crehan (Wests Illawarra Aquatic) 2:26.71

     

    Men’s 18 Years & Over 200m Breaststroke

    1 Angus Menzies (Knox Pymble) 2:15.28

    2 Matthew Wilson (SOPAC) 2:15.66

    3 Joshua Collett (Bond, V) 2:17.95

    3 Thomas Hargreaves (City of Sydney Aquatic) 2:25.09

     

    Men’s 15 Years 50m Freestyle

    1 Marcus Da Silva (City of Sydney Aquatic) 23.46

    2 James Gauci (SOPAC) 23.91

    3 Joshua Kerr (Manly) 24.30

     

     Women’s 15 Years 50m Freestyle

    1 Olivia Wunsch (Carlile) 25.59

    2 Dijana Mazumdar (Barker Aquatic) 26.59

    3 Mia Fildissis (PLC Sydney) 26.69

     

    Women’s 12-13 Years 50m Breaststroke

    1 Racquel Dai-Ying Wu (Macquarie University) 34.75

    2 Lillie McPherson (Manly) 34.89

    3 Tiana Silva (Sydney University) 35.83

     

    Men’s 13-14 Years 50m Breaststroke

    1 Nicholas Stoupas (Cranbrook) 30.13

    2 Joseph Kim (Knox Pymble) 31.37

    3 Jianxiong (Jason) Cao (Manly) 32.70

     

    Women’s 14 Years 50m Breaststroke

    1 Ella Mounter (NU Swim) 34.30

    2 Joely Bruce (Dubbo City Swim Tech) 34.82

    3 Olivia Pak (PLC Sydney) 34.89

     

    Women’s 15 Years 50m Breaststroke

    1 Kyla Brown (Kinross Wolaroi) 34.79

    2 Piper Gregory-Reid (Knox Pymble) 35.05

    3 Sienna Whalan (Bathurst City) 35.36

     

    Men’s 16 Years 800m Freestyle

    1 Riley Lawrence (AquaBlitz Toongabbie) 8:46.77

    2 Jackson McCleery (Newington) 8:48.68

    3 Conner Maggs (Manly) 8:54.00

     

    Men’s 17 Years 800m Freestyle

    1 Caleb Dryer (Trinity Grammar) 8:22.74

    2 Gabriel Wilczak (Trinity Grammar) 8:29.19

    3 Blake Waugh (Revesby Workers) 8:35.59

     

    Men’s 18 Years 800m Freestyle

    1 Matthew Galea (SOPAC) 8:09.35

    2 Ryan Wilkes (Sydney University) 8:16.73

    3 Lachlan Sheehy (City of Sydney Aquatic) 8:36.00

     

    Women’s 12-13 Years 1500m Freestyle

    1 Kyah Shipley (Wests Illawarra) 18:57.53

    2 Jana Kowalski (Sydney University) 19:06.18

    3 Amelie Chan (Narrabeen) 19:18.70

     

    Women’s 14 Years 1500m Freestyle

    1 Annika Fowler (Manly) 17:31.33

    2 Chloe Brodrick (Tuggeranong Vikings) 17:37.88

    3 Macy Beuzeville (Warringah Aquatic) 17:45.66

     

    Men’s 13-15 Years 4x50m Medley Relay

    1 Warringah Aquatic 1:50.30

    2 MLC Marlins 1:50.35

    3 SOPAC 1:51.30

     

    Women’s 12-14 Years 4x50m Medley Relay

    1 SOPAC 2:02.86

    2 Manly 2:03.61

    3 Knox Pymble 2:04.05

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