Friendswood swimmers shine at state swim meet
February 24, 2023
Georgetown won the 5A boys state championship with 200 points while Frisco Wakeland finished in second place with 186 points and the Friendswood boys finished in third place with 159 points.
Cedar Park won the 5A girls state title with 194 points while the Friendswood girls finished in ninth place with 86 points.
Friendswood had 14 swimmers and one diver who competed in the state swim meet. They were: Peyton Becker, Olivia Esbeck, Nick Hardt, Edi Jakob, Andi Jeanes, Tony Laurito, Alex Linden, KK LeBlanc, Paige McCray, Marshall Odom, Paul Podrebarac, Lauren Tillman, Erin Voelker, Talon Welch and Grayson Wells for Diving.
The Mustangs also had some record-setting events at the state meet that resulted in multiple swimmers earning medals.
Tony Laurito had a gold medal performance in the 200-yard Individual medley that included a new Class 5A state record 1:47.34. Laurito also won the 100-yard backstroke in 48.98 and he also swam a leg on the third place 200-yard medley relay team with Nick Hardt, Talon Welch, and Marshall Odom with a time of 1:34.45 for the bronze medal.
Marshall Odom won a gold medal in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 49.05 while winning a silver medal in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.60. Odom was also on the 200-yard medley relay team that finished in third place.
KK LeBlanc also won two medals for the girls team as she captured a gold medal in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 49.86 and a silver medal for her second-place finish in the 50-yard freestyle in 23.09.
While Laurito set a new 5A state record in the 200-yard IM, five more FHS records were broken thanks to the efforts of LeBlanc (50-yard free; 100-yard free), Laurito (200-yard IM), Odom (100-yard free), and the boys 400-yard free relay team.
Here are the performances of the other swimmers that qualified for the state meet that earned team points.
Girls 200 Individual Medley: Peyton Becker (15th)
Boys 200 Individual Medley: Nick Hardt (10th)
Girls 500 Free: Paige McCray (11th)
Girls 100 Breaststroke: Peyton Becker (8th)
Boys 100 Breaststroke: Nick Hardt (6th)
Girls 200-Free Relay: Andi Jeanes, Peyton Becker, Lauren Tillman, KK LeBlanc (6th)
Girls 400-Free Relay: Paige McCray, Edi Jakob, Lauren Tillman, Andi Jeanes (15th)
Boys 400-Free Relay: Tony Laurito, Nick Hardt, Joshua Sakahara, Marshall Odom (4th)
Friendswood swim and dive head coach Craig Sikkema was awarded the Girls Coach of the Year for 2022.
Friendswood swimmers collected several medals including gold at the 2023 Class 5A State Swim Meet at the Lee and Joe Jamail Swim Center at the University of Texas in Austin.
The Friendswood boys finished third in the state with 159 points and the Friendswood girls finished in ninth place with 86 points.
The Friendswood swimmers were ready to compete at the Class 5A state swim meet in Austin and they had a great showing as the boys placed third in the state and the girls placed ninth.
The Friendswood boys scored 159 points at the Class 5A state swim meet in Austin which was good enough to finish in third place behind state champion Georgetown (200 points) and second place Frisco Wakeland (184 points).
Junior Tony Laurito set a new Class 5A record in the 200-yard Individual Medley (1:47.34) for one gold medal and he also won the 100-yard backstroke (48.98) while also swimming a leg on the 200-yard Medley Relay team that placed third for a bronze medal (1.34.61).
Junior Marshall Odom won a gold medal for a first-place finish in the 100-yard butterfly (49.05), a silver medal for a second-place finish in 50-yard freestyle (20.60), and a bronze medal with a leg on the third-place 200-yard Medley Relay.
Sophomore KK LeBlanc captured the gold medal in the girls 100-yard freestyle (49.86) and the silver medal for a second-place finish in the 50-yard freestyle (23.09).
