Baylor relay team sets national record

Saturday, February 15, 2014

The Baylor School boys set a national record Friday in the first day of the 2014 Tennessee State Swimming and Diving Championships at the Centennial Sportsplex in Nashville.

Two of the Aqua Raiders who set that standard broke state records in other events as well, and their defending champion team is in first place with one day to go.

Baylor seniors Luke Kaliszak, Dustin Tynes and Sam McHugh and junior Christian Selby swam the 200-yard medley relay in 1 minute, 27.74 seconds, breaking the state record by about three seconds and the national mark set by The Bolles School of Jacksonville, Fla., two years ago by three-tenths of a second.

McHugh set a state record in the 200 individual medley by right at a second with a 1:46.20, and Kaliszak broke the 50 freestyle record twice -- with a 20.44 in the preliminaries and a 20.43 in the finals. The old state record belonged to Baylor's Brian Lee, set in 2011.

Bree Roman gave Baylor a sweep of the 50 free titles with a 23.45. That gave the Lady Raiders that state crown for the seventh year in a row, by five girls.

Another first-day first place went to Signal Mountain diver Marissa Roth with 429.35 points, and East Hamilton's Rachel Dover and Chattanooga Christian's Anne Dassow were second and third in the 100 butterfly in 55.79 and 57.00, while Girls Preparatory School's April Forsthoffer was fourth with a school-record 57.18.

Forsthoffer was sixth, one spot behind Bruisers teammate Susanna LaRochelle, in the 200 individual medley, and those two, Kristen Myers and Mimi Doi set a school record with a third-place 1:47.14 in the 200 medley relay. Myers was ninth in the 100 fly.

GPS took a 20-0 dual-meet record into the competition hosted by the Nashville Aquatic Club and is third after Friday's finals, while Baylor is fourth.