| Jays fifth at Independence meet |
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| Sports - Girls Swimming | |||
| Written by Kevin Goodwin | |||
| Thursday, 24 December 2009 01:05 | |||
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Mesha Peterson takes first in diving
The Blue Jays placed fifth out of 31 teams at the Independence Invitational on Saturday, Dec. 19, with 173 points. Springfield Glendale won the meet with 320 points, followed by Blue Springs (278), Park Hill South (248) and Notre Dame de Sion (239). “We swam pretty well,” said Liberty coach Chris Murphy. “We were missing (state-qualifier) Maria Backs so we had to rearrange our relays. I think a couple of our relays may have been able to place in the top three if she was there. “Amber Vasquez, Olivia Palmarine and Madison Cowart all swam well and placed in the top eight in their events. Some of our younger swimmers also swam well, especially for their first big meet. There was a lot of competition with 31 teams so it was good for our girls to compete against so many good swimmers.” Junior Mesha Peterson was Liberty’s lone event winner, taking first in diving with 371.80 points. Senior Becca Owens was fifth with 335.20 points. “(Mesha) really dove well, and winning this meet against 40 divers really says a lot about her ability,” said Murphy. (Diving) coach (David) Robinson is really excited to see what she can do this year. She medaled last year at state (eighth place), and I expect her to be even higher this year.” Senior Olivia Palmarine was fifth in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 26.32 seconds. She was sixth in the 100 back in 1:05.23. Junior Amber Vasquez was seventh in the 500 free (5:36.41) and the 200 individual medley (2:21.71). Junior Madison Cowart was eighth in the 100 back in 1:06.33. The Blue Jays’ 200 medley relay team of Palmarine, Cowart, sophomore Sarah Weppler and Vasquez placed sixth in a time of 2:00.70. The 400 free relay team of Vasquez, Weppler, Cowart and Palmarine was also sixth in 3:58.45. The Blue Jays don’t have a meet until they host Lee’s Summit and Kearney in a tri-meet on Jan. 5.
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