Oxford swimming sweeps OHS Invitational

Published 12:10 pm Friday, September 17, 2021

The Oxford swim team is getting into postseason shape with the state championship meet just over a month away and the Chargers made a bold statement in their home pool this week.

The Chargers swept the Oxford Invitational, which took place at the Oxford city pool, on Tuesday and Thursday. According to records kept by Oxford, it was the first time both the boys and girls teams defeated Tupelo’s teams in both divisions since at least 2000.

With the meet scheduled for Tuesday, rain arrived in the afternoon to cause the event to be paused and resumed on Thursday.

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“I’m pleased with how the swimmers competed in the meet,” said Oxford head coach Robert Gonzalez. “It was an unorthodox schedule with the postponing of events, but they did a good job maintaining the intensity in both environments. I am happy our seniors were able to accomplish something that has never been done before, but we understand the challenge of repeating the performance and take nothing for granted. We have to continue to get better.”

In the girls meet, Oxford won with a total of 194 points to defeat runner-up Tupelo by nearly 50 points. The Golden Wave finished with 146.5 points while Lafayette (38), Lewisburg (30) and Starkville (21.5) rounded out the top five.

The Oxford boys took first place with a total of 165 points, best Tupelo by 29.5 points. The Golden Wave’s 135.5 was enough for second place with Lewisburg (36), Lafayette (19) and DeSoto Central (19) rounding out the top five.

The Lady Chargers won six of the 22 scored events, including the 200-yard medley relay and the 200-yard freestyle relay. The Chargers won five events, including the 200-yard medley relay and the 200-yard freestyle relay as well.

In the individual events, Oxford’s Hanna Harper won the 100-yard backstroke while Julia Dennis won the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle events. Cole Oyler won the girls 200-yard freestyle. In the boys individual events, Charles Byars took home first place in the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle. William Berry won the 100-yard breaststroke.

Lafayette swimmers placed four in the girls 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relays and sixth in the 200-yard medley relay. The Commodores boys team finished third in the 200-yard freestyle relay.

Both Oxford and Lafayette return to the pool on Tuesday in a meet at Tupelo.