Souderton boys, girls use depth to race past Methacton

WORCESTER — Depth has been an added bonus for Souderton Area this year, and a key ingredient in pushing Big Red past Methacton in a non-league battle Thursday afternoon.

“It’s very diverse,’ Indians junior Brendon Loux said of Big Red’s roster, one of the biggest in years. “We can put a lot of different kids in a lot of different events, switch it up if we need to. It’s been good.’

Missing some key people due to illness, including Loux, Big Red nevertheless powered its way to a 104-81 win in the boys meet and a 108-76 victory on the girls side.

“We had to have our swimmers that aren’t our top gunners step it up, and they did,’ Indians coach Caitlin Warren said. “I’m really proud of the way the team responded.’

The Souderton girls gained a psychological boost in the meet’s first event, outracing Methacton by a third of a second in the 200 medley relay.

Emily Hodges won the 200 IM for Souderton, and Big Red also went on to go one and two in the 50 freestyle, as Rickilee Hodges and Jennifer Rogers raced to the top two places.

The Souderton boys, meanwhile, got off to a strong start thanks in part to Matthew Holcombe’s win in the 200 freestyle and Cristian Musterait’s first-place finish in the 50 free.

Going into the diving, the Souderton girls held a 10-point edge over Methacton while the Big Red boys were up by two. Souderton, thanks to several contributions, was able to pull away once the swimming resumed.

“We were really focused on the relays,’ said Loux, who provided leadership in a different way on Thursday. “My goal today was to cheer everybody on, watch all the races and make sure I encourage all the young guys. I think we’re doing really well. We have good goals for the season.’

Michaela Hershey was a double winner for the Indians, touching first in both the 100 fly and 100 breast, and Jennifer Rogers outlasted all other competitors in the 500 freestyle.

Hodges earned her second win of the afternoon with a solid swim in the 100 freestyle, and Souderton was able to pad its lead with victories in the 200 free relay.

“It’s a very large group of very large workers,’ Warren said of her team. “And that can always do dangerous things.’