O’Hara’s Blewett books two states swims at District 12 meet

Before Cardinal O’Hara senior Hanna Blewett heads off to the pools of Division I college swimming, the sprinter uncorked one more record-setting championship meet.

Blewett tied her District 12 Championships Class AAA meet record in the 50 freestyle and bested her meet mark in the 100 free this weekend at La Salle University to earn a pair of berths to March’s PIAA Championships.

Blewett clocked in at 23.96 seconds in the 50, equaling her time from last year. In the 100 free, the University of Houston signee went 52.04, winning by over five seconds and cutting a quarter second off her meet record from last year.

Blewett also won the 50 and 100 free events in the Catholic League Championship, swum Friday and Saturday morning preceding the District 12 events in the evening to determine states placement.

A pair of teammates will accompany Blewett in swimming individual events at Class AAA states. Julia Boyle won the 100 backstroke in 1 minute, 4.96 seconds, edging Little Flower’s Megan Campbell by less than a second. Freshman Kylie Swanick punched her ticket in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:05.71.

The Lions also send a relay, with Blewett anchoring the 200 free squad of Boyle, Swanick and Morgan Mack to the title in 1:44.91. The 400 free relay finished second.

Archbishop Carroll’s Julia Dellaratta earned a trip to the PIAA Class AA Championships by winning the District 12 AA 100 fly in 1:03.14. Bonner & Prendergast’s Julianna Fanelli finished second in the 200 individual medley, narrowly missing a trip to Bucknell.

The Delco contingent also raked in the Catholic League medals. Boyle was sixth in the 50 behind Blewett and third in the 100 breaststroke. Swanick finished second in the 100 fly and seventh in the 100 breast, while the O’Hara 200 free relay took home bronze, anchored by Blewett’s crazy fast split of 22.57 seconds.

Dellaratta claimed Carroll’s best PCL meet placing by taking third in the 200 IM. Teammate Zoie Octaviano was seventh in that event, the same place that Dellaratta claimed in the 500 free, while Octaviano added a fourth in the 100 breast. Carroll’s Victoria Patota finished fifth in the 500 and seventh in the 200 free, while Carroll’s 400 free relay of Patota, Dellaratta, Katherine Hageney and Molly Santoro finished third.

On the boys side, Carroll and Bonner & Prendie split the spoils in the District 12 AA meet. The Friars’ Luke McDevitt scored two states swims by winning the 200 free and 100 free, the latter by outtouching teammate Daniel Dwyer by .47 seconds. Bonner’s John Ellis was the only entrant in the 200 IM, earning a Bucknell trip, while the Friars’ 200 free relay of Dwyer, Ellis, McDevitt and Theodore Grenier advanced to states in the 200 and 400 free relays.

Carroll also sends a relay to states, winning the medley with the team of Daniel Kline, Thomas Patota, Sincere Gibbs and Matthew Crawford. Gibbs garnered two individual states swims by winning the Class AA 100 fly and 100 back.