BRUNSWICK — All night long, the Class A swimming and diving championships teetered between Brunswick and Cape Elizabeth.
Through 10 of 12 events, only half a points separated the talented Dragons against a Capers squad that relied on depth. A decisive showdown in the 400-yard freestyle relay seemed imminent ... until an unheralded senior from Cape Elizabeth won the consolations of the 100 breast stroke from Lane 1.
Charlotte Sawyer, who needed a time drop of three seconds in the morning trials just to swim again Tuesday evening, cut three more to make the final relay moot. "She had the swim of her life," Cape Elizabeth coach Ben Raymond said.
The Capers ended a two-year Bangor title run with a 282-268.5 victory over runner-up Brunswick. Deering (248) held off Bangor (245.5) for third in the 22-school meet Tuesday night at Gleason Pool on the campus of Bowdoin College.
Fifteen different girls scored points for Cape Elizabeth, which set a state record of 1 minute, 50.17 seconds in the opening 200 medley relay and did not win another event.
Hannah Homans, Sadie Stiles, Sydney Wright and Caroline Herriman combined on the record swim. Wight went on to take a pair of seconds (200 free and 100 butterfly), Homans a third (backstroke), Stiles a fifth (breast) and sixth (200 individual medley) and Herriman a seventh (100 free).
The only other Cape Elizabeth individual scorers placing among the eight championship finalists were a trio of sophomores. Michaela Pinette took sixth in diving, Sarah Loring eight in IM and Sierra Bates was eight in the butterfly.
Arden Wing (IM, fly), Katie Schonewolf (fly), Elle Richards (100 free) and, in the 500 free, Shannon Howard, Gabby Lawrence, Jane Vaughn and Lexi Bakke all contributed individual scoring.
"We're all in in together," Wight said. "Every little point counts."
The nine contributed by Sawyer in the breaststroke, however, meant a little bit more. After all, 19 girls had faster times entering the meet, as did six of the eight swimmers in her consolation final.
When she dropped from 1:23 to 1:20 in the morning, she was thrilled. When she dropped from 1:20 to to 1:17.84 to win her heat, she was dumbfounded.
"When I got to the wall I saw my time, that was enough for me," she said. "Then I saw that I got first and thought, 'That can't be right.' "
Sawyer's points – combined with those from the third-place Homans – allowed Cape's 400 relay team of Howard, Loring, Bates and Richards the comfort of knowing they only needed to avoid disqualification and the title was theirs.
The Capers finished sixth to Brunswick's third as Deering, anchored by Outstanding Performer of the Meet Genna Worthley, won the race.
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