Lady Mules take second at SEMO Conference swim meet

CAPE GIRARDEAU — The Notre Dame girls' swim team edged out Poplar Bluff to take home the SEMO Conference championship on Tuesday at the SEMO Aquatic Center.

Notre Dame scored 474.5 points to finish ahead of Poplar Bluff, who scored 460.5 points. Jackson placed third with 375 points, followed by Cape Central (312) and Farmington (147). Depth won the day, as the Bulldogs took the conference crown despite not having a swimmer win a race. Swimmers who placed as low as 16th in each event scored points, and Notre Dame and Poplar Bluff clearly had the numbers, if not the winners.

The Lady Mules did have one individual championship, as Allison Williamson won a conference title in diving.

Poplar Bluff coach Beth Lewis had words of praise for her team afterwards.

"Never have I ever seen so many personal records at one meet by Poplar Bluff swimmers," Lewis said in a Facebook post. "The girls came to battle. Though they didn’t get the win, they proved just how tough they are. They worked as a team until the very end. (I am) so incredibly proud of all of them."

The Walters family were also big winners in this competition. Notre Dame head coach Brad Walters coached his Bulldogs but cheered on his daughter, Jackson senior Ava Walters, who is being coached by her older brother, Brayden Walters. The Little Rock commit won the SEMO Conference in the 100-yard backstroke, setting the meet record with a time of 57.92.

"It's really good because he's always just cheering on me and his team, and he knows how to do a good balance," Walters said. "He was crying after my 100-yard backstroke race.

"It just feels really good to have the competition," she said, "but also, it's my dad."

Cape Central won six events, including senior Sydney Ringwald — the daughter of Three Rivers College athletic alumni Craig and Beth (Schnakenberg) Ringwald — who broke the meet record by 0.03 seconds with a time of 24.22. Ringwald, a Florida Gulf Coast commit, was also a part of the 200-yard (1:39.93) and 400-yard (3:42.87) freestyle relay that won both conference titles and set meet records.

SEMO Conference winners

200-yard medley relay: Jackson; 200-yard freestyle: Kennedy Ringwald, Cape Central; 200-yard intermediate medley: Karasynne McAlister, Cape Central; 50-yard freestyle: Sydney Ringwald, Cape Central; Diving: Allison Williamson, Poplar Bluff; 100-yard butterfly: Karasynne McAlister, Cape Central; 100-yard freestyle: Bella Pattengill, Cape Central; 500-yard freestyle: Lynlee LaValle, Jackson; 200-yard freestyle relay: Cape Central; 100-yard backstroke: Ava Walters, Jackson; 100-yard breaststroke: Lynlee LaValle, Jackson; 400-yard medley relay: Cape Central.

All-conference

Diving: Lynn Cotrell 2nd; 200-yard medley relay: Gracie Brown, Maclaren Moore, Samyia Anders, Gabbie Balz 3rd; 200-yard freestyle relay: Keira Willis, Kinsley Gibbs, Kate Scott, Lily Gregory 3rd; 400-yard freestyle relay: Keira Willis, Kinsley Gibbs, Kate Scott, Lily Gregory 3rd; 50-yard freestyle: Keira Willis 3rd, Kinsley Gibbs 5th, Gabbie Balz 8th, Samiya Anders 10th; 100-yard breaststroke: Maclaren Moore 3rd, Zoie McCormick 7th, Claire Funke 10th; 100-yard backstroke: Lily Gregory 4th, Kinsley Gibbs 6th, Gabbie Balz 8th, Jessica Vick 9th; 200-yard freestyle: Kate Scott 4th, Claire Faries 6th, Delyla Barnum 9th; 100-yard freestyle: Lily Gregory 4th, Kate Scott 5th, Lynn Cotrell 6th, Aaryn Johnson 10th; 500-yard freestyle: Keira Willis 4th, Claire Faries 8th, Delyla Barnum 9th; 200-yard intermediate medley: Maclaren Moore 5th, Gracie Brown 7th, Claire Funke 9th; 100-yard butterfly: Gracie Brown 8th.