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Swimming
February 21, 2012
Black Knights Complete Season
By: Wally Decker
There is no better place to finish a season than the rich waters of the State Championships. Fortunately for North Davidson, it has become a common occurrence. The Black Knights ended a successful season in fine fashion on February 11th.
North’s Sam Day broke his own school record in the 200 IM during the 4-A state championship meet at the Triangle Aquatics Center in Cary, as did North’s Savannah Johnston in the 500 free.
At the state meet, Johnston finished 17th in the 200 free, Day was 15th in the 200 IM. The 200 free relay team of Johnston, Rachel Greene, Haley Pace and Kacie Michael finished 19th, and the boys’ 200 free relay team of Day, Brady Whicker, Sam Martin and Jadd Smith finished 19th. Day finished 23rd in the 100 breast.
On the season, North swimmers established new records in half of the events: 8 on the Men’s side and 3 for the Women. Congratulations to all of our swimmers who achieved much with the investment of every effort.
Editors Note:
We want to thank Wally Decker for his contributions this year, and look forward to next season. We also salute all of our Black Knight Swimmers for a successful season, especially our Seniors! GO BLACK KNIGHTS!
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February 6, 2012
The Black Knights are Headed to States!
By: Wally Decker
For the fifth year in a row, North Davidson will be sporting a competitive contingency at the State Swimming Championships. The good news is that the talent pool of this contingency is growing deeper. A strong showing at Regionals this past Saturday in Greensboro has given our team another shot at the highest level of competition.
A number of North swimmers participated at Regionals pacing the Knights to a 14th place Regional finish for the Women and 15th for the Men.
Each team will be sending a relay team. The 200 Free Relay (Kacie Michael, Savannah Johnston, Haley Pace and Rachel Greene) came within ¾ of a second of a school record that has stood for more than a decade while punching their ticket to states. Meanwhile, the Mens 200 Free Relay (Brady Whicker, Sam Day, Jadd Smith and Sam Martin) not only provided some of the greatest excitement of the day but also set a new school record of 1:34.07 breaking the mark established in 2008.
Savannah Johnston finished 4th in the 200 Free and found the podium with a 3rd place finish in the 500 Free. She will swim both events at States. Likewise, Sam Day is headed to Cary next weekend as a dual qualifier (4th-200 IM, 8th-100 Breast). His time in the 200 IM not only broke the 2-minute mark but shattered his own school record. Sam’s 100 Breast was also in record time. Brady Whicker swam a phenomenal 100 Back in tough competition to best his own school record by more than a second. The Mens 200 Medley Relay (Whicker, Day, Smith, Martin) came up short for states, but continued their own assault on the school record which they have already re-established on more than one occasion this season.
Summing it up, the Lady Knights will be represented in 3 events as will the Men at this Saturday’s (Feb 11) State Championships at the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary. The prelims begin about 8:30 Saturday morning with the Finals that evening at 5:00. Thanks for supporting the Black Knights Swim Team! We’ll see you poolside.
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The Following Black Knights were recognized on Tuesday night, January 24th at the half of the Basketball game. We thank you for your efforts in the classroom, and in the pool, and wish you luck in the Regionals, states, and in the future. THANK YOU for Being BLACK KNIGHTS!
Brianna Decker
Kacie Michael
Brady Whicker
Kylee Wooten
January 24, 2012
North Davidson SWIM: CPC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
By: Wally Decker
The Post Season began in earnest Friday night for the North Davidson Swim Team. The Central Piedmont Conference Championships provides stiff competition and a true test to the readiness of the team for the final phase of the swim season.
The Womens Team looked good in securing a third-place Conference finish. Top Three finishers included Savannah Johnston (2nd - 500 Free) and the 200 Free Relay Team of Johnston, Haley Pace, Rachel Greene and Kacie Michael (3rd). An example of the level of competition, Johnston placed 4th in the 200 Free breaking the 2-minute mark and her own school record. Scoring individually for the Lady Knights: Johnston, Kylee Wooten, Kaylyn Vaughan, Madison Wooten, Michael, Greene, Pace, Heather Coppley and Bridgette Bonnette.
The Mens Team while finishing 5th in the Conference provided North Davidson its’ first Conference Champion in recent history. Sam Day’s victory in the 200 IM not only set a new school record but gave the school a place on the championship banner. Day also set a new school record in the 100 Breast and Brady Whicker followed suit by topping his own best mark in the 100 Back. Scoring Individually for the Black Knights: Day, Whicker, Michael Norman, Matthew Warrrick, Sam Martin and Heath Tucker. The 200 Medley Relay team of Whicker, Day, Jadd Smith and Martin also broke the school record previously set this season while placing fourth in the event.
Tonight, the school honored our senior swimmers at half-time of the Varsity Mens Basketball Game. Brianna Decker, Kacie Michael, Brady Whicker and Kylee Wooten will hang up their goggles at the end of this season. Together, they have accounted for 15 swimming letters and numerous experiences at Regionals and States. As team leaders and captains, these seniors provided commitment to the team and their coaches through transition and change. We thank them for their efforts and their spirit…they will be greatly missed.
The Knights are preparing for Regional Competition on Saturday February 4th at the Greensboro Aquatic Center. North has automatic qualifiers for 2 Individuals (4 events) and 5 Relays with a host of potential entries with consideration times. Here’s hoping for great results and a fitting representation at the State Finals on February 11th. Thanks for your support. Thanks for your support. We’ll see you poolside!
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January 9, 2012
Swimmers Win, and Salute Clark Myrick
By: Wally Decker
A great start to the new year: Conference waters were a bit friendlier for the Black Knights. A sweep over Mt Tabor gave the Men their first conference victory (89-80) and ensured the Women (100-70) a winning conference record (3-2) for the season.
Kacie Michael and Savannah Johnston paced the Womens team with a pair of wins each. Kacie took the 50 Free and 100 Free while Savannah topped the 200 Free and the 100 Back…joining them in the win column was Bridgette Bonnette (500 Free). The Medley Relay team of Johnston, Michael, Rachel Greene & Heather Coppley as well as the 400 Free Relay (Johnston, Kylee Wooten, Madison Wooten & Coppley) claimed victories in those events.
The Men were led by Brady Whicker and Sam Day who each took the top spot in their individual swims (Whicker – 50 Free, 100 Back; Day – 200 Free, 100 Breast). Matthew Warrick won the 100 Fly to keep the Knights on a winning pace. Perhaps the most exciting race of the evening was the 200 Free Relay (Whicker, Jadd Smith, Sam Martin & Day) which likely made the difference in the end.
On Friday January 6th, the inaugural North Davidson Invitational at the brand new Greensboro Aquatic Center at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex was held as teams from Central Davidson, East Forsyth, Southwest Guilford and Reidsville joined the Black Knights for an evening benefiting LIVESTRONG in honor of late Clark Myrick who gave much to our swim team, our school and our community. Thanks to many who made the trip to Greensboro to cheer our team, support the cause and show care to the Myricks. The link below has pictures from the evening, and we thank Brad Arrowood for taking the time to make the trip to Greensboro to support not only the Black Knights, but also the memory of our friend, Clark Myrick!
The Lady Knights rolled to a first-place finish behind a solid team effort. Leading the way were first-place finishers: Haley Pace (50 Free), Kacie Michael (100 Free), Savannah Johnston (200 Free, 500 Free), Rachel Greene (200 IM, 100 Back). Also scoring individually for North were Bridgette Bonnette, Brianna Decker, Kaylyn Vaughan, Madison Wooten, Heather Coppley, Olivia Henderson, Kylee Wooten and Mollie Gentry. A sweep of relays included the 200 Medley (Coppley, Greene, Johnston & Michael), 200 Free (Vaughan, M. Wooten, Bonnette & Pace) and the 400 Free (Johnston, Coppley, K Wooten & Michael).
The Men's Team faced stiffer competition and found third place to be the final resting place in the pecking order of placement. Sam Day led the way with wins in the 200 IM and the 500 Free. Eight Swimmers scored in both of their individual events (Brady Whicker, Matthew Warrick, Michael Norman, Heath Tucker, Jadd Smith, Sam Martin, Justin Howard and Ron Shawver). Five more Black Knights contributed to the scoring total as well (Bradley Decker, Zack Pack, Alex Romine, Ryan Morton and Chad Adkins).
Despite the third place finish, it was an all-out endeavor by the Men's team who left nothing behind.
This is Exam Week on Critcher Drive. The Black Knights will be back in the water this Friday evening (Jan 13) at the Pfeiffer University Relay Meet. This should be a competitive and exciting meet that will prepare the swimmers as a team for the post-season which begins following the semester break. The CPC Conference Championship Meet is Friday January 20th @ WSSU. 4-A Central Regionals are Saturday February 4th in Greensboro and the 4-A State Championships are Saturday February 11th in Cary.
It’s been a great season…come on out and support our swimmers who have worked hard this year. We’ll see you poolside!
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December 26, 2011
North Women Win County Championship, Men Place Second
By: Wally Decker
Twas the week before Christmas and the swimmers were busy. Donning caps and goggles, the North Davidson contingent had a few more things on their Christmas list before the holiday break.
Last Saturday, the freshman and sophomore swimmers took part in the WSSU 9th & 10th Grade Invitational. Always a competitive meet for the young team members, the bar was raised this year with the addition of 3-A State Champion Charlotte Catholic, plus Lake Norman and the always challenging teams from Ragsdale and Apex. Our Women finished a solid sixth out of 13 participating teams. Meanwhile the Men placed eleventh.
Finding the podium (1st/2nd/3rd) for the Black Knights were Savannah Johnston (1st-200 Free – a new school record that stood for 3 days, 3rd-200 IM) and the Womens 200 Free Relay (Heather Coppley, Haley Pace, Olivia Henderson & Johnston). Also scoring individual points for North were: Bridgette Bonnette, Heather Coppley, Olivia Henderson, Sam Martin, Ron Shawver, Heath Tucker and Zack Pack.
On Tuesday evening, it was back in the water to defend the Davidson County Championship trophy. All seven county schools participated in a tightly contested event featuring great swimming from every team. In fact, every school had at least one county champion during the course of the meet.
The North Women successfully defended their title (totals follow) by holding the competition at arms length for the majority of the evening. Medaling for the Lady Knights were Savannah Johnston (1st – 200 Free, school record, 2nd- 500 Free), Kaylyn Vaughan (3rd-200 IM), Kacie Michael (2nd-50 Free, 3rd-100 Free), Haley Pace (3rd-50 Free), Rachel Greene (2nd-100 Back), Heather Coppley (3rd-100 Back) and Madison Wooten (3rd-100 Breast). Contributing to the point total were Kylee Wooten, Brianna Decker, Olivia Henderson, Emily Lineback, Bridgette Bonnett…11 individual swimmers scoring for North to lead a balanced effort. The 200 Free Relay (Greene, Pace, Wooten & Vaughan) and the 400 Free Relay (Johnston, Michael, Vaughan & Coppley) took Gold while the 200 Medley (Coppley, Greene, Johnston & Pace) claimed Silver.
Competition on the Mens’ side was much stiffer as the Knights gave the highly talented Central Davidson Spartans a tough run all night long. Leading the way for North were Sam Day (1st-200 IM, 1st – 500 Free – school record), Brady Whicker (3rd-100 Fly, 3rd-100 Back – school record) and Michael Norman (3rd-200 Free). Scoring for the Knights: Justin Howard, Matthew Warrick, Heath Tucker, Sam Martin, Jadd Smith, Ron Shawver, Zack Pack, Chad Adkins and Alex Romine – another solid team effort! While placing a close second by .05, the 200 Medley Relay (Tucker, Day, Whicker & Smith) broke their own school record established earlier in December. The 400 Free Relay Team (Whicker, Smith, Warrick & Day) put a solid exclamation point on what might have been the team’s best outing of the season by winning the final event of the evening.
It’s Christmas break, but the swimmers are in the water almost every day as they prepare for the final conference meet of the season (Mt Tabor – Tues Jan 3rd). Then, the North Davidson Invitational will be a 5-team event at the brand new Greensboro Aquatic Center on location at the Greensboro Coliseum on Friday January 6th. This event will be in honor of the late Clark Myrick who gave much to our swim team, our school and our community. Look for more information coming soon….Merry Christmas and we’ll see you poolside!
WOMEN
North-324, West-219, Ledford-195, Lexington-151, Central-151, East-95, South-57
MEN
Central-269, North-258, West-200.5, Ledford-199, Lexington-159.5, East-81
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December 14, 2011
Knights Meet West Forsyth
By: Wally Decker
The Black Knights were back in the water Tuesday night taking on West Forsyth. The Lady Knights evened their conference record at 2-2 with a 98-70 victory. Meanwhile, the men remain winless in conference competition after falling to the Titans, 61-109.
It was a masterful performance by the Women as they won 8 of the 11 events including all 3 relays. Individual winners included Savannah Johnston (100 Fly, 500 Free), Kylee Wooten (200 Free), Kacie Michael (100 Free) and Kaylyn Vaughan (100 Back). First-place relays were the 200 Medley (Vaughan, Rachel Greene, Heather Coppley and Johnston), the 200 Free (Michael, Madison Wooten, Haley Pace and Greene) and the 400 Free (Johnston, Vaughan, Michael and Coppley).
Brady Whicker provided the bright spots for the Men’s team in a tough night of competition. Whicker finished first and broke his own school record in the 100 Back in addition to winning the 100 Fly. Also winning for the Knights was freshman Sam Martin in the 50 Free. Matthew Warrick turned in a pair of second place finishes (200 IM, 100 Breast) to help the Knights cause.
North’s Freshman and Sophomore swimmers are back in the water Saturday for the WSSU 9th & 10th Invitational. The entire team will look to defend their Davidson County Championships next Tuesday, December 21st as high schools from across the county converge on WSSU for the competition. You are encouraged to join the excitement – we’ll see you poolside. GO KNIGHTS!
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December 11, 2011
This Week in North Davidson Knight Swimming
By: Wally Decker
The rough waters of conference competition continued this week for the North Davidson swimmers. Perennial powerhouse Reynolds came calling and walked away with a pair of victories on the evening.
The Lady Knights lost by the closest of margins (83-87) in a meet where every place mattered and each race could have changed the outcome. North’s depth of talent proved evident in an evening where our ladies would only win two individual events (Savannah Johnston: 200 Free, 500 Free-school record) and one relay (200 Free: Johnston, Haley Pace, Kacie Michael & Kylee Wooten). North claimed 15 out of 22 possible 2nd and 3rd place finishes to keep things close.
Meanwhile the Men’s’ team struggled to keep pace with the deeply talented Demons. Sam Day’s school record 200 IM provided the only first-place finish for the Knights. Another bright spot was the Men’s 200 Free Relay clocking a regional qualifying time (1:40:06) giving the Knights a full complement of relays headed to regional competition. The relay consisted of Brady Whicker, Matthew Warrick, Jadd Smith and Sam Day.
This week, North takes on West Forsyth on Tuesday evening at WSSU. Then on Saturday, the freshman and sophomore swimmers will participate in the WSSU 9th-10th Invitational giving our younger team members a chance to compete against athletes their own age. Admission to swim meets is free. The competition is exciting. We’d love to have you join us. See you poolside.
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December 3, 2011
Black Knights Open CPC Season
By: Wally Decker
“I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion.” Olympian Mia Hamm
Knowing that championship teams are formed from the collective efforts of it’s’ members, the North Davidson Swim Team continued to be tested greatly in the waters of conference competition this week against perennial powerhouse, Reagan High School.
The Lady Knights traded the lead back and forth with the Raiders throughout the meet with the final margin of victory (Reagan 91, North 78) being the greatest of the competition. It was the first loss of the young season for North. Leading the way for the Knights was sophomore Savannah Johnston who won the 100 Fly and in finishing 2nd in the 200 Free set a new school record while also claiming an automatic regional qualifying time. Also winning for the Ladies were the Wooten sisters (Kylee-500 Free, Madison-100 Breast). Second-place finishers included Kacie Michael (50 Free), Kaylyn Vaughan (200 IM) and Rachel Greene (100 Back). The 200 Medley Relay Team (Johnston, Greene, Heather Coppley & Michael) took the initial event of the meet to start things off right. Meanwhile, the 200 Free Relay (Johnston, Haley Pace, Wooten & Michael) established themselves as automatic qualifiers for regional competition in February.
While the Men’s score (77-93) was made closer by a flourish of points in the final 3 events, the Knights kept Reagan within reach for most of the evening. Sam Day turned in another masterful performance establishing 2 more school records (200 Free, 100 Breast) while finishing first in both events and claiming automatic regional qualifying times. Brady Whicker took the 100 Fly in an exciting race to the finish while North’s Heath Tucker won the 100 Back with our own Matthew Warrick a close second. Warrick also placed second in the 200 IM while Whicker was second in the 500 Free. While North did not win any relays, the Black Knights did place more relay teams (5-4) than the Raiders.
It’s back in the water next week again as North hosts Reynolds in conference competition next Tuesday evening at 7PM at Winston-Salem State…we’ll see you poolside!
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NDHS SWIM: WEEK ONE
By: Wally Decker
“Swimmers take your mark…” The North Davidson Swim Team was off the block in fine fashion this week as the 2011-2012 season began with a pair of meets on back-to-back days. Our swimmers picked up where they left off last year as seven school records fell in the first 2 nights.
The Black Knights kicked off the season on Monday against county rival Ledford. New school records were established by Savannah Johnston (200Free), Sam Day (200IM) and Brady Whicker (100 Back). In addition, the Men’s 200 Medley Relay (Whicker, Day, Matthew Warrick & Jadd Smith) beat the previous best time established in 2008.
The Lady Black Knights were also led to victory (111-58) with first-place finishes from Rachel Greene (200IM), Kacie Michael (50Free), Kylee Wooten (100Fly), Johnston (200 Free, 100 Free), Kaylyn Vaughn (500 Free), Madison Wooten (100 Breast) and all 3 relay teams (200 Medley: K. Wooten, Haley Pace, Johnston & Vaughn…200 Free: Johnston, M. Wooten, Greene & Brianna Decker…400 Free: Vaughn, Pace, K. Wooten & Heather Coppley)
The Men’s Team was led Sam Day’s top finishes (200IM, 500 Free) in addition to winning performances from Brady Whicker (100Fly) and Matthew Warrick (100 Breast). A relay sweep proved crucial in the final score (99-89) as the previously mentioned record setting Medley Relay led the way for the free relays (200: Michael Norman, Smith, Ron Shawver & Warrick…400: Day, Norman, Heath Tucker & Whicker).
On Tuesday night, the team faced an early-season entry into Conference waters as North took on Davie County in Mocksville for the first time in three years. The Women’s team won by a close margin (91-77) while the Men struggled against a powerful Davie team (69-99).
Even so, school records were established by Savannah Johnston (200IM, 500 Free) and Sam Day (100 Fly). Other winning performances for the Black Knights included: Kaylyn Vaughan (200 Free), Brady Whicker (200 Free), Sam Day (100 Breast). The lone winning relay included a sweep of the Womens 200 Free Relays in might have proven to be the winning difference in the end. First place was the team of Heather Coppley, Haley Pace, Rachel Greene & Kacie Michael. Completing the sweep were the second place finishers: Kylee Wooten, Olivia Henderson, Emily Linebach & Kaylyn Vaughan.
Already, North Davidson has several automatic regional qualifiers: Sam Day (100 Flay, 200 IM, 500 Free), Savannah Johnston (200IM, 500 Free) and the following relays: Womens 400 Free, Mens 200 Medley, Mens 400 Free).
With only 4 seniors and what might be the largest freshman class to ever hit the water for the Black Knights, youth is definitely the theme as Coach Wells works this team through what promises to be an exciting season. North is back in the water this Wednesday November 30th at WSSU against conference foe, Reagan. The meet begins at 7:00. Admission is free. We’ll see you poolside!
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2011-12 North Davidson Swim Meet Schedule
Date Opponent Location Time Warm-Ups
Mon Nov.21 Ledford WSSU ( HOME ) 7:00 pm 6:30 pm
Tue..Nov.22 Davie County Davie YMCA 4:30 pm 4:00 pm
Wed. Nov 30 Reagan WSSU 7:00pm 6:30 pm
Tue. Dec.6 RJReynolds WSSU ( HOME ) 7:00pm 6:30 pm
Tue. Dec 13 West Forsyth WSSU 7:00pm 6:30pm
Sat. Dec.17 9/10 Invitational WSSU 10:00am 8:30am
Tue. Dec 20 Davidson County Championships
WSSU 5:00pm 3:45pm
Tue.Jan 3 Mt.Tabor WSSU ( HOME ) 7:00pm 6:30pm
Fri.Jan 6 North Davidson Invitational 5:00pm 4:30pm
@Greensboro Aquatic Center ( HOME )
Fri Jan 13 Pfeiffer Relays Pfeiffer Univ. 5:00pm 4:10pm
Sat.Jan 14 WSSU Qualifer WSSU TBA TBA
Fri. Jan 20 Central Piedmont Conference Championship
WSSU TBA TBA
Sat. Feb 4 4A Central Regional Championship TBA TBA
Greensboro Aquatic Center
Sat. Feb 11 4A State Championships Prelims: 8:45am 7:30am
Finals: 5:00pm 4:00pm
Triangle Aquatics Center Cary,NC
Coach: Brian Wells
