The Salina Central swim team hosted a Central Division meet on Tuesday, securing a fourth-place finish with 202 points in a competitive field dominated by Hays High School (428), Dodge City (403), and Wichita Northwest (372).
The Mustangs started strong in the 200-yard medley relay, with the team of Carson Ablard, Logan Fairclough, Jake Schmitz, and Ben Sheppard winning the event in 2:02.52.
Ben Sheppard continued to impress in the sprint events, taking third place in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 24.18 seconds. Teammate Carson Ablard followed in fifth place at 26.09.
Logan Fairclough had a standout performance in the distance events, placing third in the 200-yard freestyle (2:14.15) and winning the grueling 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:37.18.
The Mustangs also showed their depth in the 200-yard freestyle relay, where the team of Ablard, Fairclough, Schmitz, and Sheppard posted a strong second-place finish (1:44.95), just three seconds behind Hays.
In other individual events, Jake Schmitz took fourth in both the 200-yard individual medley (2:53.53) and the 100-yard breaststroke (1:25.22), while Carson Ablard added a second-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke (1:12.13).
Southeast of Saline and Bennington tied for fifth place with 38.50 points each. Matthew Whelchel provided Southeast of Saline's highlight of the meet, winning the 50-yard freestyle in 23.81 seconds and tying for first in the 100-yard freestyle (53.70).
