KINGSPORT, Tenn. – The Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) swim championships concluded on Saturday evening inside the Kingsport Aquatic Center. After a three-day battle with AAC opponents, the men's squad earned their sixth straight championship and the women came away with their fifth straight conference title. Both teams dominated, leading after all three days. The men's team scored a total of 1,041 points, with the second-place University of Tennessee Southern behind them, with 514 points. The women's team amassed 921 points, with second place Brenau University collecting 677 points.
The Saturday evening finals started with the women's 200 Backstroke, where
Emily Haas led the Milligan swimmers in second place with a time of 2:08.35.
Abbie Christensen was not far behind, coming in at a pace of 2:08.42 for third place.
Mia Windham also beat the provisional NAIA qualifying mark in fourth place, completing the race in 2:10.92.
On the men's side,
Paxton Smith earned a gold medal by touching the wall first at 1:52.23. Collin Burnette also reached the podium with a third-place finish at 1:56.33. The final Milligan finalist in the event,
Jayden Bearden, came in fourth place with a time of 2:00.79.
In the women's 100 Freestyle, the Buffs swept the podium. It began with
Madison Akbari (53.43), followed by
Emily Newman (53.98) and
Emily Dubes (54.10), while
Abigail Jackson led the B group with a time of 58.10.
For the men in the 100 Freestyle,
Caleb Fry raced past all swimmers with a time of 45.72.
RJ Brumit finished in third place at 46.93 and
Andrew Dawson beat the provisional mark in fourth place, coming in at 47.22.
In the women's 200 Breaststroke,
Teagan Jose (2:25.02) led Milligan in second place.
Virginia Rainer was the other finalist in the event, finishing in fifth with a final time of 2:43.10.
For the men,
Elijah Holliman blew past all competition and set an AAC meet record with a time of 1:59.88.
Jack Allen (2:05.84) and
Robert Adam (2:05.87) grabbed second and third place in the event, respectively.
In the women's 200 Butterfly,
Abigail Maniace took home a gold medal with a 2:08.37 time.
Peyton Brady nabbed third place with a 2:10.32 and
Mary Grace Bitting was ahead of the provisional mark in fourth coming in at 2:13.16.
Christoph Haenel was the fastest swimmer on the men's side, finishing in first place at 1:50.01.
Gellert Szedlak earned second place with a mark of 1:53.47.
Reef Parman (1:55.42) and
Sergio Tudor (1:58.06) were ahead of the provisional mark in fourth and fifth place.
In the women's 400 Freestyle Relay, Akbari, Dubes, Newman and Maniace teamed up for first place combining for a final time of 3:36.35.
The men's team matched the women's first-place finish, when a team composed of Smith, Haenel, Fry and Szedlak swam the race in 3:04.88.
Overall, the AAC championships were a successful display of talent for the Milligan swim programs. On day one, both teams came out strong and separated themselves from conference foes. On day two, records were set and both teams grew their lead further. On day three, the men and the women brought it home and delivered two conference championships for the sixth and fifth straight seasons.
There is a lot to look forward to on March 4-7 when the programs send a contingent of athletes to the NAIA Championships in Elkhart, Ind.
Saturday
RESULTS
Overall
RESULTS
