By Sports editor Brian Hoffman
The William Byrd boys are Region 3D champions after finishing at the top of a nine school meet at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center last weekend. Byrd scored 126 points to 109 for second place Cave Spring.
“The boys swam so fast!” said Terrier coach Krista Martin. “The energy for the whole meet was amazing.”
The swimming Terriers started off the day winning the boys’ 200 medley relay and breaking the school record from 2015. The previous record in the boys’ 200 medley relay was set back in February of 2015 by Khalil Fonder, Chase Plaster, Billy Ferguson and Michael Craddock with a time of 1:41.53. On Saturday the Byrdmen beat that record with a time of 1:40.77 with a foursome of Aiden Brinkley, Austin Nielsen Colin Murtaugh, and Nathan Miller.
The momentum just kept on going from there. Murtaugh won the 50 free with a time of 21.65 and the 100 fly with a time of 51.15. Brinkley was region champ in the 100 back with a time of 55.64 and Nielsen took the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:00.92.
Byrd ended the meet with another school record in the 400 freestyle relay. The previous record was set last year by Nathan Miller, Austin Nielsen, Matthew Hoyos and Colin Murtaugh with a time of 3:38.88. The 2021 boys won the event and crushed that record on Saturday with a time of 3:21.84 set by Miller, Murtaugh, Brinkley and Nielsen.
Six Byrd boys qualified for state, Griffin Horacek, Miller, Murtaugh, Brinkley, Nielsen and Michael Hoyos. The state will be timed finals at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center on Sunday, February 14th.
Hidden Valley won the girls’ Region 3D meet, and Cave Spring was also the runnerup in that one. Byrd finished eighth with 30 points.