Emmett Stottlemyer closed out his high school swimming career in fine fashion Saturday.
The senior competed for Durango High School at the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 4A State Swim & Dive Championships at the U.S. Air Academy Natatorium in Colorado Springs.
He qualified for the A finals in a pair of freestyle distances. In the 200-yard freestyle, he finished seventh in 1 minute, 48.59 seconds. He beat Silver Creek freshman Pierce Bigelow in the A final, who was eighth in 1:48.82.
The 200 freestyle was won by Wheat Ridge junior Ryan Peterson, who finished in 1:39.58. D’Evelyn’s Jack Moranetz placed second in 1:42.93.
In the 500-yard freestyle, Stottlemyer placed eighth with a time of 5:00.86. Ryan King, a Montrose junior, stole the show in the event with a first-place time of 4:36.47. That was well clear of Thompson Valley senior Lukas Gately, who placed second in 4:41.63.
Stottlemyer finished in the same place he did in the preliminaries of each event. His qualifying position put him in the outside lanes, which makes it tough for a swimmer to post their fastest possible times.
Stottlemyer will continue to compete for the Durango Swim Club, where he also has posted strong results in recent meets.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
