Haley Benjamin and Anne Mummery proved they’re among the elite swimmers not just in Colorado but the Western United States, too.
Benjamin (15) attended the USA Swimming Junior Nationals in San Antonio, Texas, and Mummery (17) went to the Senior Zone meet in Clovis, California.
Benjamin finished 37th in the 1,500-meter freestyle in 17 minutes, 24.12 seconds.
She also was 45th in the 800-meter freestyle at 9:06.88 and 49th in the 400-meter freestyle at 4:26.22.
“Everyone is so big here, they look like superheroes.” Benjamin said in an email to The Durango Herald. “I was pretty nervous.”
Benjamin was one of the youngest swimmers in the field, DSC head coach Suzanne Johnson said.
In the Western Zone meet, Mummery faced swimmers from Colorado and every state west of it.
Mummery qualified for the finals in the 100-meter backstroke at the Zone met, where she finished 27th in 1:08.71 – two seconds faster than her best time.
She also swam the 200-meter backstroke in 2:30.33, the 50-meter freestyle in 29.32, the 100-meter freestyle in 1:04 and the 200-meter freestyle in 2:18.
None of those swims qualified for the finals.
“I think this year everything has really come together for me,” Mummery said in an email to The Durango Herald. “My backstroke feels really strong, and I want to focus on that more this next year.”
Mummery will enter her senior swimming season at Durango High School this winter, while Benjamin will focus her training on reaching next year’s Olympic Trials.
“Both of these girls work hard,” Johnson said in an email to The Durango Herald. “They attend practice every day and see the big picture of how far swimming can take them.”
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
