Boulder City High School girls swimming was well represented July 14-16 on the campus of the University of Southern California as the Desert Storm swim program finished 12th out of 60 teams at the Los Angeles Invitational.
“The girls did a great job accumulating the majority of our points,” said coach Bill Carroll. “This is one of the toughest competitions in the country, filled with teams not only from all over the United States but from outside the country. The girls handled themselves well against stiff competition.”
University of Utah signee Mandy Gebhart was the top points earner for the Desert Storm, placing in the top 15 in three events.
“Mandy did a great job of stepping up to the challenge,” Carroll said. “She had some of her best races of the season.”
Placing fifth in the 800-yard freestyle, Gebhart also placed seventh in the 1,500-yard freestyle and 15th in the 400-yard individual medley.
University of Houston signee Montana Lloyd finished 15th in the 200-yard backstroke and 30th in the 100-yard backstroke.
“I had some pretty solid races for in season,” Lloyd said. “We were all pretty tired, so to swim as fast and as well as we did made us all pretty confident for our big championship meet coming up. The competition level at this meet is always very fast. A lot of talent, a lot of fast swimmers, and to compete and be in the top 15 is always something I get excited about.”
Grand Valley State University signee Abby Sauerbrei finished 30th in the 200-yard butterfly, while junior Aimee Garcia finished 10th in the 1,500-yard freestyle for the 15-16-year-old age bracket.
Sauerbrei is hopeful their experience in Los Angeles will keep them sharp for Desert Storm’s Far Western Championship meet July 26-30 in Concord, California.
“The L.A. Invite was a very successful meet for Desert Storm,” Sauerbrei said. “Our results are promising for our championship meet coming up, seeing that we can race good even when we’re tired. L.A. helped us keep our race speed up, and when we are rested, we should perform even better than we did this past week.”
Results from the Far Western Championship meet will appear in the Aug. 3 issue.
Contact Robert Vendettoli at BCRsports@gmail.com.