13-14 Age Group Girls Make a Big Splash at 2024 Pennsylvania YMCA West District Championships Swim Meet; Callie Snodgrass Qualifies For Nationals; 13-14 Relays Sweep Events

Photos by Wendy Snodgrass – Above: Callie Snodgrass

(By Dan Clark)

The Clarion County YMCA Riversharks took fifteen competitors to the three-day 2024 Pennsylvania YMCA West District Championships swim meet held at the SPIRE Institute, in Geneva, Ohio, over the weekend of March 7-9.  

This District Swim team comprised those athletes who achieved age group qualifying times to compete in specific individual events during the regular season.

Rivershark qualifiers as follows: Declan Kelley (50 and 100 yard freestyle; and 50 and 100 yard backstroke); Jocelyn Parkinson (50 yard free; and 100 yard breaststroke); Addyson Space (50 yard freestyle); Samantha Lewis (50 yard freestyle; 50 yard backstroke; 50, 100, and 200 yard breaststroke); Ashlyn Clark (50, 100, and 200 yard freestyle; 100 yard backstroke; and 100 yard butterfly); Megan Fenske (50, 100, and 200 yard freestyle; and 100 yard backstroke); Lila Gourley (50, 100, 200, and 500 yard freestyle; and 100 yard butterfly); Callie Snodgrass (100 yard backstroke; 100 and 200 yard butterfly; and 200 yard individual medley); Maggie Snodgrass (100 and 200 yard breaststroke; and 200 and 400 yard individual medley); and Kathryn Fenske (500 yard freestyle).  

In addition, the Riversharks sent the following five relay teams: 11-12 Year Old Girls 200 Yard Medley Relay Team of Mya Coradi, Samantha Lewis, Lillian Shifflet, and Aubree Conticelli; 11-12 Year Old Girls 200 Yard Freestyle Relay Team of Addison Lechner, Piper Hoover, Aubree Conticelli, and Samantha Lewis; 13-14 Year Old Girls 200 Yard Medley Relay Team of Ashlyn Clark, Lila Gourley, Maggie Snodgrass, and Callie Snodgrass; 13-14 Year Old Girls200 Yard Freestyle Relay Team of Ashlyn Clark, Callie Snodgrass, Maggie Snodgrass, and Lila Gourley; and 13-14 Year Old Girls 400 Yard Freestyle Relay Team of Ashlyn Clark, Callie Snodgrass, Maggie Snodgrass, and Lila Gourley.

Callie Snodgrass earned the most outstanding achievement of the weekend by achieving a qualifying time for the 2024 YMCA Short Course National Swimming Championship by winning the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 58:95 while setting a new West District Championships meet record!  In addition, Callie had individual event podium finishes as the West District Champion in the 200 yard butterfly, placed 2nd in the 100 yard backstroke, and placed 4th in the 200 yard individual medley to pace the Riversharks in earned points for the meet. 

Maggie Snodgrass was the next highest point leader for the Riversharks as the West District Champion in the 400 yard individual medley and placing 2nd in the 100 yard breaststroke, 3rd in the 200 yard individual medley, and 3rd in the 200 yard breaststroke.  Ashlyn Clark reached the podium in 5th place for the 50 yard freestyle and 6th place in the 100 yard freestyle.  

Other individual award winners (1st-12th place) were Declan Kelley for 7th place in the 100 yard backstroke, Megan Fenske for 9th place in the 100 yard backstroke and 11th place in the 50 yard freestyle, and Samantha Lewis for 10th place in the 50 yard breaststroke and 12th place in the 200 yard breaststroke.  

Another amazing achievement of the weekend was that Clarion’s 13-14 year old girls relay teams comprised of Ashlyn Clark, Lila Gourley, Maggie Snodgrass, and Callie Snodgrass swept all three of the relays to become triple West District Champions in the 200 and 400 yard freestyle relays and the 200 yard medley relay.  

Additionally, all of the 13-14 year old girls combined to earn enough points to place 2nd across the District.

Over and above having the honor to compete at the District level, swimmers who place in the top six of each district (West, Central, and East) or were among the fastest swimmers of each event across all three districts qualify to swim in the Pennsylvania YMCA State Championship meet starting March 22-24 in Morgantown, West Virginia.   The Riversharks combined to qualify to compete in fourteen different events as follows: Callie Snodgrass qualified in four individual events (100 back, 100 and 200 fly, and 200 IM); Maggie Snodgrass qualified in four individual events (100 and 200 breast, and 200 and 400 IM); Ashlyn Clark qualified in two individual events (50 and 100 free); and Declan Kelley qualified in one individual event (100 back).  

Also, the 200 yard medley, 200 yard free, and 400 yard free relay teams of Clark, Callie Snodgrass, Maggie Snodgrass, and Gourley qualified for States.  

In addition to qualifying for States, Callie Snodgrass will also be competing at 2024 YMCA Short Course National Swimming Championship in Greensboro, North Carolina in the 100 yard butterfly.

Congratulations to the swimmers and coaches (Aidan Mohren, Mason Irwin, and Wendy Snodgrass) for their excellent performances.  

Good luck at the States meet!

(Congratulations And Keep It Going, Riversharks!!!! Thanks to Dan Clark for this article and Wendy Snodgrass for her photos!!)

RESULTS SUMMARY: Event Swimmer (Time, and Overall Place Finish)

NAT signifies a National Qualifying time; STATES signifies a State Qualifying Finish; MR signifies a West District Championships Meet Record; and CR signifies a new Clarion County YMCA Riversharks Record.

10 & Under Girls

50 Free

Jocelyn Parkinson (34.14, 45th)

Addyson Space (35.41, 64th)

100 Breast

Jocelyn Parkinson (1.40.67, 22nd)

10 & Under Boys

50 Free

Declan Kelley (32.71, 16th)

100 Free

Declan Kelley (1:16.20, 20th)

50 Back

Declan Kelley (39.59, 17th)

100 Back

Declan Kelley (1:21.39, 7th) STATES, CR

11-12 Age Group Girls

50 Free

Samantha Lewis (30.34, 39th)

50 Back

Samantha Lewis (34.45, 27th)

50 Breast

Samantha Lewis (37.56, 10th)

100 Breast

Samantha Lewis (1:23.79, 13th)

200 Breast

Samantha Lewis (3:00.95, 12th)

200 Medley Relay

Mya Coradi, Samantha Lewis, Lillian Shifflet, and Aubree Conticelli (2:23:30, 15th)

200 Free Relay

Addison Lechner, Piper Hoover, Aubree Conticelli, and Samantha Lewis (2:07.80, 18th)

13-14 Age Group Girls

50 Free

Ashlyn Clark (25.51, 5th) STATES, CR

Megan Fenske (26.66, 11th)

Lila Gourley (26.95, 20th)

100 Free

Ashlyn Clark (57.00, 6th) STATES, CR

Lila Gourley (57.92, 13th)

Megan Fenske (1:06.81, 49th)

200 Free

Lila Gourley (2:06.33, 15th) CR

Ashlyn Clark (2:09.11, 20th)

Megan Fenske (2:11.38, 22nd)

500 Free

Lila Gourley (5:59.50, 17th) CR

100 Back

Callie Snodgrass (1:01.40, 2nd) STATES, CR

Megan Fenske (1:05.27, 9th)

Ashlyn Clark (1:08.58, 19th)

100 Breast

Maggie Snodgrass (1:09.44, 2nd) STATES, CR

200 Breast

Maggie Snodgrass (2:35.53, 3rd) STATES, CR

100 Fly

Callie Snodgrass (58.95, 1st) NAT, STATES, MR, CR

Ashlyn Clark (1:08.24, 13th)

Lila Gourley (1:10.94, 19th)

200 Fly

Callie Snodgrass (2.12.18, 1st) STATES, CR

200 IM

Maggie Snodgrass (2:20.57, 3rd) STATES, CR

Callie Snodgrass (2:20.64, 4th) STATES

400 IM

Maggie Snodgrass (4:59.05, 1st) STATES, CR

200 Free Relay

Ashlyn Clark, Lila Gourley, Maggie Snodgrass, and Callie Snodgrass (1:43.75, 1st) STATES, CR

400 Free Relay

Ashlyn Clark, Callie Snodgrass, Maggie Snodgrass, and Lila Gourley (3:47.52, 1st) STATES, CR

200 Medley Relay

Ashlyn Clark, Maggie Snodgrass, Callie Snodgrass, and Lila Gourley (1:54.04, 1st) STATES, CR

15 & Over

Girls

500 Free

Kathryn Fenske (6:08.36, 42nd) CR