‘Baler boys edge Chieftains 97-89, while Lady ‘Balers easily
defeat Spirits, 140-43
Hollister
The San Benito boys swim team needed to take, at the very least, first and third place in the final race against Palma Friday in order to leapfrog the Chieftains at their Tri-County Athletic League meet in Hollister.
At least that’s what they thought.
While the Haybalers did in fact take first and third place in the last race – the 400 freestyle relay – an error was later discovered that supplied the ‘Balers with five more points in the end, and turned San Benito’s narrow 94-92 win into a slightly more comfortable 97-89 victory.
“I knew it was gonna be this close, even with the error being discovered,” coach Christine Schafer said afterward. “We knew it was gonna be tough. Palma is a tough team.”
The recorded error that was later discovered involved San Benito’s Matt McCullough, whose times in the 50 freestyle (23.34) and 100 freestyle (52.53) placed him first overall. However, he was listed at third place instead.
The error turned out to be moot in the end, though, and simply provided San Benito with a little added breathing room.
The Lady ‘Balers, on the other hand, had no problem defeating visiting Notre Dame. Even without the services of Shelli Reed, who’s currently competing at the elite Stanford Invitational Grand Prix Swim Meet this weekend, San Benito took an easy 140-43 win Friday.
Friday’s meet marked the first time in two weeks the San Benito swimmers faced competition, although coach Schafer noted that her team has been working hard. Said Schafer, “We didn’t have two weeks off. We worked all through vacation.
“We’re not rested. We’re not tapered. They’re hitting their best times and they’re in the middle of a super-hard workout.”
Katie Buzzetta clocked a Central Coast Section qualifying time in the 500 freestyle with a 26.19, whereas the boys added a pair of CCS times, one of which came in that final race – the 400 freestyle relay.
The foursome of McCullough, Clayton Slater, Jordan Schafer and Brandon Drogemuller recorded a 3:32.88 in the event, took first place and even shed some 10 seconds off their time compared to when they raced against Salinas.
Drogemuller, who had previously qualified for the CCS in the 200 and 500 freestyle races, also qualified in the 200 IM against Palma with a 2:04.97.
“There’s more support now,” said Drogemuller of the 400 free relay team heading to CCS. “We’re supporting each other now as a team and working hard to get that next time – improving our times to get to last year’s team.”
The qualifying time allowed the ‘Balers to essentially end on a high note, as the 200 freestyle relay team of Drogemuller, Schafer, McCullough and Kyle Reuther fell a half-second short of being CCS-bound earlier in the day.
“I feel good, real good,” said Jordan Schafer, who exchanged high-fives with teammates after learning of the CCS time. “It feels really good. It feels like an accomplishment.”
With CCS ticket in hand, the motivation for the boys team now moves toward the accomplishment’s of last year’s squad, which included such swimmers as David Smith, Jason Andrade, Blane Curtice and Jordan’s brother, James Schafer, among others.
“This is always a sibling rivalry,” Jordan said. “I want to beat their times.”
Note: The San Benito girls junior varsity team defeated Notre Dame125-34, while Palma was without a JV team, supplying the ‘Balers with a 60-0 win.
