<b>Paul VI Swimming Touches Off</b>
On Tuesday, Nov. 25, the Paul VI swim team competed against Bishop Ireton at St. Alban’s. The boys team, led by seniors Pat Lytle, Alex Spina and Joe Clarke, dominated the Cardinals by winning nine of the 11 events en route to a 110-60 victory. The girls team, led by seniors Natalie Fitz, Jackie Orsa and Michelle Young, also had a number of strong performances and personal-best times despite dropping a 109-61 decision. The Panthers’ next meet will be against St. Alban’s and National Cathedral on Wednesday, Dec. 10 at 4 p.m. at St. Alban’s.
<b>Naber Leads Dukes at Bucknell</b>
At the Bucknell Invitational over the weekend, James Madison junior P.J. Naber was involved in five top two finishes for the Dukes’ second-place swim and dive team. Naber, a 2006 Chantilly High School graduate, won the 100-yard freestyle event with a time of 51.40 seconds and finished second in the 200 freestyle (1:51.84). She also swam the lead leg on the 400 freestyle relay team, which finished first with a mark of 3:30.77. In the 200 freestyle relay, the former Charger’s lead leg was just .15 seconds off of the school-record mark of 23.63. At Chantilly, Naber was named the team’s most valuable swimmer during her sophomore and senior seasons, leading the Chargers to a Concorde District title in 2006. She earned All-America honors in 2004, 2005 and 2006.
<b>Benecki Signs With Minnesota</b>
On Wednesday, Nov. 26, Chantilly senior Matt Benecki signed a National Letter of Intent to swim next season at the University of Minnesota. As a junior last winter, Benecki won a state title in the 500-meter freestyle event with a time of 4 minutes, 30.16 seconds, shattering a Virginia High School League record in the process. Benecki was also a 2008 Olympic Trials participant in the 1,500 freestyle and will join a Gopher team that has had four members participate in the same event during the past two Olympic Trials. "Matt is the second Olympic Trial-caliber distance swimmer we have signed this fall," assistant coach Bill Tramel said in a press release issued by the school. "We are very excited to reload our tradition with Matt.”
<b>Annual Bulldog Bash Upcoming</b>
Westfield High School will host its seventh annual Bulldog Bash Holiday Basketball Tournament on Dec. 27, 29 and 30, beginning at 9:30 a.m. Admission is $5 per day, and it’s good for all games that day. A three–day tournament pass is $12. Free admission will be granted to children less than 6 years of age, adults over age 60 and any travel or house-league youth basketball players wearing their uniform top and accompanied by a paying adult. For more information, including schedules for both brackets, checkout the tournament Web site at http://www.bulldogbashtournament.com/tournamentstaffonly.html.