ELK GROVE, CA MPG) - In what may be one of the most memorable moments in Galt High School swimming history, the Warriors girls swim team captured the Sierra Valley Conference Championship this season, finishing with 410 points and earning a share of the overall SVC title in a three-way tie for the conference crown. For a program that has been building something special, this was the moment everything came together, and it happened under the guidance of first-year Head Coach Erica Atkins.

Whether it is the first swim banner in school history or simply the first one in a very long time, the championship flag that now hangs in the Galt High gymnasium represents something bigger than points on a scoreboard. It represents a team that believed in itself, prepared all season long and delivered when the moment demanded it most.

“This group of young women worked incredibly hard all season,” said Coach Atkins. “To come away with a league championship banner in my first year is something I will never forget, and more importantly, something these athletes have earned every single day in that pool. I couldn't be more proud of what they accomplished.”

On the boys’ side, Bradshaw Christian claimed the boys team title with 467 points, followed by Rosemont at 431 and Union Mine at 212. Galt’s boys finished fifth with 176 points, with El Dorado fourth at 179. But on this day, it was the Warrior girls who brought the hardware home.

If there were a pair of athletes who defined the Warriors’ championship performance, it was junior Courtney Brouwer and junior Madison McDonald. Between the two of them, they collected multiple individual event victories and helped set the tone for a dominant team effort.

Brouwer was the Warriors’ standout performer of the day, winning two individual events. She touched the wall first in the 100 Butterfly with a time of 1:05.08 and then doubled back to claim victory in the 200 Individual Medley in 2:26.47: a performance that put her name at the top of the results sheet twice in the same meet. She also added a second-place finish as part of the Girls 200 Freestyle Relay and a second-place finish in the 200 Medley Relay with her relay teammates.

McDonald matched that energy with a commanding first-place finish in the 500 Freestyle, touching the wall in 6:06.86, edging Amador’s Rae Johnson by less than half a second in one of the closest races of the meet. She also earned second place in the 200 Freestyle with a time of 2:17.29, narrowly behind Johnson. McDonald was a central piece of both relay efforts as well.

On the boys’ side, sophomore Tiger Myrick gave the Galt faithful plenty to cheer about. Myrick claimed first place in the Boys 100 Butterfly with a blazing time of 58.57, leading the A-Final and finishing well ahead of the field. He also earned second place in the Boys 200 Freestyle with a time of 2:03.19, trailing only Bishop’s Cayden Wiley. Myrick additionally anchored the Galt Boys 200 Freestyle Relay team (with Jayden Tackett, Bowdyn Beck and Mateo Mejia Beas), which placed fourth overall with a time of 1:48.32.

One of the most electrifying moments of the entire championship came not in the scheduled finals, but in a preliminary swim-off that had fans on the edge of their seats. Junior Maggie Thomlinson and Liberty Ranch’s Haley Andrews were tied heading into the 50 Freestyle finals, forcing a swim-off to determine who would advance. Thomlinson rose to the occasion, winning the swim-off with a time of 29.59 to Andrews’ 30.03: a clutch performance that exemplified the competitive spirit the Warriors brought to every event all season long.

 

Team Scores

Girls 1st — Galt High School — 410 2nd — Bradshaw Christian — 385 3rd — El Dorado — 364 4th — Liberty Ranch — 246 5th — Union Mine — 172 6th — Rosemont — 132 7th — Amador — 88 8th — Argonaut — 5

Boys 1st — Bradshaw Christian — 467 2nd — Rosemont — 431 3rd — Union Mine — 212 4th — El Dorado — 179 5th — Galt High School — 176 6th — Liberty Ranch — 43 7th — Amador — 28

Full Galt Results

Girls 200 Yard Medley Relay 2nd — Galt A (McDonald, Thomlinson, Brouwer, Pinkham) — 2:12.84

Girls 200 Yard Freestyle 2nd — Madison McDonald, JR — 2:17.29 7th — Kayden Gregg, JR — 2:33.84 14th — Crystal Lamb, FR — 3:01.80

Boys 200 Yard Medley Relay 4th — Galt A (Myrick, Mejia Beas, Tackett, Beck) — 1:57.32

Boys 200 Yard Freestyle 2nd — Tiger Myrick, SO — 2:03.19

Girls 200 Yard IM 1st — Courtney Brouwer, JR — 2:26.47 4th — Emma McDonald, FR — 2:45.04 8th — Brooklynn Gaither, FR — 2:56.47 12th — Lillie Jackson, JR — 3:09.72

Boys 50 Yard Freestyle 9th — Jayden Tackett, SR — 26.59 11th — Mateo Mejia Beas, JR — 28.06 14th — Vicente Avalos, SR — 29.47

Girls 50 Yard Freestyle 4th — Lucy Thomlinson, FR — 28.82 5th — Bailey Pinkham, SR — 28.93 8th — Maggie Thomlinson, JR — 30.01 10th — Kinley Schlesinger, SO — 30.14

Girls 50 Yard Freestyle Swim-Off 1st — Maggie Thomlinson, JR — 29.59

Girls 100 Yard Butterfly 1st — Courtney Brouwer, JR — 1:05.08 9th — Maggie Thomlinson, JR — 1:26.02 11th — Miranda Rivera, SO — 1:36.76 12th — Crystal Lamb, FR — 1:41.23

Boys 100 Yard Butterfly 1st — Tiger Myrick, SO — 58.57 8th — Mason Garcia, SO — 1:21.17

Girls 100 Yard Freestyle 8th — Brooklynn Gaither, FR — 1:08.56 10th — Kinley Schlesinger, SO — 1:08.28 11th — Izzy Brum, JR — 1:11.79 14th — Isla Brum, FR — 1:15.57

Boys 100 Yard Freestyle 7th — Bowdyn Beck, SO — 1:01.51 11th — Vicente Avalos, SR — 1:05.80 12th — Lucas Villalpando, SR — 1:06.70

Girls 500 Yard Freestyle 1st — Madison McDonald, JR — 6:06.86 10th — Miranda Rivera, SO — 7:36.70 11th — AnaLucia Alvarado, FR — 7:42.25

Boys 200 Yard Freestyle Relay 4th — Galt A (Tackett, Beck, Mejia Beas, Myrick) — 1:48.32

Girls 100 Yard Backstroke 5th — Lillie Jackson, JR — 1:21.61 10th — AnaLucia Alvarado, FR — 1:28.83 11th — Isla Brum, FR — 1:33.08

Girls 100 Yard Breaststroke 4th — Lucy Thomlinson, FR — 1:21.74 5th — Bailey Pinkham, SR — 1:25.11 6th — Emma McDonald, FR — 1:25.58 8th — Kayden Gregg, JR — 1:26.08

Boys 100 Yard Breaststroke 5th — Mateo Mejia Beas, JR — 1:13.67 6th — Jayden Tackett, SR — 1:13.91

Girls 200 Yard Freestyle Relay 2nd — Galt A (Brouwer, Pinkham, Thomlinson, McDonald) — 1:54.54

Girls 400 Yard Freestyle Relay 3rd — Galt A (Schlesinger, McDonald, Gaither, Thomlinson) — 4:25.41

For Coach Atkins, it is a fitting reward for a team that refused to let a first-year season be a rebuilding year. The Galt girls swim program has announced itself as a legitimate force in the Sierra Valley Conference, and with several key contributors returning next season, the banner hanging in the gym may just be the first of many.