Goochland’s 200-yard medley relay team wins region title

ROBBY FLETCHER Sports Editor

Goochland’s swim team entered the Prince William County Schools Aquatic Center with a purpose on Feb. 3, looking to make an impression and continue their season into the Class 3 State Championships.

When it was all said and done, four Goochland athletes won region titles and seven placed within the top-5 to give the Bulldogs a fourth place finish in the boys finals and a sixth place finish in the girls standings.

1:48.14 seed time and three seconds ahead of second place finisher Wesley Sturgill from Meridian. Belcher also placed second in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 49.36 seconds.

Bill Belcher also did fantastic work outside of the collective region title in the 200 medley, claiming second place in the 500yard freestyle (5:23.79) and helping the 200-yard freestyle relay team place third in 1:38.16.

Woodson opened the half drilling a three off the catch, with Fulkerson pushing the pace off a defensive rebound and finding her teammate with space to get the shot off.

After a long scoring drought, Collegiate was finally able to get some offense generated thanks to a layup from senior Addison Thompson. Despite improved scoring from the Cougars, who scored eight in the quarter, they couldn’t contain the Gators once they caught fire and began playing their brand of “drive, kick and move” offense.

The scoring barrage continued with Fulkerson walking the baseline out to the right wing and setting herself up with a 3-pointer that made it 46-20.

In the fourth quarter, the Cougars got out with an impressive bucket from guard Lily Berger, who pump-faked and nailed an open mid-range jumper. Woodson immediately responded with another three, her third of the game, and with a 59-27 lead, the Gators were able to clear out the bench and get everyone involved for the final minutes of the game.

Woodson was again the leading scorer for the robby Fletcher can be reached at rfletcher@powhatantoday.com.

Gators, while Smith and Fulkerson combined for 17 points. The second leading scorer on the night ended up being Gillikin, who chipped in 13 points on five-of-nine shooting, nine rebounds and three blocks. The mighty Gators will look to end the season with two more wins in their final matchups against Trinity Episcopal and Saint John Paul the Great on Feb. 9 and 13. Collegiate, meanwhile, plays Trinity and St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes on Feb. 10 and 11.

The four-man racing crew of Connor Davis, Bill Belcher, Harry Belcher and Leyton Sutherland claimed a region title together with a fantastic performance in the 200-yard medley relay, inching past Manassas, Maggie Walker and Brentsville with a final time of 1:49.84. Sutherland closed out the race with Goochland’s fastest time in the event, swimming his portion in 26.64 seconds to help close out the competitors close behind him, giving Goochland an appearance atop the podium.

The medley relay victory wasn’t the only one for Harry Belcher, with the junior also claiming an individual title with a first place showing in the 200-yard freestyle event. Belcher won with a time of 1:47.30, just ahead of his

Davis also placed third in the 100-yard backstroke (1:02.51) and eighth in the 50-yard freestyle (25.09 seconds) while Sutherland finished fifth in the 50-yard freestyle (24.27 seconds) and seventh in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:12.25) to cap off impressive days for the boys team.

On the girls side, second place finishes from sophomore Callie Horst in the 200 freestyle (2:00.66) and Olivia Spooner in the 50-yard freestyle (25.55 seconds) led the way for the Bulldogs, with Horst also placing sixth in the 100-yard butterfly (1:02.82) and Spooner finishing in fourth in the 100-yard freestyle (56.85 seconds).

The Bulldogs that punched tickets to the state championships will continue on with their season with a chance at state title glory on Feb. 17 at SwimRVA.