Columbus East High School

The Columbus East boys swim team wrapped up the regular season Saturday with a strong fourth-place showing at the Hoosier Hills Conference(HHC) Tournament, hosted by New Albany High School. O's Josh Pendleton led the way for the Olympians, capturing conference titles in both the 200-yard individual medley and the 500-yard freestyle. Pendleton touched first in the IM with a time of 1:57.98 and followed it up with a winning effort of 4:43.52 in the 500 free, anchoring East’s scoring on the day. Columbus East totaled 136 points to finish fourth overall, trailing Floyd Central, Seymour, and Jeffersonville in the team standings. Pendleton also played a key role in East’s relay performances. He joined Alex Stilson, Micah Wettschurack, and Ryan Turner to place third in the 200 medley relay, while teaming with Turner, Mason Bean, and Stilson for a fourth-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay. Additional scoring came from several Olympians across the lineup. Bean posted a sixth-place finish in the 200 freestyle and later added an eighth-place effort in the 500 freestyle. Turner earned seventh in the 100 freestyle, while Wettschurack contributed an eighth-place finish in the 100 breaststroke. With the conference meet complete, the H2O’s now shift their focus to the postseason. The IHSAA State Tournament begins with sectional preliminaries on Thursday, February 19, with Columbus North High School serving as this year’s sectional host. The regular season is in the books—now it’s all about shaving time and peaking when it matters most.