Columbus East High School

The Columbus East boys swimming team made a splash Friday night at Columbus North High School, positioning several athletes for potential State Finals berths during the IHSAA Sectional preliminaries. Leading the charge for the Olympians was sophomore standout Joshua Pendleton, who dominated the freestyle events and secured the top seed in two individual races. Pendleton Leads the Field Pendleton put himself in a prime position to advance by posting the fastest qualifying times of the evening in both the 200-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle. 200 Yard Freestyle: Pendleton clocked in at 1:44.02, leading the field by over seven seconds. 500 Yard Freestyle: He maintained his momentum with a top-seeded finish of 4:44.05. Individual Qualifiers and Relay Success The Olympians saw strong performances across the board, with multiple swimmers qualifying for Saturday's championship finals: Ryan Turner: Qualified 6th in the 100-yard freestyle (52.68) and 8th in the 50-yard freestyle (23.99). Mason Bean: Secured the 10th seed in the 500-yard freestyle (5:38.72) and the 9th seed in the 200-yard freestyle (1:56.83). Alexander Stilson: The freshman took the 9th seed in the 100-yard backstroke (1:01.33) and 10th in the 200-yard freestyle (1:57.64). The team's relay units also performed exceptionally well. The 400-yard freestyle relay team, consisting of Pendleton, Turner, Bean, and Stilson, qualified 2nd overall with a time of 3:27.60. Additionally, the 200-yard medley relay team (Stilson, Micah Wettschurack, Pendleton, and Turner) earned the 6th seed with a time of 1:49.61. The Road to State To advance to the state finals, Columbus East athletes must navigate a competitive field in Saturday's finals. Advancement is determined by three criteria: Sectional Winners: The first-place finisher in each event automatically qualifies. State Standard: Any swimmer meeting or bettering the state time standard in the finals (excluding the lead leg of a relay) qualifies. Next Fastest Times: If fewer than 32 swimmers qualify via the first two methods, the next fastest times from all sectionals across the state are added until each event has a field of 32. The action continues Saturday with diving preliminaries at 9:00 a.m., followed by the swimming finals and consolations at 1:00 p.m. Good luck Olympian H2O's!