By Satina Tolman
For The New Era
The banner hanging above the check-in desk at the Sweet Home Community Pool says it all: “The Pool That Peargin Built.”
On Saturday, Jan. 3, that legacy was on full display as the Huskies hosted the second annual Peargin Plunge, welcoming some of the state’s top small-school programs for a meet honoring longtime coach Doug Peargin.
Doug Peargin, right, urges a swimmer on during the meet that
bears his name.
Peargin has dedicated 51 of his 57 years in coaching to Sweet Home swimmers, helping guide the Huskies to at least one district championship – boys, girls or both – every season since 1979. With 46 consecutive years of district titles tied to his tenure, it is no surprise the meet has quickly become a marquee event on the high school swim calendar.
Sweet Home was joined by Marshfield, Newport, Molalla, North Bend, Hidden Valley, La Grande, Henley, Cascade Christian, Cove Charter and North Marion.
Despite competing with a significantly smaller roster, the Huskies held their own against the tough competition. Both the boys and girls teams placed fourth out of 11 teams, while Sweet Home finished third overall with a combined score of 425 points, trailing only Marshfield and Newport.
Head coach A. Jay Bronson praised his team’s effort and competitiveness throughout the meet.
“We swam well. We did a great job racing across the board,” he said. “We got drowned out because we don’t have as many people as the teams that outscored us. All the teams ahead of us had 35-plus swimmers.”
Bronson emphasized that the results were particularly impressive, given the level of competition.
“Third as a team in a meet like this is huge,” he said. “The big thing to take away from this is that together we can do great things. Individually, they did really well, but as a team on our relays, we placed incredibly high. This meet was faster than districts. We had eight of the best teams across the state competing here, and we held our own.”
The Huskies delivered several top-three finishes throughout the meet.
For the girls, sophomore Khloe Sautel led the way with a second-place finish out of 36 swimmers in the 50-yard freestyle (26.01) and a first-place victory in the 500-yard freestyle (5:32.45). Sautel also anchored the second-place 400-yard freestyle relay alongside juniors Ella Haggas and Lexi Rundell, and senior Kylie Melkvik, finishing in 4:24.15.
The boys’ team also posted strong results, including a second-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay by senior Andrew Tolman, juniors Grayson Savri, Henry Jones, and Austyn Hogan (1:56.08). Hogan added a first-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle (5:38.38), while Tolman won the 100-yard backstroke (1:02.84) and placed third in the 200-yard individual medley (2:26.21). Savri finished second in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:13.18), and the Huskies took second in the 400-yard freestyle relay with Tolman, Hogan, Jones and Savri swimming a 3:47.84.
Following the meet, Bronson commended his swimmers for their effort.
“You guys did a phenomenal job, and you should be proud of that,” he said.
Sautel was named Swimmer of the Meet after standout performances in her individual events and both relays.
The Huskies also posted some big personal bests, Bronson said. They included: rookie Ethan Hernandez’s 27.7 in the 50 Freestyle, his first time under 30 seconds; a 15-second PR for freshman Malakai Walls in the 200 Freestyle; a seven-second PR by Henry Jones in the 100 Butterfly, a two-second personal best for Lexi Rundell in the 100 Freestyle, and two-second PRs in both the 100 Breaststroke and 100 Freestyle for Grayson Savri.
Looking ahead, Sweet Home will compete in a sprint meet on Saturday, Jan. 10, at the district pool in Albany, an opportunity Peargin said will help the team prepare for postseason competition.
Peargin, for whom the meet is named, also addressed the team afterward.
“You guys did a great job today, and I’m proud of ya – everybody,” he said.
One of the team captains, senior Kylie Melkvik said the meet provided valuable insight into what lies ahead.
“I think we did really great, especially because the competition looked a lot like what we will expect at districts and state, too,” Melkvik said. “Relays are going to be hard, especially since we don’t have a B relay, so that makes it tough.”