Carmel High swimmer Jenna Riley’s 200m individual medley at her first meet qualified for CCS, but the biggest accomplishment from the senior came when she broke the 100m breaststroke record, set in 1981 by Cindy Frost.
“I was pretty excited because it was one of the oldest records on the scoreboard,” Riley says. “I’ve wanted to break it ever since I moved here and participated in high school swimming in my sophomore year.”
CHS varsity swim coach Di Whitesides says “having a girl like Jenna in the pool sets the standard for the rest of the team. Not only is she a great swimmer, but a great person as well.”
Whitesides goes on to say that she knew Frost, making Riley’s accomplishment even more amazing.
Riley didn’t believe she had broken the record at first, but now plans on breaking the record again, and has even more goals for the rest of the season.
“Our CCS 200m individual medley relay team is a second off from breaking the 1979 record,” the senior notes. “I would love to help break that too.”
With a great high school swimming career coming to an end at the end of the season, Riley hopes to continue her success in college.
“I have applied to some NCAA division III schools and have heard back from one, the University of Puget Sound in Washington,” Riley says. “Now I’m just waiting to hear back from the other schools.”
With eight more swim meets before the MTAL championship, it will be interesting to see how the rest of the senior’s year turns out, and if the records can continue to be broken.
-Jason Clarke
