The Sedona Swim team sent eight participants to two different sites Saturday, July 21, to compete at the state swim meet in Tempe and in Goodyear.

The Sedona Swim team sent eight participants to two different sites Saturday, July 21, to compete at the state swim meet in Tempe and in Goodyear.

The Swordfish had five different swimmers place in the top 10 at state in nine different events, something that has never been done in the history of the Sedona Swim Club.

“It was a good experience for them to go down and compete against the best swimmers in the state of Arizona,” Swordfish head coach Erin Estes said.

In Tempe, swimmers competed at the 2007 Long Course Age Group State Championship, which was located at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center at Arizona State University.

In Goodyear, the senior Swordfish swam at the West Valley YMCA, hosted by the West Side Silver Fins.

“The senior kids placed well, this is just another step towards there high school careers,” Estes said. 

This was a grueling test for these young swimmers as most meets you only swim three to four events in a day.

At the state swim meet, with preliminaries and finals combined the Swordfish could swim up to 12 times in different events in one day.

Top performances in Tempe were by Jacob Decker, 12, who placed in five events. 

He placed eighth in the 100-meter fly [1:19.12], and sixth in the 50-meter fly with a 32.27 time.

Jacob Decker earned 41 total points for his team.

His brother, Tristan Decker, 10, placed in five events as well.  His highest finish was sixth in the 50-meter back stroke with a 43.63 time.  He earned 26 total points for his team.

The oldest of the three brothers, Evan Decker, 14, placed 15th in the 100-meter free-style swim with a 1:01.94 time, earning two points for his team.

As for Seth Syvertsen, 14, he earned 38 total points for his team, placing in five different events.

The top finish for Syvertsen was the 50-meter breast stroke, where he finished sixth in the state with a 35.06 time.

Syvertsen also finished seventh in the 50-meter back stroke with a 32.81 time.

As for the girls, Laura Clark, 11, only swam one preliminary in the 50-meter back stroke and finished in 46th place with a 45.28 time.

Also, Alexa Keckeis, 12, finished 33rd in the 50-meter breast stroke with a 45.26 time.

In Goodyear, Rachel Mendelsohn, 16, finished ninth in state with a 32.25 time in the 50-meter butterfly.  This time was also a personal best for Mendelsohn.

Samantha Syvertsen, 16, also recorded her personal best with a 36.01 time in the 50-meter backstroke. She placed 13th overall at state with that time.

This year was also the first for the Swordfish to have four swimmers qualify for Far Westerns competition.

Evan, Jacob and Tristan Decker, along with Seth Syvertsen qualified for Far Westerns, which will take place in Concord, California on Wednesday, August 1, through Sunday, August 5.

“Our program has never had this many kids qualify for Far Westerns, it is an awesome accomplishment for them,” Estes said.

Next up for the Swordfish will be the local championship meet held at the Cottonwood Municipal Pool on Saturday, July 28.

The meet begins at 8 a.m. and ends around 3:30 p.m.

Brian Bergner may be reached at 282-7795, Ext. 131, or email to bbergner@larsonnewspapers.com