Swimming: Aledo wraps up season at state

Haley Roberson’s final performances swimming for Aledo High School were her best. In a fourth consecutive appearance at state, she posted a pair of top-10 finishes, leading a contingent of eight from Aledo at the Class 5A State Swim Meet Feb. 21-22 at the Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center at the University of Texas in Austin.

Roberson placed sixth in the finals of the 200-yard individual medley and was eighth in the 500 freestyle. She clocked a time of 2:07.66 in the former and 5:08.18 in the latter.

Her time of 5:04.69 in the preliminaries of the 500 free shattered her seed time of 5:11.18.

“Haley has progressed further each year, and finishing her high school career with a finals appearances and sixth- and eighth-place finishes is an outstanding achievement,” said her coach and mother Meghan Roberson.

Seniors Haley Roberson and Victoria Crews share a hug after competing for the final time together as members of the Aledo High School swim team. Each advanced to state all four years in the program.

Roberson joined fellow senior Victoria Crews — also making her fourth straight state appearance — on both the 200 free relay and 400 free relay, along with junior Julia Gordy and freshman Mackenzie Oligschlaeger. The quartet finished 13th in the state in the 200 and 17th in the 400.

Their consolation finals time of 1:40.75 in the 200 eclipsed their seeding time of 1:41.57. They also narrowly missed making the consolation finals in the 400 by .16 seconds.

“Placing 13th in the state in a highly competitive race took strong performances from all four swimmers, and I couldn’t be prouder,” coach Roberson said. “For Haley and Victoria, this season was about making the most of their final high school swims, and they did just that.”

The boys 400 free relay of sophomores Kale Roberson (Haley’s brother), Brayden DeBoer, and Ian Perez, along with senior Tyler Jackson, placed 23rd in the prelims. They posted a time of 3:23.75.

“Each season, we aim to improve on the one before, and this year was no exception,” coach Roberson said. “We advanced three relays to the state meet, and for the first time in a while, we made it to finals in one of them.  In the four years we’ve been taking Haley and Victoria to state, this was their first time reaching finals in a relay — a huge accomplishment.

“The boys’ relay exceeded their seeding, and with a young team, they continue to grow stronger and faster. This will be an exciting group to watch in the coming years.

“As we graduate seven seniors, we remain an underclassman-heavy team, with six sophomores and six freshmen. This is a dedicated, hardworking group that has been guided by strong leadership and examples of success. The future of Aledo swimming is bright, and I’m excited to see what’s ahead.”