Bend High swim relay team ‘surprised’ by record-setting race during district title run, look to win at state

(Update: adding video, comments from Bend High swimmers and coach)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The Bend High girls swim team captured the IMC title this past weekend, and is looking for more hardware this weekend at the state championships.

The team finished with 323 points, more than 70 points ahead of the second-place Summit girls.

The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Grace Benson, Kamryn Meskill, Jacquelyn Horning and Maddie Thornton broke a state record with a 1 minute, 36.4 second race.

Head Coach and IMC Coach of the Year Brandon Powers didn't see the record coming.

“I was not planning on them breaking the state record at a district meet. It’s not something I was really thinking about," Powers said Thursday. "But I thought it was really funny they turned around the end were like, ‘We broke the 5A record!’ I was looking at it, and they broke it by two seconds.”

Grace Benson, a senior on the relay team, was the anchor on the record-setting race.

“I saw the time on the board, and I started screaming at them, and I was like -- 'We got it!" Benson said. "So that was a pretty exciting moment.”

Jacquelyn Horning, a junior on the relay team, didn't see it coming, either.

“Honestly, we were kind of just like holding out and trying to get to state, because we knew we didn’t have to go with our best times to get there. So we were kind of surprised," Horning said.

Freshman Maddie Thornton thought her part of the race wasn't going to be good enough.

“I didn’t know until Grace told me," Thornton said of the record. "I didn’t think we would get it at this meet, because I didn’t feel super-good in this race.”

The second-place Mountain View Cougars would have also set a record, finishing at 1 minute, 38.4 seconds.

For the boys, the Summit Storm swim team took first place, nearly doubling the tally of second-place Caldera. 

This weekend is the state championship meet in Beaverton.

With a ton of talented swimmers competing from Central Oregon and all over the state, the girls know it won’t be an easy weekend, but they like their chances.

“I think we’re feeling pretty confident. We’ve got a really good group of girls this year," Benson said.

Horning added, “I mean, I feel so lucky to swim with these fast girls, and it's so fun to be fast. And I’m glad we get to do together.”

The girls are hoping to win the race again, and maybe even beat their own time.

If they get the OSAA title, their time would qualify for nationals.

“It would mean a lot," Horning said. "It's really fun to do that, and it's a good opportunity -- and it's really fun.”