The prep swimming notebook …

West’s boys finished eighth overall, placing in the top 10 for the first time ever in the history of the 5-year-old program. The Falcons also won their first-ever medal, taking third in the 400-yard freestyle relay.

“It was better than we hoped for,”said West coach Wendy Beers, whose team vaulted from 12th place to eighth in the final three events.“Everything Saturday was wonderful.”

West finished with 122 points, tucked comfortably between seventh-place Ashbrook and ninth-place Wilson Hunt. For the fifth straight year, East Chapel Hill’s boys and girls teams swept to the titles. East’s boys rolled to first place with 332 points thanks to an overwhelming number of participants.

“We only had six boys with us, and you walk in and it’s kind of intimidating to see teams with 20 kids there,”Beers said. “To finish eighth and have just six guys with us, that’s kind of phenomenal.”

The biggest point-scorer came from the relay team of senior Steven Meseroll, junior AdamCaldwell, sophomore Jeff Dockins and freshman Greg Dockins. The bronze-medal time of 3 minutes, 32 seconds — less than a second ahead of Asheville’s relay —gave Meseroll a medal in his third trip to state.

“They were really excited to see a senior up on the blocks with us,”Beers said. “He finally got a medal.”

Beers also praised the efforts of senior Daniel Thomas, who teamed with Meseroll and the Dockins brothers for a ninth-place finish in the 200 medley relay.

Individually, West placed in the top 10 in seven of nine events. Jeff Dockins suffered two near-misses in the 50 free and 100 breaststroke, finishing fourth in each event. His freshman brother took fourth in the 100 backstroke.

“They were close,”Beers said. “That’s a little bit disappointing when you see the medals right there in front of you, but you can’t really be disappointed with fourth. You have to say, ‘Hey, fourth in the state, that’s pretty good.’ ”

Especially, Beers added, since both swimmers are underclassmen with plenty of chances ahead of them.

Caldwell took seventh in the 500 free and ninth in the 200 free, while Greg Dockins added an 11th-place finish in the 100 butterfly.

West’s sixth swimmer, alternate Nathan Barnhardt, attended the meet but wasn’t needed in the relays, meaning Beers and co-coach Mary Jane Kotsalis racked up 122 points with just five swimmers in the pool.

“Mary Jane and I are really looking forward to next year,”Beers said. “It’s hard to believe at this point, but it’s going to be bigger and better next year.”

Three Rowan Aquatic Club swimmers were recognized recently by NorthCarolina Swimming.

Jeff Dockins, Lindsay Starrett and Anna Weaver were in the top five of their respective age groups for the entire state, and RACYhead coach Gabriel Price said she was pleased with the honor.

“This is a tremendous accomplishment, and a reflection of all the hard work and dedication these swimmers have toward the sport,”Price said.

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Contact Steve Hanf at 704-797-4256 or shanf@salisburypost.com .