Charger boys finish second, girls take third

A sold-out crowd at the Turner Center natatorium served as the backdrop for the start of the high school swim season as Oxford High hosted the Oxford Swimming Invitational on Saturday, Aug. 26. 

The top three teams in Class II from the 2022 season, as well 11 other schools, faced off to open the 2023 campaign. The Invitational results mirrored last year’s state championship meet, as Madison Central won the Invitational in both the boys and girls divisions, with the Oxford boys finishing second and the girls finishing third. 

The Tupelo girls placed second and the boys were third.

“I was thrilled to start the high school season with a fabulous meet opener,” said first-year Oxford head coach Hayley Murphy. “We welcomed 14 teams to Oxford to compete as we celebrate the 25th year of Oxford High School swimming. It was great competition for our swimmers as we start a new season with new goals, led by a great group of seniors. I am proud of the accomplishments from our team on Saturday. We had 30 personal best times and 10 new north half qualifiers and our work is not done yet.”

Oxford ‘s seniors were recognized before their final home meet and paced the team with top three finishes. Jacob Tulchinsky won the 50 Free and placed second in the 100 Free. Cole Oyler earned second in both the 100 Fly and 100 Back, while Gates Allen placed third in both the 50 Free and 100 Yard Breast stroke.

“There is a lot to look forward to this season. Our team showed a lot of progress in the opener, but there is still work to do ahead of the state meet in October,” said Tulchinsky.

Oxford swept the 100 Yard Breast stroke, with juniors Landon Schock and Brooks Sipes both earning victories. Schock took second in the 200 IM with Sipes finishing third in the 200 Free. 

Knox Laws finished second in the 200 Free. The Oxford boys took second in both the 200 Medley and 200 Free relay, with the girls finishing third in both the 200 Medley and 400 Free relay.

Lafayette’s Abbee Bolger took second in the 500 Free. 

The top five boys teams were Madison Central (158 points), Oxford (125), Tupelo (101), Germantown (41), and Brandon (32). Madison Central (173 points), Tupelo (132), Oxford (64), Germantown (39), and Brandon (38) were the top five teams for the girls division.