Albuquerque Academy and Cottonwood Classical Extend Title Streaks at State Swimming and Diving Finals

Saturday's state swimming and diving finals at the Albuquerque Academy Natatorium were defined by long winning streaks and team sweeps, with the host school and Cottonwood Classical both adding to their title runs.

Albuquerque Academy captured its 10th consecutive girls team championship, the longest such streak in state history. The Chargers piled up 469 points, well ahead of second-place Clovis with 256 and third-place La Cueva with 220. The title was the program's 26th in girls competition, a state record, and the second in a row under second-year head coach Jim Van Atta.

"It's exciting to just be part of that legacy," Van Atta said, adding that carrying on the work of his predecessors has been "fun and important." He acknowledged a few "stumbles" along the way but said the team more than made up for them. Upperclassmen such as Bella Moskowitz helped Academy win the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays, while eighth-grader Riley Rosandich took the 100-yard freestyle in 53.95 seconds, a key victory for the Chargers.

The Academy boys also won, scoring 246 points for their second straight team title and 26th overall. The race was much tighter than on the girls' side, with Eldorado second at 224 points and La Cueva third at 218. Van Atta pointed to Shepard Camp, who helped key four titles, and "secret weapon" Oliver Mattox. He also said several swimmers who had not been top performers in the past stepped into relays to fill gaps, and all of them dropped time.

In the small-schools division, Cottonwood Classical claimed both the boys and girls team titles for a fourth straight year, even though the two squads combined for only three event wins. "Them winning here for the fourth time, it's unbelievable," head coach Adrian Gonzales said.

The most notable performance of the day came from Cottonwood junior Roman Rodriguez, who won the 100-yard butterfly in 47.71 seconds and the 100 backstroke in 49.26. His butterfly time set a new state record, breaking the 48.55 mark that Albuquerque Academy's Anthony Kim set in 2016.

Gonzales said he saw the record as a possibility after Rodriguez's strong season and his Friday prelim swim, but that the key was mindset. He said Rodriguez can sometimes get in his own head or become overhyped, so he told him to lock in and focus. "I was fully locked in," Rodriguez said. "Got it done."

In diving, Hobbs junior Alfredo Hernandez scored 532.90 points to win the boys state title outright after sharing last year's championship with Academy's Mattox. Hernandez had hurt his neck in practice this season, causing pain when he turned his head, but said he felt fine on Saturday morning.

Hobbs also celebrated on the girls side, where sophomore Kinley Gonzales scored 399.20 to win the first girls diving state title in school history. Her win, along with Hernandez's, gave the Eagles a sweep of the 1-meter board.