DARKE COUNTY – Two athletes who proved their abilities at large invitationals last weekend are this week’s Daily Advocate athletes of the week.
This week’s Daily Advocate athletes of the week are Greenville girls swimmer Isabella Gable and Versailles wrestler Tanner Bey.
Gable competed with her teammates at the Southwest Classic swim meet, which is the largest high school swim meet in the country. At the meet she won the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:26.70.
“I think it’s pretty impressive considering our district is one of the fastest districts in the state,” Greenville swim coach Mollie Mendoza said. “It’s pretty awesome to have that kind of competition at that particular meet.”
The Greenville sophomore also won her preliminaries in the 200 individual medley and the 200 backstroke at the Southwest Classic. She then finished second in the 200 backstroke finals with a time of 2:04.54 and finished fourth in the 200 backstroke with a time of 2:07.54 – both of which were school record times.
“She made a big improvement from last year,” Mendoza said. “This year her head was more in the races that she was swimming. She was more focused this year and trying really hard to better her swimming. She just had a great meet over the weekend.”
Along with breaking two records that stood for about a decade, Gable’s 400 individual medley time also will be recognized as a school record as the Lady Wave previously didn’t have a record time recorded in that event.
This season Gable is the fastest Darke County girl in the 100 freestyle (54.86), 500 freestyle (5:29.59) and 200 individual medley (2:07.79), showing that she can excel in many distances and disciplines.
“I think that makes her such a versatile swimmer,” Mendoza said. “I think that’s amazing.”
Tanner Bey finished fifth in the 145 pound class at the Maumee Bay Classic, a 42 team wrestling tournament.
“He’s been wrestling pretty solid,” Versailles wrestling coach A.J. Bey said. “He’s wrestled some tough kids, some tough opponents. I think that’s really going to help him out toward the end of the year.”
Tanner Bey’s only losses at the Maumee Bay Classic were in the semifinals to Dylan Mansor of Oak Harbor, who finished second overall, and to Garret Anderson of Clay, who finished third overall. The Versailles senior lost a close 3-2 decision to Anderson in a bout to determine who would advance to the third-place match.
In the fifth place match Tanner Bey won an 8-6 decision over Swartz Creek’s Brandon Gilson by getting a near final in the final seconds.
“It was a pretty tight match,” Coach Bey said. “He wrestled pretty well.”
This season Tanner Bey leads all Darke County wrestlers with 26 wins. He’s also among the leaders with 10 pins, two technical falls, 74 takedowns and 24 escapes.
“Not wanting to lose is a big asset,” Coach Bey said. “He’s a pretty competitive kid.”
Last year Tanner Bey made the Ohio High School Athletic Association individual state tournament and also helped the Tigers qualify for the OHSAA team state tournament. Coach Bey is confident that Tanner Bey and his teammates will continue their excellence this season.
“We’ve got some pretty high expectations for ourselves,” the Tiger coach said.
