Burnet swimming performs well at state
CAPTION: Jack Milliorn (left), head coach Connor McBurnett, Rhett Eaton Aaron Green and Jacob Decker represent Burnet swimming at the Class 4A state meet. Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography
The Burnet High School boys swimming and diving team ended its season by finishing 21st at the Class 4A state meet Feb. 13-14.
Thirty-seven teams competed.
Sophomore Aaron Green led with a fifth place finish in one-meter diving by scoring 258.45 points.
“Aaron dove great both days,” head coach Connor McBurnett said. “He put together a strong performance and hit almost every dive on his list. The most impressive part is there were little improvements we both know he could make that will catapult him even further next year. There are a few specific dives I could point to that he was so close to nailing and could’ve moved him up a spot or two.”
Then Green teamed with senior Jacob Decker and juniors Jack Milliorn and Rhett Eaton to compete in the 200-yard medley and 200-yard freestyle relays.
The Bulldogs clocked 1 minutes and 1 unites and 37.04 seconds in the 200-yard freestyle relay to finish 11th overall and 1:53.07 in the 200-yard medley for 12th place overall.
McBurnett commended the athletes for their efforts throughout the season. He noted that Decker will be missed.
“Watching Jacob become a captain and a leader on this team was one of the great joys of the season,” he said. “It’s always hard to graduate someone who means so much to your program, but the impact he’s had will be felt for future seasons. Great teams always begin with culture, and having Jacob as a captain to help set the tone for the team we’re trying to become carries down to the younger guys on the team. They’ll carry his leadership forward and continue to feed that energy into the next batch of swimmers we add to the team.”
The Bulldogs will welcome back the other three, and the coach pointed out each one brings plenty to the program.
“Jack and Rhett both have immense talent and endless potential,” he said. “I’m glad they got to see just how fast some of the competition can be when they get to the end of the road. It’s easy to get complacent when you’re always winning at invitationals and district meets, so I think seeing top-end talent is great for lighting a fire as we go into a heavy training block in the offseason. I’m stoked to see what they can do as they move into their senior years.”
And he noted that Green will have two more years in Kelly green.
“I think finishing this high is great for his confidence going forward,” McBurnett said. “An important piece of context is that all of the boys who finished higher than him were upper-classman (divers), and one of them is being reclassified into (Class) 5A. Aaron is one of the hardest working athletes I’ve had the pleasure of coaching, so I know he’ll continue this ascent he’s on.”
