The Loyola Varsity Swim team posted four victories and set two new CIF records in Riverside over the weekend to claim the 2019 CIF Southern Section Ford Division I Boys Swimming Championship at Riverside Aquatics Center on Saturday (May 4).

The Cubs took home two relay titles and two individual titles at the meet, setting new CIF marks in the 200 Medley Relay (McCrary, J. Lee, C. Lee, Pernecky - 1:29.80) and the 400 Freestyle Relay (C. Lee, Pernecky, Kim, McCrary - 2:59.65), while senior Connor Lee ’19 was victorious in the 50 Free (20.09) and 100 Fly (47.26).

The team championship was clinched with the final event of the day—the 400 Free—and it was certainly one to remember for the Cubs. Loyola’s relay comprised of three seniors and one freshman (Connor Lee ’19, Emmett Pernecky ’19, William Kim ’22 and Mark McCrary ’19) became the first Southern Section team to break three minutes in the event, posting a blazing time of 2:59.65 to win the race, set a new Division I record and qualify for both All-American status and the CIF State meet this weekend. 

Coincidentally enough, the record they broke was the one they had set just two days earlier at the CIF Prelims. The trio of Lee, Pernecky and McCrary joined forces with junior Nolan Wang ’20 to swim a 3:01.33 at Prelims, surpassing the previous-best CIF mark of 3:01.53 recorded in 2017, which was also set by Loyola. Lee and Pernecky were sophomores on that 2017 relay team and now stand alone with McCrary and Kim to hold the new CIF record. 

The three seniors on this year’s winning 400 Free relay will all compete at the NCAA level in the fall, with McCrary (Penn) and Lee (Yale) bound to swim in the Ivy League and Pernecky headed to USC for water polo.

Loyola posted a cumulative team score of 317, more than 40 points ahead of runner-up Santa Margarita HS (274) and 70 points more than third-place finisher Harvard-Westlake (247). The win marks the seventh CIF Swimming crown in school history. 

Full results can be found below and accessed here:

• faculty.polytechnic.org/cifss/
• OCVarsity Video Highlights: youtu.be/5354Hi7EvAc

RESULTS

200 Medley Relay:

1st: McCrary, Lee, Lee, Pernecky (1:29.80)

200 Free:

9th: Nolan Wang ’20 (1:41.07)

10th: William Kim ’22 (1:40.53)

16th: Riley Griffis ’20 (1:42.35)

200 IM:

7th: Mark McCrary ’19 (1:51.07)

13th: James Lee ’19 (1:53.60)

50 Free: 

1st: Connor Lee ’19 (20.09)

9th: Emmett Pernecky ’19 (21.16)

16th: Taz Kanjanakaset ’21 (21.70)

17th: Nick Turrill ’19 (21.72)

100 Fly: 

1st: Connor Lee ’19 (47.26)

17th: Nick Turrill ’19 (51.76)

100 Free:

6th: Emmett Pernecky ’19 (45.75)

15th: Carson Kranz ’19 (47.43)

17th: Taz Kanjanakaset ’21 (47.68)

500 Free:

8th: Nolan Wang ’20 (4:35.15)

11th: Jude DiStefano ’21 (4:36.92)

15th: Riley Griffis ’20 (4:38.85)

200 Free Relay: 

7th: Kranz, Turrill, Kanjanakaset, Wang (1:26.24)

100 Back: 

3rd: Mark McCrary ’19 (49.04)

9th: William Kim ’22 (50.94)

100 Breast:

4th: James Lee ’19 (55.91)

400 Free Relay:

1st: Lee, Pernecky, Kim, McCrary (2:59.65)

The CIF State Prelims and Finals will take place on Friday (May 10) and Saturday (May 11) at Clovis Olympic Aquatics Center in Fresno. Swimming prelims will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Friday and finals will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. For more info on the upcoming CIF State Swim Championships, including Loyola’s entries, please click here.