Ismael Carrillo
The Lady Red swim team traveled to the Maize Invitational to compete in one of the most competitive meets of the season, facing a strong field of 21 teams. Liberal finished 17th overall with 20 points, gaining valuable experience against some of the top programs in the region.
The meet provided an excellent opportunity for growth, as the Lady Redskins competed in a large, high-level environment that tested both their depth and resilience. One highlight came in the 200-yard medley relay, where the team of Nathalie Ortega, Jordyn Myers, Jyzelle Juarez, and Alexis Ugalde placed 17th out of 37 teams, showing solid progress in a deep and competitive field.
Individually, Jyzelle Juarez turned in an impressive performance in the 50-yard freestyle, finishing 28th out of 132 swimmers with a time of 29.51, her third meet in a row improving this time. Her swim continues to move her closer to the state consideration standard, marking steady improvement as the season progresses.
Relay performances were a key bright spot for the team. The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Jyzelle Juarez, Layla Piedra, Nathalie Ortega, and Alexis Ugalde placed 13th out of 36 teams while recording a new season-best time, highlighting the group’s continued development and strong teamwork. The 400-yard freestyle relay team of Alexis Ugalde, Jyzelle Juarez, Lyla Anderson, and Nathalie Ortega also contributed to the team’s score, finishing 11th out of 25 teams and earning valuable points.
Beyond the results, the meet served as an important developmental step for the program. Competing against high-caliber opponents allowed Liberal swimmers to see top-level performances firsthand while pushing themselves to new limits.
This was a great meet for us as a team to see high-level talent, learn from it, and really push ourselves. It gave us a better understanding of how hard we need to go and what it takes to compete at that level while also seeing the growth that has happened from our first Wichita meet, back in March, to now.
With continued improvement, strong relay performances, and growing confidence across the roster, the team is building momentum as they move forward on to the last two meets of the season with a trip to Newton on Thursday, May 7th and WAC at Garden City Thursday, May 14th.
