NATHANIEL MATA | THE MONITOR
AUSTIN — The Valley’s top two swimmers wrapped up their high school swimming careers this weekend at the UIL Swimming and Diving State Meet.
McAllen High’s Shaine Casas brought his medal count to five across three state trips after adding a silver and bronze to his collection in the 6A competition on Saturday at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center on the campus of The University of Texas at Austin.
He finished in second place in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 47.12 seconds, just three-hundredths of a second slower than Allen’s Jason Park (47.09).
Casas had a slight lead after 50 yards, but Park and Noah Henry from Belton closed in during the sprint to the final turn. The final 25 yards were a dash to the wall that came down to a touch. Casas caught Henry, but not Park.
“It’s a little disappointing, but it’s just fuel for later,” Casas said. “I’m not mad with it anymore. I’ve come to peace with it already.”
Casas is likely to see much of the UIL state field when he swims for Texas A&M next season, or even on the national circuit as he and his USA National Junior teammates vie for a chance at the 2020 Olympic team.
Casas earned bronze in the 100 butterfly with a time of 47.59, behind Park (47.50) and champion Henry (47.07).
“It was just a mental game,” Casas said. “I don’t know. I was just thrown off after I didn’t really swim fast on my relay. I just wasn’t the same today.”
McAllen’s 200 medley relay team cut time from its qualifying mark and finished in sixth place with a time of 1:34.06.
The initial disappointment was evident, but Casas collected his thoughts and reflected on his career.
“It’s a big accomplishment,” Casas said of medaling. “I mean, only three people get it a year.”
First-year McHi coach Albino Cisneros also felt the sting but said the future Aggie has a bright future.
“Of course, we aren’t happy right now in the moment, but he’s the best swimmer the Valley’s ever seen,” Cisneros said. “He has a lot of to be proud of. It was a fun year, and he’ll move on to better things at A&M. He’ll see these kids again.”
On Saturday morning, Luciano Farias-Ramirez of Sharyland High cut 48-hundredths of a second from his preliminary time to jump from fourth seed to bronze-medal winner in the 5A butterfly.
His time of 50.43 was bested only by silver medalist Greyson Alarcon from Georgetown (49.26) and state champion Peter Simmons of College Station A&M Consolidated (49.15).
The Rattlers senior was also making his third appearance at the state meet. He qualified as a freshman, was disqualified before state his sophomore year and earned 13th in the butterfly as a junior.
Ramirez also added a seventh-place finish in the backstroke with a time of 51.36.
Adrian Fierro of Brownsville Veterans finished eighth in the 100 freestyle with a time of 48.44. He also finished third in the consolation heat of the 50 freestyle. His time of 21.74 was the 10th best of day two.