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Sports

Fairfax Senior Lauri Earns Three District Titles

After coming up short in prior years, Rebel standout captures crowns.

Fairfax swimmer Travis Lauri knows what it’s like to come up short in the Liberty District meet. The talented freestyler came in third and fourth multiple times in 2010, so as a senior, he wanted to make his mark.

And on Saturday night, he came through, earning two individual district titles (50 and 100-yard freestyle) and lifting the Rebels to a win in the 200-freestyle relay out of the anchor spot. In each case, he qualified for the state championship meet.

Joining Lauri in the relay were Austin Patteson, Elliot Meyer and John Kim. The trio also qualified for the state meet with a second-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay. Patteson finished second to Lauri in the 50-free and just shy of qualifying for the state meet in the event.

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“I was going for district record,” Lauri said, expressing a little disappointment in spite of his wins. “In a pool like this (Audrey Moore), it’s hard to go real fast … My 50 was pretty good. I could have done better in the 100.”

Lauri’s time of 21.33 was just off the record time of 21.09 set in 2009 and a little shy of his personal best of 21.12.

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Even still, it was a great performance, and he said he hopes to do even better the next few weeks at regionals and states.

“I’ve seen him grow and seen all the stuff he’s done at states,” coach Meredith Harris said. “Being a senior and winning both of his events wraps up his high school career in a good way.”

Harris also pointed to strong finishes by Elliot Meyer, who finished fifth in the 50-freestyle after being seeded 18th coming into the meet. For the girls, sophomore Matty Ferguson extended her season in the 50-free by placing second, with a time of 24.79 and freshman Christie DeFlumeri qualified for regionals in the individual medley with third-place finish and helped the Rebels’ medley relay team move on as well. Joining her will be Ferguson, Amanda Kelley and Natalie Dillinger.

“As a freshman, that’s awesome,” Harris said of DeFlumeri, noting her swimmer’s lack of size compared to the older finalists. “She’s shooting for that state cut.”

In the overall meet, Madison’s boys team defended its title, while Langley’s strong women’s team didn’t disappoint, earning a district championship.

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