The way the Maine Masters swim team has been going the last two years, you have to wonder how much more impressive they could be without all the obstacles they have to swim around, over, and through.

The coed team made up of 24 swimmers, ages 18 and over, from all over the state won its second straight New England Championship long-course meet and fifth straight New England Championship overall.

Kristi Panayotoff of Lincolnville and Son Nguyen of South Portland led the Maine Masters women’s and men’s teams, respectively, to meet championships as the team’s leading scorers. Panayotoff scored a perfect 108 points and Nguyen finished with 91 as Maine’s final overall team tally was 1,302 points – 500 more than the runner-up – at the three-day meet in Middlebury, Vt.

“We were 3-for-3 last year and have won the first two meets this year,” said Nguyen.

It’s already an impressive feat, but even more so when you consider some of the disadvantages the team has to overcome, such as geographic distance, facilities, and travel.

“This one was at a 50-meter pool in Middlebury, Vermont,” said Nguyen, 29. “We don’t have a single 50-meter pool in the state, so we have no training in that size pool. Also, most other teams in New England practice together as teams out of one pool. That really helps with their relays. Most of our swimmers train on their own because they’re from all over the state.”

And then there’s travel to meets.

“A lot of times, we have to travel a long way,” Nguyen said. “I’m from the Portland area. This trip was five hours for me, so for folks coming from Bar Harbor, it’s almost eight.

“To be able to come together like that so quickly, especially in the relay events, and put together a great effort, that says a lot, I think.”

Other individual standouts for the Maine team include Mary Estabrook of North Yarmouth with 53 points and Bridget Convey of Hallowell with 45. Key male scorers were Zachary Gray of Windsor with 83 points and Maury McKinney of North Conway, N.H., with 67.

The Maine team broke 11 records in the meet, many in the relays. The men’s (200-239 division) 400-meter freestyle relay team of Bill Jones of Hope, Dieter Weber of Bremen, Nguyen and Jim Goodman of Penobscot finished in 5 minutes, 8.9 seconds. Keene, N.H.’s Beth Fries, Brooke Jansen of Augusta, Anne Uecker of Oakland, and Mary Estabrook swam a 5:00.95 in the women’s (160-199) 400 free relay; Mike Schmidt of Vassalboro, Hodding Carter of Camden, McKinney, and Zachary Gray of Windsor had a 4:06.46 in the men’s (160-199) 400 free relay; Sam Manhart of Old Town, Nguyen, Doug Pride of Falmouth and Carter had a time of 4:49.64 in the men’s (160-199) 400 medley relay; and Bill Rupert of Turner, Jones, Robert Johnston of Vassalboro, and McKinney finished the men’s (240-279) 400 medley relay in 5:44.97.

Individual record swimmers include:

. Schmidt also had records in the men’s ages 45-49 800 freestyle (9:28.67), 400 individual medley (5:11.07) and 200 IM (2:23.67).

. Pride in the men’s (45-49) 50 free (25.69) and 50 butterfly (27.40).

. Rupert in the men’s (65-69) 50 backstroke (37.22).

. Jones in the men’s (70-74) 200 IM (3:29.60).

. Estabrook in the women’s (45-49) 50 fly (31.51).

. Uecker in the women’s (45-49) 200 fly (3:15.02).

aneff@bangordailynews.net

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