FRESNO – The swimming pool served as the ultimate battleground for the best aquatic athletes in the state of California this past weekend.
From May 14-16, the Clovis Olympic Swim Complex at Clovis West High hosted the 2026 CIF State Swim & Dive Championships. And a few swimmers and divers from The Mid Valley Times and The Sun-Gazette regions showcased their best skills in the water for a chance to be considered the best in their fields.
On May 14, El Diamante’s Isaiah Groff and Golden West’s Mateo Sanchez took to the diving board to showcase their best aerial artistry and jumps in the 1-meter dive competition. Sanchez and Groff, the top-two finishers in this season’s Central Section D2 Championships, vied for a chance to be truly considered the best.
In the multiple-round competition, Sanchez finished 18th overall out of 27 divers. Sanchez splashed home with a finals score of 332.50. Groff also held his own on the board, finishing the event with a finals score of 242.05. Overall, Groff placed 21st out of the 27 athletes.
In the Girls’ 100-yard and 50-yard Freestyle Paralympic Class III competitions on May 16, Tulare Western’s Ava Fernandes had quite the day. Fernandes placed 6th in the 100 with a finals score of 2:24.05 and 7th overall in the 50 with a finals score of 59.59 seconds.
Kingsburg runs adrift in major events
The Kingsburg Vikings boys swim team jumped into the lanes against stiff competition in the Boys 200-yard Medley Relay. Racing against top-tier programs from De La Salle (Concord), Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) and Santa Margarita, the Vikings team of Lukas and Logan Huckabay, Zach Hofer and Jack Hambleton finished 17th overall with a finals time of 1:34.65.
In the individual events, Kingsburg’s Lukas Huckabay produced mixed results in some of his best heats. Huckabay finished 9th overall in the 100-yard Breaststroke, finishing with a score of 55.94 seconds. But in the 50-yard Freestyle, Huckabay finished 16th out of 18 swimmers overall with 20.86 seconds.
