Eubanks repeats as state champion

Published 8:35 pm Saturday, February 21, 2015

Nansemond River High School junior Logan Eubanks produced one of his best times ever in the boys’ 100-yard backstroke on Friday to win the event for the second straight year at the Virginia High School League Group 4A state swimming championships.

Reflecting on the status of being a two-time state champ, he said, “It means a lot.”

He finished with a time of 52.47 seconds, only slightly off his career-best mark of 52.41.

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His rival from Hanover High School, freshman Patrick Townsend, did not participate in the 100 back during the recent regional championships that Eubanks won with a 55.09-second time. But Townsend was in the pool for the event on Friday, right behind Eubanks.

“I’m pretty sure he’s the reason I went a 52,” Eubanks said.

Townsend finished only 0.12 seconds behind him.

As for the feeling of winning again at states, Eubanks said, “It’s pretty similar to last year.”

Eubanks established quite a legacy for himself last year when he became the first athlete from Suffolk Public Schools to win a swimming state championship. He did it while, at the time, setting a new Group 4A state record in the 100 back — 53.61 seconds.

Now, as his junior season has come to close, he noted he met all of his goals for the year.

“I just wanted to win states again and see if I could go anywhere close to my best time, which I did,” he said.

He also did well in the 200-yard individual medley on Friday.

“I dropped two seconds from my best time in prelims, so it was pretty good,” he said.

Previously, he had swam the 200 IM in two minutes and one second, but finished in one minute and 59 seconds during preliminaries on Friday. He recorded another 2:01 time in the finals to place fifth.

“It’s a lot more than I was expecting,” he said of the placement. “I was expecting a lower place on the totem pole.”

Eubanks also helped both the relays he swam with place in the top 10.