Friday’s Moore League girls’ swimming finals weren’t just a showcase of this year’s top swimmers, but a sign of the bright future ahead in the Long Beach swim scene. The meet saw eight individual race winners—none of them seniors—on a night when Wilson continued its dominant run with its fifth straight Moore League championship.
The Bruins’ win came at their newly built aquatic center, hosting the league finals for the first time in over 70 years. Wilson finished with 722 points, with Millikan in second at 611 and Long Beach Poly in third with 551.
“What an amazing feeling this is to be home in our pool, and these girls did incredible this year,” said Wilson coach Kristin Barth. “We trained really hard, got on the blocks tonight, and swam with a lot of heart and Bruin pride and did amazing.”
The meet saw four repeat winners on Friday, two of whom were underclassmen from Wilson. Sophomore Bella Salley-Najjarian started her evening with a 24.83 in the 50 Free before winning the 100 Free one race later with a 53.99, then was part of a third win in the 200 Free Relay. Salley-Najjarian was the anchor leg for Wilson, helping the Bruins finish in 1:39.85 for the win.
“We’ve put in a lot of work in the offseason to come up in this moment and it’s just super exciting,” Salley-Najjarian said. “Going into today, I knew I’d be competing against some great girls who were older than me and have been competing in this sport longer, but I just went out and gave it all I had.”
Fellow sophomore Abby Billish also picked up a pair of individual Moore League titles, swimming a 1:53.41 in the 200 Free as the first individual race of the evening before winning the 500 Free with a 5:01.83.
Millikan’s second-place finish was highlighted by its own two-time winner, as junior Sienna Ramirez had a pair of individual wins along with a leg in the Rams’ 200 Medley Relay. Ramirez swam the backstroke leg in the relay as Millikan opened the meet with a 1:49.96, before the junior posted a 2:09.59 to win the 200 IM and a 1:03.14 for gold in the 100 Breaststroke.
This year marks the first of Ramirez’s high school career without water polo, as she quit in order to prioritize and focus on swimming. Friday night served as the perfect reward for that decision, and Ramirez reflected after the meet following her three total wins.
“I’ve worked so hard and put in so many hours of training, so to get this type of return is one of the best feelings ever,” Ramirez said. “Racing is just so fun because you never know what can happen, and I’m really excited to see what else I’m capable of and what I can accomplish next year with this being my first year of just swimming.”
Poly had its own star in Phoebe Kuo, who was arguably the most captivating swimmer of the meet. The junior picked up a pair of wins, showing her versatility with a 58.40 in the 100 Butterfly before going 59.59 to break one minute in the 100 Backstroke, but perhaps her most impressive swim came in the 400 Free Relay to close the evening.
Kuo was the anchor leg for Poly’s final 100 and entered the water with the Jackrabbits trailing Wilson by two tenths of a second. The junior then put together a 24.96 split on her first 50 as part of a monstrous 52.57 final leg, outkicking her opponent to give Poly the win in 3:36.77.
“It wasn’t a secret that we were a little behind, but I’m personally a better racer when I have someone to chase rather than being chased,” she said. “So even though we were at a disadvantage going into it, for me personally it was actually a strength. I was really excited going into it, and I almost hit a runner’s high and just kept going and going. It was a really fun race.”
Behind Poly’s third-place finish, Lakewood ended up in fourth with 261 points, followed by Jordan in fifth and Cabrillo in sixth.
The meet capped a two-day slate of Moore League girls’ and boys’ swimming finals at Wilson’s aquatic center, which was an extra special moment for Barth. She’s been around the Wilson aquatic program since she was a child thanks to her dad, legendary swim coach Klaus Barth, and Kristin reflected on the opportunity for Wilson to finally host the meet again.
“I’ve grown up on this pool deck with my dad as the coach and then I was an athlete here, so to be here means the world to me and I’m honored to continue the legacy that the Wilson High School aquatic program has,” she said. “It’s just an honor to coach this team and be a part of this history.”
Girls’ Varsity Results:
200 Medley Relay: Millikan (Ruiz, Ramirez, Fisher, Rosenberg) – 1:49.96
200 Free: Abby Billish, Wilson – 1:53.41
200 IM: Sienna Ramirez, Millikan – 2:09.59
50 Free: Bella Salley-Najjarian, Wilson – 24.83
100 Butterfly: Phoebe Kuo, Poly – 58.40
100 Free: Bella Salley-Najjarian, Wilson – 53.99
500 Free: Abby Billish, Wilson – 5:01.83
200 Free Relay: Wilson (Davison-Lakey, Williams, Haga, Salley-Najjarian) – 1:39.85
100 Backstroke: Phoebe Kuo, Poly – 59.59
100 Breaststroke: Sienna Ramirez, Millikan – 1:03.14
400 Free Relay: Poly (Bickel, Nguyen, Nagle, Kuo) – 3:36.77
