On Oct. 5, 2024, the MHSAA North State Championships were held at Delta State. Once again, the Newton County girls finished as first runner-up, while the boys placed third in Class 1. The accumulated point total earned Newton County High School (NCHS) a second-place overall team finish for the first time in school history.
The biggest win of the day came from Edie Pippin in the 100-yard freestyle. Pippin cut an impressive five seconds off her best time, easily winning the race.
Easton Baker placed second in the 100-yard breaststroke, an impressive feat considering he trains only a few months a year. His time set a new team record.
Mason Cheatham also secured a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle, setting a new team record.
Another notable swim was by Erin Tullos, who competed in the 100-yard butterfly for only the second time in her life. Tullos finished fourth at North State and will advance to the state championships.
Despite having no senior swimmers and a 200-yard medley relay team composed of a 12-year-old, a 13-year-old, a 15-year-old, and a 16-year-old, Newton County’s medley relay team still finished strong in second place.
The most exciting race of the meet was the girls 400-yard freestyle relay. Racing for second place, Itawamba’s team, which included two year-round swimmers and two high school regulars, faced a much younger NCHS relay team.
In the first leg of the race, NCHS’s second-fastest female swimmer, eighth-grader Erin Tullos, swam one of her best legs ever. However, Itawamba’s most experienced swimmer opened a gap and took the lead. On the second leg, Emma Vaughn matched the pace of Itawamba’s swimmer, closing the gap slightly. In the third leg, Itawamba had their slowest swimmer while NCHS had Emma Ward, a seventh grader who just started swimming this season. Ward made a surprising effort and closed the gap to one body length.
On the final leg, NCHS’s Edie Pippin faced off against Itawamba’s other year-round swimmer, who had a body-length head start. It seemed as though Itawamba would secure second place, but Pippin executed a perfect dive and powerful underwater kick, signaling the race was far from over. In the final turn, Pippin overtook her competitor and finished the race, winning by two body lengths.
In total, 11 swimmers will advance to the MHSAA State Championships on Oct. 19 in Tupelo.
