News Post
Swim Team Wins State Championship
The St. Joseph’s Academy swim team is the 2025 LHSAA Division I state champions. The team scored 366.5 points to capture its 14th state title in the last 15 years and 19th in program history. Rounding out the top five were Dominican High School (335 points), Mount Carmel Academy (237.5), Mandeville High School (223) and CE Byrd High School (202).
The state meet was held November 21 and 22 at the SPAR Aquatic Center in Sulphur and featured 30 teams.
Coach Jimmy Roberts said superior depth, with 16 swimmers scoring points, put the team back on top of the winner’s podium.
Finishing in the top three of their events were the following.
200 Individual Medley: Molly Mayo, first place, 2:07.63
100 Butterfly: Riley Roedel, third place, 57.96
200 Freestyle Relay: Audrey Lemoine, Cate Clapinski, Molly Watson and Caroline Babin, second place, 1:41.71
100 Breaststroke: Molly Mayo, third place, 1:05.39
400 Freestyle Relay: Riley Roedel, Cate Clapinski, Molly Mayo and Sydney Kline, third place, 3:40.30
Placing in the top eight in finals heats were Audrey Lemoine, Isabella Vargas, Mary Claire Roberts, Cate Clapinski, Sydney Kline, Riley Roedel, Molly Watson and the 200 medley relay team of Roedel, Mayo, Lemoine and Watson. Scoring team points in consolation finals were Caroline Babin, Ava Schoen, Stella LaNasa, Emilie Farah, Olivia Serrano, Amelia Hartdegen, Alex Payne and Grace Roussel.
“Throughout the 2025 season, we became a team that put teammates ahead of self, supported each other before, during and after swims, made memories and had fun,” Roberts said. “The bonding of this team led us to the championship and to the incredible experience of the victory plunge into the pool as a team at the end of the meet.”
Babin, a senior, said the team went into the state meet knowing the keys to victory were execution and sisterhood. “The bond the team had this year is what got us to the top,” she said. “We knew we had to trust and lean on our teammates. Each time we stepped on the block, we reiterated that we were racing for more than ourselves; we were swimming for this team and for all the angels who came before us. We trusted in each other, and that’s how we got it done. Throughout the state meet, every girl showed an immense amount of passion and support for one another.”
Kline, also a senior, said that this year’s team was special. “The bond between us was almost immediate,” she said. “Even after losing the state title last year, the energy and support never lacked. As captain, with the help of our amazing coach, I wanted the goals and mindset of the season to be more focused on having fun, making memories and making sure our Sticker spirit was heard and a little less focus/pressure on the times we and our competitors were swimming. With that mentality walking into state meet weekend, we held our heads high, trusted our training and had fun with it. Even if we hadn’t won the meet, it still would’ve been a win in our eyes with all the new friendships and memories formed over the season.”