Thousand Oaks’ Droshe Southern Section Finalist in 3 Swimming Events

Lauren Droshe of Thousand Oaks High posted the fastest qualifying time in the 100-yard backstroke and anchored the Lancer girls’ 200-yard medley relay team to the day’s fastest time in that event Thursday at the Southern Section 4-A Division swimming preliminaries at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach.

Droshe, a sophomore, was clocked in a school-record 59.0 seconds in the 100-yard backstroke. Ann Peters set the previous record of 59.99 in 1983.

In the relay, the Lancers trailed Dos Pueblos until Droshe’s freestyle leg. Thousand Oaks’ time of 1:50.86 is nearly two seconds better than that of the next-fastest qualifier, El Toro (1:52.04).

Droshe also had the third-best qualifying time in the 50-yard freestyle (24.30).

Shauna MacEwen of Westlake also had a good day, posting the third-best time in the 500-yard freestyle (4:54.62) and the fourth-best time in the 200-yard freestyle (1:52.20). Both times were personal bests.

Lydia Barbie of Camarillo was the other Valley-area competitor to qualify in two events for tonight’s finals. Barbie placed second in the 100-yard freestyle (52.68) and sixth in the 200-yard individual medley (2:09.20).

Valerie Ruth of Thousand Oaks, third in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:07.51), and Kelly Kocur of Royal, fourth in the 100-yard butterfly (59.27), also advanced to the finals.

In the 3-A Division, Evy Wild of Hart led all qualifiers in the 100-yard freestyle (53.55). Mary Ellen Jenkins of Crescenta Valley and Burbank’s Denise Lamoureaux (girls’) and Casey Grigg (boys’) each qualified in two events.