For years, the DeAnda name has been synonymous with swimming excellence at Riverside Poly, but the spotlight usually found one twin more often than the other. Ava DeAnda has long been a titan of the pool, a state-level elite who accumulated four CIF Southern Section and three CIF State individual championships in her first three years of competition. For her twin brother, Dashiell, the experience was less about the podium and more about the pursuit.
“She’s always been pretty dang decent,” Dashiell said of his sister’s storied career. “I’ve been playing catch-up the whole time.”
That pursuit finally culminated in a breakthrough performance on Friday at the Mt. San Antonio College Aquatic Center in Walnut. In a meet defined by grit and gradual improvement, Dashiell DeAnda stepped out of the shadow and into his own, claiming the CIF Southern Section Division 2 title in the boys 200-yard freestyle. It was a victory that served as a capstone to a four-year trajectory of relentless self-improvement.
DeAnda’s victory in the 200 freestyle was a masterclass in pacing and aggression. He seized an early lead, controlling the tempo of the race from the first turn and pulling away from the field to clock a winning time of 1:37.85. The win wasn’t just a triumph over his competitors, but a victory over his own historical benchmarks. Having not even qualified for the section finals in the 200 freestyle as a freshman, DeAnda’s climb through the ranks—finishing ninth and then third in subsequent years—highlighted a steady shaving of seconds that eventually led to the top step of the podium.
The Tactical Lesson of the 500 Freestyle
While the 200 freestyle provided the gold, the 500 freestyle provided a lesson in the margins of elite swimming. DeAnda entered the race as a favorite, but found himself trailing Villa Park’s Jay Hickman for the majority of the event. By the 400-yard mark, Hickman held a commanding 2.5-second lead.
What followed was a desperate, high-velocity surge. DeAnda split a blistering 50.89 over the final 100 yards and closed with a 24.62 over the final 50, nearly erasing the deficit. He touched the wall in 4:25.39, finishing just 0.82 seconds behind Hickman to take second place.
For DeAnda, the silver medal was a reminder of the tactical nature of distance swimming. “I learned the hard way that I can’t let someone get too far away from me,” he admitted. “I definitely should’ve gone out a little harder.”
Despite the second-place finish, the 500 freestyle served as a testament to DeAnda’s growth. His journey in this event is one of the most dramatic in the division; after placing 17th as a freshman, he clawed his way to fifth, then third, and finally second. Across four seasons, he dropped nearly 25 seconds from his time, earning All-American status in both of his individual swims on Friday.
| Season | Section Finish | Performance Note |
|---|---|---|
| Freshman | 17th | Baseline entry |
| Sophomore | 5th | Top-tier emergence |
| Junior | 3rd | Podium contender |
| Senior | 2nd | All-American status |
Richmond Defends the Sprint
On the girls’ side of the ledger, the story was one of resilience and the burden of expectations. Kaylee Richmond of Murrieta Valley entered the meet as the defending champion in the 50 freestyle, a title she first won as a freshman. In a sport where the difference between gold and silver is often measured in hundredths of a second, Richmond managed to maintain her grip on the title, winning with a time of 23.28 seconds.
However, the victory was tinged with the frustration that often accompanies the sophomore slump or the plateau of peak performance. Richmond had hoped to repeat her success in the 100 freestyle but finished second with a time of 50.46. More pressing for Richmond was the fact that she was unable to improve upon her personal bests from the previous year.
“I’ve been having some trouble getting to my best times this year,” Richmond said, reflecting on the mixed emotions of the day. “But I’m definitely happy about winning another title.”
Team Depth and Individual Standouts
While individual titles grabbed the headlines, the team standings reflected the depth of the Southern Section’s Division 2 programs. Riverside Poly finished fifth in the boys’ team standings, bolstered by a strong relay performance. The quartet of DeAnda, Beppe Martinez Tennis, Piero Duenas, and Christian Prince secured a second-place finish in the 200 freestyle relay (1:26.37) and a fifth-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay (3:11.89).
Redlands claimed sixth place in the girls’ standings, led by freshman sensation Maddison Miner. Miner signaled her arrival on the scene with a sixth-place finish in the 200 freestyle (1:52.49) and a seventh-place finish in the 500 freestyle (5:05.22). The Terriers also showed strength in the relays, with the team of Elisha de Vera, Valerie Na, Mackenzie Miner, and Maddison Miner taking third in the 200 freestyle relay (1:38.51).
Other notable performances included:
- Alyssa Bian (King): Finished third in the 100 butterfly (54.99) and fourth in the 200 freestyle (1:50.50), helping King secure 10th place overall.
- Adalyn Lee (Diamond Bar): The freshman overcame an early disqualification in the 200 individual medley to bounce back and take third in the 100 breaststroke (1:03.06).
- Logan Abadie (Upland): Secured a third-place finish in the boys 100 breaststroke with a time of 56.30.
As the section finals conclude, the focus now shifts to the CIF State meet. For Dashiell DeAnda, the transition from “the other twin” to a champion is complete, but his journey continues as he prepares for the state championships and his eventual collegiate career at UC San Diego.
Stay tuned for the official state qualification lists and heat sheets, which will be released via the CIF Southern Section portal.
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