Coming out of the water after her final race, Jessica Pryne was exhausted — so tired that her arms were shaking and she needed help peeling a banana.
It was the price she paid for entering the 200-yard backstroke just 15 minutes after she finished swimming a mile. But Jess wasn’t complaining. She had just moved to the top of the individual rankings for the four-day meet.
That’s saying a lot. The Senior Metropolitan Championships attracted swimmers of all ages to the Nassau County Aquatic Center on Feb. 16-19. Jess, a Cornwall sophomore, finished a half point ahead of Emily Escobedo — a recent University of Maryland graduate, who was an NCAA finalist in three events.
In addition to being in several relays, Jess competed in the maximum number of individual events, and never finished lower than third.
1650 freestyle 3rd
1000 freestyle 2nd
500 freestyle 1st
400 medley 1st
200 backstroke 3rd
200 medley 2nd
In placing first in the 500 freestyle, she posted a faster time than Ciaran O’Gorman did when he won the boys’ Section IX title earlier in the month.
A schoolmate and fellow member of the New York Sharks, O’Gorman teased her good-naturedly about the victory. “You couldn’t let me be faster than you for more than a few days,” he quipped.
What makes Jessica so fast? Her club coach, Chris Mance, offers an explanation. “While she’s very talented,” he said, “she’s also talented in being able to work hard.”
Jess swims six days a week. During the school season, she does two workouts a day — one in the high school pool with Coach John Pinckney and another at Mount Saint Mary with Sharks Coach Chris Mance.
Like many successful people, she’s working toward several goals. One thing she’s looking forward to is returning to the state meet next fall and swimming on the same relay as her sister Jenna.
And what does the newly crowned champion do when she’s not swimming? Jess answered with a shrug and a smile. “Hang out with friends,” she said, “and try to have fun like everyone else.”