BY JIM THOMAS

FORT COLLINS — Brianna McCabe, a senior, will represent Montezuma-Cortez High School at the 2000 Girls State Swimming and Diving Championships this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 18-19, at the Eldora Pool and Ice Center (EPIC).

Not since Jenni Millican qualified two years ago has a Panther girl competed at State. Her sister, Katie, competed two straight years as a part of a relay team back in the mid-1990s.

She qualified in two events the 50-yard freestyle and the 100 free. This is her first trip to State. According to Panther coach Mark Knox, McCabe should be competing in the Class 4A preliminaries Friday morning. Under the format, the 4A swimming prelims will start at 9 a.m. Friday. The 4A diving prelims will start at 10 a.m. Saturday. The 4A finals will get under way around 2 p.m. Saturday and should conclude at 4.

McCabe had qualified a week ago at Grand Junction in the 50 free. She qualified for State in the 100 free (prelims) after just missing the school record by .03 second in 57.81 at the Western Slope Swimming and Diving Championships which were held Feb. 11-12 at Fort Lewis College Swimming Pool in Durango. She finished third in the finals in that event in 57.81.

She also set a new school record in the 200 free during the prelims with a time of 2 minutes, 10.36 seconds. In the finals she finished fifth in 2:12.41.

"Brianna is swimming very well right now. She is peaking just about perfectly for State," Knox said.

Host Durango won the team event with 264 points. Glenwood Springs came in second with 261, followed by Grand Junction High 240, Fruita-Monument 151, Montrose 149, Moffat County 119, Delta 83, Montezuma-Cortez 50, Grand Junction Central/Palisade 43, and Gunnison 15.

"I thought at Regionals the whole team swam well," Knox said. "Many of the girls swam their best times at the meet. All the girls worked hard and swam the best they were able. I was pleased with the outcome."

In the girls’ 100 butterfly prelim, Kenzie Higgins came in ninth in 1:42.67. In the finals, she placed 11th in 1:14.22. Higgins finished eighth in the 100 back stroke in 1:10.68.

The Panthers’ 400 freestyle relay team came in eighth (prelim) in 4:19.27. In the finals, the girls — McCabe, Kelsey Green, Higgins, and Sarah Wallace — came in eighth in 4:17.52.