Amarillo High junior Alec Purdy knew he’d have to swim the best race of his life to even have a chance at a medal at the Class 5A state meet this weekend.
Saturday afternoon at Austin’s Joe Jamail Swimming Center at the University of Texas, Purdy had by far his best race ever in the 100-yard butterfly, and it got him that medal.
For the first time in his life in a competitive race, Purdy cracked 50 seconds in the fly, swimming a 49.69 to take home the bronze medal. Purdy shared the bronze with Austin Liberal Arts and Sciences Academy’s ZJ Hays as the two were determined to have touched the wall at the same time.
It was the first time an Amarillo ISD boys swimmer had at taken home a medal from the meet since Amarillo High sprinter Doug Dickinson swept gold medals in the 50 and 100 freestyles in 1989. In 2017, the AHS boys 200 medley relay won bronze.
Purdy got the spotlight to himself this year and made the most of it, peaking at the right time to bring home state hardware.
“He swam great,” AHS coach Ron Lee said of Purdy. “He had a plan and he stuck to it. He kind of went out that first 25 and emphasized his middle 50 and it worked.
“(At the end) I was holding my breath. (Purdy and Hays) weren’t next to each other and it was a neck-and-neck race.”
In the end, it was determined that they had the exact same time and both won the bronze medal. Prosper Walnut Grove’s Grayden Barker finished a second ahead of Purdy and Hays to win gold and Dallas Wilson’s Landon Fike took silver.
The 100 fly was actually the second time Purdy was in the water on Saturday for Amarillo High. He was the first AHS swimmer in the water to start the day, swimming the backstroke leg in the consolation finals of the 200 medley relay.
Along with seniors Bradley Bontrager, Wyatt Wilburn and Lance Dykhouse, Purdy helped Amarillo High win the consolation final in 1:38.99.