With several of Leon County\u2019s top swimmers graduating, a new group of returners will take over the spotlight during the 2026-2027 season. The county returns a mix of state-level sprinters, distance swimmers and versatile athletes capable of competing in multiple events. Tallahassee Reports selected the following swimmers based on their performances during the 2025-2026 season. These athletes are expected to play key roles for their respective programs during the upcoming season. All statistics were gathered from SwimCloud, and incoming freshmen were not considered when selecting these swimmers.<\/p>\n
Owen Ekk \u2013 Chiles<\/p>\n
Owen Ekk enters the 2026-2027 season as one of the top returning swimmers in Leon County after a dominant 2025-2026 campaign. Ekk won two individual state titles, placing first in the 100 freestyle with a season-best time of 44.74 and the 200 individual medley with a personal-best time of 1:46.23. He also helped Chiles finish second in the 200-medley relay alongside teammates Crosby Fenniman, Tyler Wang, and Will Bracken.<\/p>\n
Ekk finished the season with the fastest returning times in Leon County in the 50 freestyle (20.97), 100 freestyle (44.56), and 200 IM (1:46.23), making him one of the most versatile swimmers in the county.<\/p>\n
Jacob Askey \u2013 Leon<\/p>\n
Jacob Askey returns as one of the top distance swimmers in Leon County after a strong 2025-2026 season. Askey placed 13th in the 200 freestyle finals at the FHSAA Class 3A State Championship with a time of 1:44.03 and finished the season as the county leader in both the 200 freestyle (1:43.80) and 500 freestyle (4:39.17).<\/p>\n
Along with his distance success, Askey also recorded a 22.82 in the 50 freestyle, showing his ability to contribute outside of traditional distance events.<\/p>\n
Kipton Fenniman \u2013 Chiles<\/p>\n
Kipton Fenniman returns after a strong season that included a state championship appearance in the 500 freestyle. Fenniman placed eighth in the 500 freestyle finals with a time of 4:43.01 and finished the season with one of the top returning distance times in the county.<\/p>\n
Fenniman also recorded a 1:55.93 in the 200 IM, 51.07 in the 100 freestyle, and 24.30 in the 50 freestyle, making him one of the county\u2019s most versatile returning swimmers.<\/p>\n
William Chen \u2013 Maclay <\/p>\n
William Chen returns as one of Maclay\u2019s top swimmers after a standout 2025-2026 season. Chen placed among the county\u2019s fastest swimmers in the sprint events, recording a 21.96 in the 50 freestyle and a 48.78 in the 100 freestyle. His speed gives Maclay one of the top returning sprint threats in Leon County heading into the 2026-2027 season.<\/p>\n
Manny Squiter \u2013 Chiles<\/p>\n
Manny Squitier enters the season as another key returning swimmer for Chiles after competing at the state championship level during the 2025-2026 season. Squitier recorded a 22.67 in the 50 freestyle, 48.76 in the 100 freestyle, and 1:44.44 in the 200 freestyle. He also posted a 54.88 in the 100 butterfly, showing his ability to compete across sprint freestyle and stroke events.<\/p>\n
Tyler Wang \u2013 Chiles<\/p>\n
Tyler Wang returns as one of the county\u2019s top swimmers across multiple strokes after helping Chiles earn a second-place finish in the 200-medley relay at the state championship. Wang was part of the relay team alongside Owen Ekk, Crosby Fenniman, and Will Bracken.<\/p>\n
Individually, Wang recorded one of the county\u2019s strongest performances in the 100 butterfly with a time of 53.68, the fastest returning time in the event. He also posted a 1:00.02 in the 100 breaststroke, giving Chiles another elite-level swimmer in multiple events.<\/p>\n
Case Moore \u2013 Lincoln<\/p>\n
Case Moore returns as one of Lincoln\u2019s top swimmers after leading the Trojans in several events during the 2025-2026 season. Moore recorded the fastest returning time for Lincoln in the 200 freestyle with a 1:52.98 and also posted a 59.07 in the 100 backstroke and a 24.29 in the 50 freestyle. With his versatility across multiple events, Moore enters the season as one of Lincoln\u2019s swimmers to watch.<\/p>\n
David Paquette \u2013 Maclay<\/p>\n
David Paquette returns as one of Maclay\u2019s strongest distance swimmers after posting some of the top freestyle times in the county during the 2025-2026 season. Paquette recorded a 1:49.93 in the 200 freestyle and a 5:01.59 in the 500 freestyle. His distance performances give Maclay a strong returning presence in longer freestyle events.<\/p>\n
Brennan Abatecola \u2013 Maclay<\/p>\n
Brennan Abatecola returns as one of Maclay\u2019s most experienced freestyle swimmers. Abatecola recorded a 51.84 in the 100 freestyle, a 1:54.00 in the 200 freestyle, and a 24.72 in the 50 freestyle during the 2025-2026 season. His ability to compete in multiple freestyle events makes him an important returner for the Marauders.<\/p>\n
Grant Hudnall \u2013 Leon<\/p>\n
Grant Hudnall returns as one of Leon\u2019s top returning sprinters after recording strong performances during the 2025-2026 season. Hudnall posted a 24.13 in the 50 freestyle and a 1:04.04 in the 100 butterfly. With several top swimmers graduating, Hudnall will look to take on a larger role for the Lions during the 2026-2027 season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With several of Leon County\u2019s top swimmers graduating, a new group of returners will take over the spotlight…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":43844,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[232,234,233],"class_list":["post-365610","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tallahassee","tag-tallahassee","tag-tallahassee-headlines","tag-tallahassee-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365610","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=365610"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365610\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=365610"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=365610"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=365610"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}