By Mike McCombs
The Island News
Been there, done that.
A year after sweeping the Beaufort River Swim as 14-year-olds, 15-year-olds Jack Shave and Piper Lucas repeated as Men’s and Women’s champions at the 2026 Beaufort River Swim on Saturday, June 6 in Beaufort.
Bluffton’s Shave, who won in just his second open-water swim last year, was the Overall and the Male champion, shaving almost 20 seconds off his time of a year ago with a 52:36.51 finish.
Lucas claimed the Female crown with a time of 53:33.94.
Richard McIntyre of Cary, N.C., was the Overall and Male champion of the 1-mile swim with a time of 27:22.16. On the Female side, Dona Mcilvain of Saluda, N.C., finished first with a time of 27:30.97.
With a 26:01 swim time, a 27:20 run time, and a 53:21.59 chip time, 11-year-old Minna Reynolds places first in the Female 1-mile swim/5K Run Single Participant Overall race.
“Well, I didn’t die, that was my main goal,” she said. “I want to thank God for giving me this ability to swim well, and to run well, and I hope he shines through all that. Thank you to my friends for encouraging me, and my coaches, and my parents.”
On the Male side, Ashton Arvin of Nashville, Tenn., finished with a total time of 51:56.22 to win.
In the 3.2 Swim/5K Run Single Participant race, 35-year-old Yorlliry Moreno of Bluffton was the Male and Overall champion with a time of 1:16:49.33.
Finishing second with a 56:27 swim time, a 26.31 run time, and a total time of 1:22:57.86, Beaufort 13-year-old R.J. Schmitt was second in the 3.2 Swim/5K Run Single Participant race.
“Thank you to my coaches and all my fellow swimmers for teaching me that no matter what the challenges, as long as you have a positive outlook and you put in the most effort, you can that you can conquer it,” he said.
On the Female side, 17-year-old Christina Gluck of Bluffton was first with a time of 1:29:41.14.
Complete results can be found at https://bit.ly/3RZN7cY.
Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.
