Big 3 Leads Saline to Championship No. 4
March 9, 2013
By Greg Chrapek
Special for Second Half
HOLLAND – Although they were led by a trio of seniors who each won two individual events, a fourth consecutive MHSAA title was anything but a sure thing for Saline at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final at the Holland Aquatic Center.
Saline’s big three of seniors Adam Whitener, Josh Ehrman and David Boland came up big when they needed, and every point proved valuable as the Hornets edged fellow Division 1 powerhouse Birmingham Brother Rice by three points, 313-309, to claim their fourth consecutive title.
With points at a premium, the Hornets rallied and in the final event finished in fourth place in the 400 freestyle relay to clinch the championship.
“There was a lot of pressure, but I actually enjoy it,” Ehrman said. “We knew we had to go fast in every race, and we had to win. When you are put under that kind of pressure, you know you have to perform.”
Ehrman did his part and then some for the Hornets as he won two individual titles and was part of two relay teams that also won.
Ehrman teamed up with Boland and fellow seniors Michael Bundas and Lucas Allen to start things off in a big way Saturday by winning the 200-yard medley relay in an all-division Finals record time of 1:30.01.
Ehrman also won the 200-yard IM in an all-division Finals record time of 1:47.86 and broke his own all-division record time in the 100-yard breaststroke, winning in 55.31.
His success was something the Hornets were able to count on like clockwork since he joined the team his freshman season.
“Josh is a champion swimmer,” Saline coach Todd Brunty said. “The only races he lost during his high school career were two races his freshman year to a nationally-ranked swimmer.”
The Hornets’ key race Saturday was the ninth, the 200-yard freestyle relay. Ehrman teamed up with Bundas, Whitener and fellow senior Stefan Koberl to capture the championship in 1:23.92, another LP Division 1 meet record.
“When we won the 200-free relay, our guys believed they could do it,” Brunty said. “The door was still open, and that was all we needed was that crack to get through.
“Being a four-time state champion feels pretty good right now. It was a hard-fought win. Brother Rice is a very good team, and to go through the adversity that we did on Friday says a lot about this team. We didn’t have some of our best swims on Friday, and we had about 40 points to make up going into today. But the guys stayed steady and stayed strong, and they were able to overcome that deficit.”
Another key to success for the Hornets was the performance of their divers. Three Saline divers finished among the top 11, giving the team key points needed to erase the deficit.
Senior diver Sam Blair finished second overall to senior Nick Nicoletti of Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern. Nicoletti totaled 442.30 points, while Blair finished with 428.50. Senior Dustin Wall finished sixth in diving for Saline, while freshman Alex Calder placed 11th.
They complemented well the efforts of the trio of senior leaders who amazingly were part of eight of the 12 race championships.
Whitener capped his career at Saline by winning the 200-yard freestyle in 1:38.31 and taking the 100-yard freestyle in 44.65.
Boland also claimed two races and set two new Division 1 meet records in the process. He won the 100-yard backstroke in a record time of 49.75 and captured the 100-yard butterfly in a record time of 48.59. Boland also swam the first leg of the 200-yard medley relay that, in finishing first, set the tone for the day.
“I just wanted to get out and get everybody pumped up,” Boland said. “I wanted to get out and get out as far as I could. I wanted to get everybody pumped up and ready to go.”
Saline senior Michael Bundas added to the medal haul as he won the 50-yard freestyle in 20.96.
“I was really happy for Michael,” Brunty said. “He gave up baseball to focus on his swimming. He loves baseball, and it takes total dedication for someone to do that. He really stepped up for us today.”
Not all of the records at Saturday’s Finals were broken by Saline swimmers. Runner-up Birmingham Brother Rice’s 400-yard freestyle relay team set an all-division record. Senior Patrick Nodland, sophomores Gust Kouvaris and Mark Blinstrub and junior Joe Krause came into the meet seeded fourth, but saved their best for last as they turned in a time of 3:03.78.
“They really stepped up,” Brother Rice coach Mike Venos said. “We have one senior on that relay, and he inspires the team. Patrick Nodland just does a great job of getting everyone inspired and ready to go. I never, ever doubt my swimmers. I know what they are capable of.”
Brother Rice pushed Saline to the limit and carried on the program’s history of excellence. The Warriors have won eight MHSAA team titles since 1994, their most recent in 2007.
Livonia Stevenson junior Nick Arakelian also set a Division 1 meet record en route to winning the 500-yard freestyle. Arakelian, in his first year of high school swimming, won in a time of 4:27.75.
A nationally-ranked club swimmer, Arakelian decided to go out for high school swimming this season, and was more than happy he did.
“Oh I’m very happy I decided to come out,” Arakelian said. “I just decided to try it for a change. It’s a lot of fun, and I like the team atmosphere.”
Arakelian helped Stevenson to a third-place finish as a team as he also took second place in the 200-yard IM and was a part of the 200-yard medley relay and 400-yard free relay teams that also finished second.
“This was an incredible feeling,” Arakelian said. “I’m planning on coming out next year, and I’m very excited about next year.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Saline swimmers celebrate while en route to their fourth-straight MHSAA team title. (Middle) A Saline swimmer races Saturday at Holland Aquatics Center. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
WO Last-Second Win Will Live Forever
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
March 29, 2019
They’re going to be talking about the final second of this swimming & diving season for a long time at Holland West Ottawa.
By sixth hundredths of that second, the Panthers edged Detroit Catholic Central to finish first in the 400-yard freestyle relay at the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals at Holland Aquatic Center. West Ottawa led DCC by only two points heading into that final race, and the 40 additional points for the win – compared to 34 for DCC as runner-up – clinched for the Panthers’ first MHSAA championship in this sport since 1971.
That would be plenty to earn West Ottawa the MHSAA/Applebee’s “Team of the Month” honor for March. But it’s just the finish of the story.
The Panthers also had come in runners-up last season and in 2015. They’ve won 47 straight dual meets, stretching back more than five seasons, and six straight league titles. West Ottawa also won all of its invitationals this winter.
But claiming the ultimate championship brought an even greater amount of significance to those achievements.
“This year, this was the expectation,” Panthers coach Steve Bowyer said. “Going into that last relay, there was a lot of pressure because this was a culmination of everything these seniors had been through the last four years. Obviously, as a coach, you’re just sitting there hoping it’s going to go your way, because of what the expectation has been.
“For this group of boys, even if they’d gone in and swam the way they did and gotten beat, it’s still a successful season. But this was the one meet these guys had been working for because we’ve gotten the previous conference championships and invite wins, and after finishing runner-up twice the last 4-5 years, this was the goal for this group.”
The Panthers secured the team win in part with first places in the 100 butterfly and 200 individual medley from senior Derek Maas, the 200 medley swam by Maas, senior Khadin Soto, junior Gavin Temple and freshman Kevin Maas and the 400 with junior Jamahl Hogan and senior Sam Smith leading off for Maas and then Soto.
The medley relay’s time of 1:31.01 was the third-fastest in MHSAA Finals history, all classes and divisions included. Maas’ IM time of 1:46.70 also ranked third in that event, and Soto’s runner-up time in the breaststroke of 55.33 ranked eighth on the all class/division list for that race. Maas won the butterfly in 48.02 and holds the West Ottawa school records that race and the IM, as does Soto in the breaststroke. The 200 medley relay also set a school mark this season, topping a record board that surely ranks as one of the most impressive in the state – consider that during this decade alone, West Ottawa had 11 individual and five relay Finals champions.
But the team title was another level of accomplishment.
The feeling on this run was different than when Bowyer led the West Ottawa girls team to the LPD1 title in Division 1, because of the great expectations. That girls team was looking for a third or fourth-place Finals finish but pushed into contention with a big first day.
This boys team was ranked No. 1, and as noted, finished first in every dual and invite – made all the more impressive considering West Ottawa’s Ottawa-Kent Conference Red also included LPD1 third-place Hudsonville, 13th-place Rockford, 18th-place Grand Haven and 31st-place East Kentwood.
Keep in mind as well that West Ottawa isn’t the only swimming power, much less MHSAA champion, in its community. Holland Christian won its second straight LPD3 title last month, and West Ottawa won by 35 points when those two met in December. West Ottawa also took a 46-point dual win over neighbor Zeeland, which went on to finish 12th in LPD1, and a 56-point dual win over Holland High, which finished 16th in LPD2.
All set the stage for the Panthers’ Finals run, and last-second win, which has been replayed during post-meet get-togethers, a school assembly, and when Bowyer has had some moments to himself as he’s watched it, said jokingly, “probably more than I should.”
“Being the number one-ranked team all year long, and to have some of the early success we had and put up the times we did, going into that meet, I felt pretty confident,” Bowyer said. “We felt it was going to be our year. We’d had good teams in the past. But a few years ago we ran into Brother Rice which was phenomenal, and Ann Arbor Skyline last year had a great year. This year, we felt it was our year.
“Detroit Catholic Central, I felt, had a phenomenal meet, made things closer than a lot of people expected, and I definitely tipped my hat to them. We feel fortunate to be on the winning end on that touch.”
Past Teams of the Month, 2018-19
February: Lowell wrestling – Read
January: Farmington United gymnastics – Read
December: Warren Woods-Tower wrestling – Read
November: Rochester Adams girls swimming & diving – Read
October: Leland boys soccer – Read
September: Pickford football – Read
August: Northville girls golf – Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Holland West Ottawa celebrates its first MHSAA Finals championship in boys swimming & diving since 1971. (Middle) Khadin Soto was among the team’s stars during the LPD1 meet. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)