Brother Rice Repeats in True Team Effort
March 14, 2015
By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
YPSILANTI – It certainly was not by design, but it seemed like the Birmingham Brother Rice swimmers did not want to take the top step on the winning podium without a teammate by their side.
Brother Rice led from start to finish Saturday in the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Swimming and Diving Finals at Michael H. Jones Natatorium on the campus of Eastern Michigan University
And the Warriors did it without a single individual champion.
“We have done that quite a few times in the past,” Brother Rice coach Mike Venos said. “It’s almost a tradition around here, and it makes my job easy because these kids know everybody gets to contribute.
“I think that’s what makes us strong. They come in and they are mentored that it’s a whole team effort.”
Last year, Brother Rice dominated the meet, winning by an amazing 143 points. This year, the Warriors finished with a 111-point margin over runner-up Holland West Ottawa.
Brother Rice opened the meet by repeating as champion in the 200-yard medley relay. Mark Blinstrub, Drew Grady, Gust Kouvaris and Jack Kennedy won in 1 minute, 31.68 seconds – more than a second faster than last year’s winning time.
Brother Rice would not return to the top spot on the podium until the final event – the 400 freestyle relay. Kouvaris, sophomore Rudy Aguilar, junior Bobby Powrie and Blinstrub made it a repeat championship in 3:02.58.
Between the two winning relays, the Warriors had seven second-place finishes in the eight individual swimming events. Kouvaris was second in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke, Blinstrub was second in the 200 individual medley and 100 free, Aguilar was second in the 200 freestyle and 500 freestyle and Grady was second in the 100 breaststroke.
“It’s good to win as a team,” Kouvaris said. “We’re a family. We all swim together, and we all train together. For me in the 100 backstroke, standing next to one of my teammates (Alex Margherio, who finished fourth) was the best feeling in the world.
“It feels amazing to be standing up there with these guys.”
Blinstrub was runner-up to two-time champion Jack Walsh in the 200 IM and two-time champion Tabahn Afrik in the 100 freestyle.
“The guys I finished second to are unbelievable,” said Blinstrub, who plans to swim at the University of Pennsylvania. “It doesn’t upset me at all. They are going to Notre Dame and Stanford. They’re incredible guys and incredible swimmers, so to get second to them is fine.
“I do what I do for my team. I did my best.”
Aguilar’s second-place finishes included setting a school-record in the 200 freestyle (1:39.57).
“It has been a pleasure swimming for Brother Rice,” he said. “I was fortunate enough to swim the 400 free relay - that’s basically our relay – and training has been really hard, and it showed.
“As a sophomore I’m really happy with my times. I was really happy with that 200 freestyle, breaking the school record.”
As dominant as Brother Rice was, the meet’s top individual swimmers were Walsh, a Detroit Catholic Central senior who won the 200 IM and 100 backstroke, and Devon Nowicki, a Lake Orion junior who took the 100 butterfly and 100 breaststroke.
Walsh, who plans to continue his swimming career at Stanford, was a repeat winner in the backstroke and improved on his second-place finish from last year in the IM. His winning time of 1:47.26 set an all-division meet record, and his 48.48 in the backstroke set an LP Division 1 meet record.
He did not put the records above the championships.
“It’s always nice to have a record, but a championship is something that can’t be taken away,” he said. “It feels great to have a season of hard work pay off.”
Nowicki’s championships were the first of his career. Last year, he swam distance events, but with a change of coaches, he concentrated more on events that would benefit him in the 200 IM. He was fifth in the 500 freestyle and ninth in the 200 freestyle last year.
“It was different being on top of the podium instead of the lower ones,” Nowicki said. “We changed coaches, and we wanted to focus on something completely different and try something new and see what works.”
Nowicki’s winning time of 53.59 in the breaststroke set an all-division meet record, and he won the butterfly in 48.92.
“The 100 fly I’ve kind of been around but not prominent in, but the 100 breast I’ve been around my whole life,” he said. “Winning the fly was like a happy accident I guess. I’ve always been decent at all the strokes. We just tried to focus more on the fly this year to expand my IM abilities.”
The other double-winner was Holland West Ottawa senior Tabahn Afrik, who won the 50 freestyle in 20.26 seconds – an LP Division 1 meet record – and the 100 freestyle in 44.06. He was the defending champion in both the 100 freestyle and 200 freestyle but decided to scrap the 200 and try the 50 this year.
“Honestly, there was no thought going into it other than to just try something new,” said Afrik, who will attend Notre Dame on a full scholarship in the fall. “I have the 100 and the 200 under my belt, so I thought this year I might as well go for the 50, and that’s what we did.”
Afrik also swam the anchor leg for Holland West Ottawa in the 200 freestyle relay. The team finished fourth, but Afrik’s split was an amazing 19.67 seconds, which would have been an all-division meet record had he done it from the first leg of the relay.
“That is the first time I got into the 19s,” he said. “It definitely felt good – a huge milestone that I accomplished. I left it all in the pool. I can’t complain.”
Rockford junior Jake Herremans put on a show in the diving portion of the event. He set a meet record with 528.45 points – the previous record was 494.40 – and left himself looking for more.
“I want to keep hitting those harder dives and make them crisp and clean and possibly try to get my degree of difficulty up a little more,” he said. “I tried to focus on myself and block everything else out. No distractions while I’m on the board, just me in my little happy place.”
Will Brenner of Ann Arbor Huron was runner-up in diving with 500.15 points, and he also was runner-up to Afrik in the 50 freestyle in the event immediately preceding the diving. Brenner’s final dive of an inward two-and-a-half scored in the 7s and 8s and had Herremans clapping as he stood on the board preparing to make his dive.
“That dive was outstanding,” Herremans said. “It was the best dive I’ve ever seen him do. I have to give him so much credit because he did awesome. He’s a great diver and a great kid. I love competing with him.”
Afrik also complimented Brenner and said he was not so sure that Brenner was not going to beat him in the 50 freestyle.
“He had me for the majority of the race,” Afrik said. “I’m not going to lie, I was really impressed with the way he swam. I just turned it up and got him.”
Brenner seemed to take it all in stride.
“I thought it was a great success,” he said. “I thought I nailed the dives. I’m very happy.”
The other individual champions were Kai Williams of Ann Arbor Pioneer in the 200 freestyle (1:38.10) and Trayton Saladin of Bridgman in the 500 freestyle (4:30.99). Williams also swam the anchor leg for Ann Arbor Pioneer as it won the 200 freestyle relay in 1:23.68, breaking the LP Division 1 Finals record.
“We were hoping to get the all-division record, but it’s hard to complain with this,” he said. “The 200 freestyle was my first win ever, so it was exciting.
“I wanted to take it out fast and hold the lead the entire race.”
However, with all the stars and records that dominated the meet, in the end it was the depth of Birmingham Brother Rice that ruled the day. The Warriors had 16 individuals seeded and ended up with 11 entries in the Finals and 14 entries in the consolation races.
“I think we had a lot more underclassmen contribute, and we had so many more kids in the consolation finals this year,” Venos said. “It fired everybody up, watching those kids have their day. It was fantastic.
“It’s a tribute to what these kids have built for themselves.”
PHOTOS: (Top) A Brother Rice swimmer competes in the 100 butterfly; five Warriors scored among the top 16 in the event. (Middle) Holland West Ottawa's Mitch Plaggemars swims to 14th place in the 100 breaststroke. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Preview: Winning Streaks Challenged
March 8, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A handful or reigning champions have dominated Lower Peninsula boys swimming & diving these last few seasons – but that could end this weekend.
A year ago, Birmingham Brother Rice in Division 1 and Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood in Division 3 became two of three teams over the last 20 years to win four straight MHSAA LP boys swimming & diving titles. Dexter, in Division 2, also repeated as a team champion.
But two of those are not considered the favorites entering this weekend’s Finals, and it’s not hard to see a path for three new champions. Read on for a look at how the races stack up in all three divisions, plus some of the individuals who are expected to shine brightest.
Preliminaries are Friday and Finals are Saturday, with action beginning at noon for both. All three Finals also will be streamed live and can be watched with subscription on MHSAA.TV. Click for lineups and seed times for all three meets.
LP Division 1 at Eastern Michigan University
Reigning champion: Birmingham Brother Rice
2017 runner-up: Ann Arbor Skyline
2018 top-ranked: 1. Ann Arbor Skyline, 2. Holland West Ottawa, 3. Birmingham Brother Rice.
For the first time in a long time, there’s a feeling Brother Rice’s reign might end. The Warriors have won four straight LPD1 team titles and have some stars in the pool this weekend – but only five individual entries joining three relays seeded among the top 16. Skyline finished second last season by 26 points and is seeking its first championship with 12 individual entries and all three relays seeded to score, plus two divers including the reigning champ. West Ottawa was the runner-up in 2015 and is seeking its first team title since 1971. The Panthers have 11 entries and all three relays seeded to score after coming in fifth – but just 48 points back – last season. Saline, ranked No. 4 this week, came in third last year 36 points back and could be in the mix as well.
Matt Lau, Saline senior – After finishing first in the breaststroke and 10th in the 50 last season, enters seeded ninth in the breaststroke (58.27) and also will swim the 50 again.
Derek Maas, Holland West Ottawa senior – Missed what would’ve been his first Finals title by finishing second in the backstroke last season, along with seventh in the individual medley, but enters this weekend seeded first in backstroke (50.94), fourth in IM (1:53.23) and as an option for all three relays but a likely leader of the top-seeded 200 medley (1:33.77).
Michael MacGillivray, Ann Arbor Skyline senior – Placed fourth in both the IM and breaststroke last season, but is seeded first in both the IM (1:49.97) and breaststroke (55.23) this time with a spot on the top-seeded 400 freestyle relay (3:09.67) as well.
Alex Margherio, Birmingham Brother Rice senior – Added a backstroke and relay title last season to another relay win in 2016, and this time is seeded second in the butterfly (50.47) and fourth in the 50 (21.22).
Jacob Newberger, Rockford senior – Won the consolation heats of both the IM and butterfly last season to finish ninth in both, but enters this weekend seeded first in the butterfly (50.34) and second in the backstroke (51.10).
Adam Orringer-Hau, Ann Arbor Pioneer senior – Earned part of a relay championship as a sophomore and finished third in the 200 freestyle and seventh in the butterfly last season; he’s seeded first in the 200 (1:39.08) and third in the 100 freestyle (45.86).
Ben Rojewski, Livonia Stevenson junior – Placed third in the 500 freestyle and 13th in the 200 a year ago and has jumped up to the top seed in the 500 (4:35.89) and 11th in the 200.
Henry Schutte, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central junior – Last season’s 50 and 100 freestyle champion is seeded first in both at 20.28 and 44.92, respectively, and should threaten the meet record of 20.26 in the former.
Henry Schirmer, Ann Arbor Skyline junior – Last season’s champion by more than 53 points won his Regional last week by 50 with the highest score in all of Division 1 at 522.35.
LP Division 2 at Oakland University
Reigning champion: Dexter
2017 runner-up: Ann Arbor Huron
2018 top-ranked: 1. Dexter, 2. Rochester Adams, 3. Birmingham Seaholm.
Dexter is competing for its third straight LPD2 title after finishing 27.5 points ahead of the field last season (and with runner-up Ann Arbor Huron now in LPD1 instead). The Dreadnaughts have only their three relays and seven individual entries seeded to score, but some depth including a few individuals who could break into the top 16. Rochester Adams is seeking its first title after placing 10th a year ago. All three relays are seeded to score, as are 12 individual entries, and the Highlanders boast a Regional champ diver as well. Seaholm finished third in 2017, 88.5 points back, but won this meet in 2011, 2014 and 2015. The Maples have all three relays and 11 individuals seeded to score, plus a diver, and enough high seeds to make this interesting at the top.
Michael Arpasi, Birmingham Seaholm senior – Last season’s butterfly champion also has three relay titles to his credit, and enters the weekend seeded first in the 50 (21.08), butterfly (50.01) and as part of the 200 medley relay (1:35.26).
Alexander Capizzo, Fraser sophomore – After claiming both the IM and 500 championships as a freshman, Capizzo will attempt to repeat entering as the second seed in the IM (1:55.56) and third in the 500 (4:35.50).
Daniel Frederick, Warren DeLaSalle senior – Finished fourth in the 500 and seventh in the 200 freestyle a year ago, but carries the top seed in the 200 (1:41.76) and second in the 500 (4:35.44) into this weekend.
Eric Hieber, Walled Lake Western sophomore – After finishing 14th in the 500 and not qualifying for the final heats in the 200 in 2017, Hieber has the top seed in the 500 (4:23.71) by nearly three seconds and the sixth seed in the 200 (1:43.41).
Matthew Koueiter, Grosse Pointe South senior – Placed fourth in the breaststroke and 15th in the butterfly as a junior, but is pointing toward a strong finish with the top seed in the breaststroke (58.25) and fourth seed in the butterfly (52.48).
Jason Krzciok, Midland Dow senior – Enters seeded second in the 50 (21.25) and third in the 100 (46.97) and as part of the top-seeded 200 freestyle relay (1:26.48) after finishing ninth in the 50 and fourth in the 100 in 2017.
Zach Milke, Warren DeLaSalle senior – Added a backstroke title last year to his relay championship in 2016, and also took sixth in the 50; he’s seeded first in the 100 freestyle (46.05) by three-quarters of a second, first in the backstroke (50.37) by more than a second and will swim on the top-seeded 400 freestyle relay (3:11.23).
Owen Miller, Portage Central junior – Finished first in the 200 free and third in the 500 a year ago and is seeded second in the 200 (1:42.12) and sixth in the 500 (4:39.99) this time.
Zane Rosely, Walled Lake Northern sophomore – Scored points taking 13th in the IM and 15th in the 500 last season, but is expected to score a lot more with the top seed in the IM (1:53.80) and the fifth in the 500 (4:37.25).
Levi Youmans, Battle Creek Lakeview senior – Won the diving competition last season by more than 30 points and took second at his Regional last week with 443.90 – which ranked second in all of Division 2 as well.
LP Division 3 at Saginaw Valley State University
Reigning champion: Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
2017 runner-up: East Grand Rapids
2018 top-ranked: 1. Holland Christian, 2. East Grand Rapids, 3. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood.
If rankings are correct, another major streak will end as Cranbrook has won the last four LPD3 titles. Holland Christian came in third last season, just 26.5 points back, and East Grand Rapids was second trailing by 13. Christian enters this weekend with 17 individual entries and three relays seeded to score, including an astounding six top seeds. East Grand Rapids has nine entries and three relays seeded to score, but plenty of depth and two divers including a Regional champ. Cranbrook will work to contend again with all three relays and six individual entries seeded among the top 16.
Christian Bart, East Grand Rapids senior – The reigning champ in the breaststroke and 50 free has three individual and two relay titles total over his career, and enters this weekend seeded first in the 50 (20.68) and second in the breaststroke (58.09). That qualifying time in the 50 is four hundredths of a second off the meet record he swam in 2017.
Nolan Briggs, Byron Center senior – The reigning champion in the butterfly is seeded third this time (50.84); he also was fourth in the 50 last season and is seeded second (21.06) behind Bart in that race.
Skyler Cook-Weeks, Holland Christian senior – He’s won the 500 the last two seasons and added a relay title last year as well. Cook-Weeks is seeded first in the 500 (4:35.90) and 200 (1:38.61) and as part of a top-seeded 400 relay (3:07.47) that could make a move on the meet record of 3:06.15.
Kevin Hao, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood senior – Enters seeded third in both the breaststroke (58.73) and IM (1:55.18) after finishing fifth in the breaststroke and second in the IM last season.
Luke Mason, Holland Christian senior – He’ll look to add to last season’s 200 IM and relay titles, entering this weekend as the second seed in the 200 free (1:41.94) and sixth seed in the 500 (4:50.85).
Ian Miskelley, Holland Christian senior – Swimming his first season in high school (he previously attended Holland Black River, which doesn’t have the sport), Miskelley has shown why he’s been known as one of the state’s top talents. He enters the weekend with the top seed in the IM (1:50.63) that is only eight hundredths of a second off the meet record and the top seed in the backstroke (49.88) that is already faster than the meet record in that race. He’ll also swim on the 400 relay noted above.
Cam Peel, Spring Lake junior – Finished sixth in the 50 and third in the 100 last season, but is seeded first in the 100 (46.16), third in the 50 (21.25) and is expected to swim on the top-seeded 200 medley relay (1:35.17).
Cooper Prue, Flint Powers Catholic senior – Placed sixth in the breaststroke and swam the prelim heat in the 200 freestyle last season, but could make a big jump coming in seeded first in the breaststroke (56.53) and fourth in the butterfly (51.13).
Riley VanMeter, Holland Christian junior – Tied for second in the butterfly and finished second in the backstroke in 2017; enters this weekend seeded first in the butterfly (49.84) and second in the backstroke (51.22).
Cayden Petrak, St. Johns junior – Last season’s runner-up to a now-graduated senior, Petrak missed the championship by less than two points. He won his Regional by 155 last week with a score of 496.10, second in Division 2 only to East Grand Rapids’ Nicholas Merritt (499.25).
PHOTOS: Swimmers prepare to launch during last season's Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)