Cranes Dominate D3 in Record Fashion
March 14, 2015
By Dan Stickradt
Special for Second Half
ROCHESTER HILLS — There was no one denying Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood’s repeat performance Saturday.
No one was even close.
After winning its first boys swimming and diving MHSAA championship in 2014, Cranbrook Kingswood made quite a statement in capturing its second straight Lower Peninsula Division 3 boys swimming and diving title at Oakland University.
Behind an uber-dominating team performance, Cranbrook Kingswood compiled an impressive 430 points and won by 130.5.
“It was a little more difficult this season, a lot more pressure,” said Cranbrook Kingswood coach Karl Hodgson, who has guided the Cranes to four top-five finishes in his stint at the school. “I knew we had a shot coming in, and we were in good position after the prelims. But I never thought we’d do this well. We had some incredible performances. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. Not too many teams have won by that many and scored this many points.”
Since the MHSAA split from two divisions to three for boys swimming in 2008, the previous record for D-3 Finals points was East Grand Rapids’ 373 in 2008. Cranbrook scored 297 points in winning its first MHSAA title in 2014. No other D-3 school has eclipsed the 300-point barrier.
Chelsea finished in the runner-up slot for the second straight year, collecting 299.5 points. East Grand Rapids was third with 248 points, while Hamilton (215), Grand Rapids Christian (124), Milan (111), Detroit Country Day (104), Grand Rapids Catholic Central (94), Tecumseh (90) and Otsego (86) rounded out the top 10 in a field where 29 schools scored.
Cranbrook dominated from start to finish, opening the meet with an LPD3 meet record in the 200-yard medley relay and capping the day with another meet record in the 400 freestyle relay.
On the day, Cranbrook scored in 11 events, captured first places in five, had a runner-up finish, five third-place finishes and a trio of fourth-place finishes to showcase its top-tier talent.
The Cranes also had 14 of 16 competitors score points during their repeat performance.
“We came out and won the first relay, and it kind of amped us up,” admitted senior Frankie Misra. “We kind of (fed) off that energy. We wanted to win it again. We knew we had a strong team coming in, and we had some incredible swims in the prelims. I am so proud of our team — and even prouder today. I don’t think we could have imagined us doing so well.”
Misra, Mitch Buccalo, Andrew Guam and Giorgio DelGrosso joined forces for a 1:33.89 clocking in the 200 medley relay to set the tone. The Cranes continued to pile on the points after that point. Out of 176 total slots, Cranbrook had 27 placers spread over all events.
Buccalo set another LPD3 Finals mark in winning the 200 IM (1:50.55). Andrew Trunsky took first in the 500 freestyle (4:37.12), building a large lead by the midpoint and cruising to a win by nearly 3.5 seconds, while DelGrosso pulled away for a win in the 100 breaststroke (56.58).
Showing a three-second advantage at Friday’s prelims, the unit of Guam, Alessandro Guttilla, Misra and Buccalo put the finishing touches on the team title by winning the meet-ending 400 freestyle relay in 3:06.15, yet another LPD3 meet record.
“I think when us seniors came in, we helped take the program to another level, and now we have so many good swimmers on this team,” Buccalo said. “We trained so hard for this. We were second two years ago, and we won it this year and last year. We’re not just a (tennis and hockey school), yes sir. Our swimming program is very strong.”
East Grand Rapids’ Andy McGregor was in on three victories on the day, touching first in both the 200 freestyle (1:40.96) and 100 freestyle (46.09), while he teamed up with Braden Wiener, Christian Bart and Jack Filion for a meet-record time of 1:26.06 in the 200 freestyle relay.
“It’s pretty special being up there representing our school and coming in here and doing so well,” said MacGregor, who had a slow start in the 200 free only to pull ahead in the final two lengths. He also anchored the winning relay.
“I think the sprinting part is my strength. I always pick it up to finish strong,” added MacGregor.
Chelsea sophomore Joey Mangner won the 50 free (21.27), an event where six competitors broke 22 seconds.
“Last year I was 12th in the 50. I didn’t make it to the fast heat,” said Mangner. “Coming back this year I really wanted to get it, at least try to contend for the title.”
Chelsea’s Joe Smith captured the one-meter diving event (492.95 points), rising up from the second position after Friday’s prelims. The Bulldogs had four of the top 16 finishers in diving, including two of the top three placers.
“I really felt good in the Finals. It was one of my best performances,” Smith said. “I think it’s really special to have four of us from one team place at states in diving. I think it really helped push our team into second place.”
As a team, Chelsea put together another fine outing but still not enough to catch top-ranked Cranbrook. The Bulldogs still placed in the top 10 for the 24th time in 27 seasons.
“They are very good, very deep,” said Chelsea coach Dave Jolly about finishing second to Cranbrook for the second straight season. “We knew we could challenge for second but knew we couldn’t match up with their depth. But I am very pleased with how we competed. We had everyone swim season bests, and we did very well in diving. Having the best diving coach in the state of Michigan (Eric Burris) sure helps. This is the second straight year we had a state champion in diving. Being strong in that event really helped us finish second. We scored (50) points in that event alone.”
Hamilton’s Alec Nyboer repeated in the 100 butterfly, establishing a new LPD3 meet standard with a 49.15 clocking. Grand Rapids Catholic Central’s Joey Puglessi won the 100 backstroke (50.45) to round out the winners.
“This was the goal all along,” Nyboer said. “I won it last season, too, and I have been down close to 50 (seconds) all season, so it was nice to go under and get the record. I think it would be sweet to get the all-division record next year. I have about two more seconds more to shave off. A lot of work to do.”
Puglessi earned his second title, pulling away during the last length to win by nearly a second. He also won the backstroke as a freshman in 2013.
“I really tried to challenge in my race and see what I could do,” said Puglessi. “I set some high standards for myself and it seemed to pay off today. It’s nice to see all of the hard work pay off and to represent your school in this way.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Cranbrook Kingswood’s Giorgio DelGrosso moves ahead of the pack during Saturday’s Lower Peninsula Division 3 Finals. (Middle) Chelsea’s Joe Smith prepares to touch water during one of his title-winning dives. (Below) Hamilton’s Alec Nyboer repeated and set a meet record in the 100 butterfly. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Team Effort Vaults Marquette Back to #1
By
Ryan Stieg
Special for Second Half
February 15, 2020
MARQUETTE – Going into Saturday’s Upper Peninsula Swimming & Diving Finals, it had been three years since the Marquette boys finished on top.
To end that streak, the Redmen would need their underclassmen to start fast on the blocks – and Marquette’s youth definitely did their part.
The Redmen rolled to the team win, racking up 344 points, well ahead of second place Sault Ste. Marie (227). The Blue Devils edged Houghton by eight points to get the runner-up spot, while Kingsford was fourth with 176.
Marquette’s depth also played a role in the victory as it had only two event winners with Liam McFarren taking the 100-yard freestyle and the Redmen winning the 200 free relay.
“With a crew that’s mostly freshmen and sophomores, this win means even more honestly,” Marquette head coach Nathan McFarren said. “It was a pretty impressive performance for this group of guys, and we had so much depth too. It was pretty incredible to watch these guys progress throughout the year, and I can’t wait to see it in four years.”
In regard to the Redmen’s depth, McFarren said his team is no longer strictly swimmers, but now includes a wide variety of athletes.
“We’ve lost a lot over the past few years, which has cost us, but this freshman class is huge,” he said. “It’s the biggest freshman class I’ve ever had, and it’s not all guys that have been swimming their whole lives. It’s football players and multi-sport players, so it’s pretty cool.”
The Sault had a big day in the pool as it finished first in the other two relays (200 medley and 400 free), while Andrew Innerebner and Morgan Burd both won two events. Innerebner won the 50 free and 100 butterfly, and Burd finished on top in the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke.
“Sometimes the kids just shock you,” Blue Devils head coach Steve Habusta said. “We expected great things, but I don’t think we expected this great of things. The boys were swimming lights out. Everybody is stepping up and doing it all through tragedy. … One of our swimmers lost his mom, so for our kids to step up and rally behind him, I think it’s a special day for everyone.”
Houghton notched three wins at the meet with Archer Olson earning victories in the 200 free and 500 free, while Davin Evans won the 100 breaststroke.
Even though the Gremlins were unseated as U.P. champs, head coach Erik Johnson was pleased with how the day went overall.
“When you come here with five boys qualified and eight or nine girls, it’s tough to get points,” he said. “But they all did really well. They all swam well, and I couldn’t be more proud of them. Our boys, we only graduate one senior and we’ll miss our girls seniors, but kids are ready to step up so we’re excited.”
On Friday night, Ishpeming Westwood’s Brock Sundberg repeated as the 1-meter diving champion with a score of 205.15. This was the third straight year a Patriots diver won the title.
PHOTOS: (Top) Liam McFarren was one of two individual event winners for team champion Marquette, and here he swims the winning 100 freestyle. (Middle) Sault Ste. Marie's Morgan Burd swims to the championship in the 100 backstroke. (Photos by Jarvinen Photos.)