Holland Leads From Start to Finish in D2
March 9, 2013
By Jon Malavolti
Special to Second Half
ROCHESTER – A blazing, record-breaking photo finish in the first race of the day set the tone for Holland High as the boys swimming and diving team went wire-to-wire in first place of the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals on Saturday at Oakland University.
The Dutch opened the day edging eventual meet runner-up Ann Arbor Pioneer by two hundredths of a second for first in the 200-yard medley relay.
“That definitely set us off right,” Holland senior Derek Bosko said. “It just got us all going.”
Holland’s all-senior team of Connor Bos, Kyle Doss, Gage Mitchell and Jonathon Maat finished the race in 1 minute and 34.81 seconds. Pioneer’s squad of Matthew Erickson, Chris Klein, Kai Williams and Thad Stalmack finished in 1:34.83. Both times were good enough to surpass the former Division 2 meet record of 1:35.32 set by Zeeland in 2008.
“It just really set the right spot. Not only did it give us a cushion in points, but it really fired everybody up,” Holland coach Don Kimble said. “For them to go that fast is really something.”
The Dutch boys won their first MHSAA title since taking the LP Division 2 crown in 2007.
“We have a good system that works, and we have a bunch of good kids,” Kimble said. “They worked their butts off.”
Bosko said it’s been his teammates’ goal for years to finish first at the Finals.
“Since my freshman year, we’ve believed that we could do it. And just this year the whole team came together and really made it happen,” he said. “It’s awesome.”
While Holland never relinquished the lead throughout all 12 events, Pioneer pushed the Dutch all day.
“I knew Pioneer would be tough,” Kimble said. “When the team listings came out for divisions back in July, every boy I saw I warned about Pioneer. I know their ability, and I knew right away they were going to be trouble.”
“We knew today when we started the meet it was going to be tough,” Bosko added.
Pioneer coach Dennis Hill said his team “really swam well.”
“The kids came together and had just great swims,” said Hill, who co-coaches the team with his wife Liz. “We came a long ways.”
Pioneer senior Chris Klein was proud of his teammates.
“I think we did a great job,” he said. “A lot of the guys had great times, and we’re really excited about it.”
Klein, in addition to participating in the opening relay, anchored the Pioneers’ second-place 400 freestyle relay while grabbing a pair of first-place individual finishes in the 200 IM and 100 breaststroke. He also set a meet record in the breaststroke, and was honored as the Swimmer of the Meet.
“Chris has been so much fun, to watch him as a young ninth grader to grow into a real man. He’s going to Michigan next year, and he’s going to be a big part of that Michigan team,” Hill said. “But he has come so far through hard work and determination. It’s a pleasure to see that kind of stuff happen to young people.”
When asked what kind of work Klein has put into reaching his accomplishments, he responded: “Every day in the pool pushing it as hard as you can, and just knowing that you’ve done what you can do, and trained as hard as you can, and that you’re going to have a great swim.”
St. Johns senior Brennan LaBar emerged as the best diver, winning that competition with 365.20 points. He reclaimed the title he won in 2011 as a sophomore, after finished in second last year.
“That’s all I wanted, was to get the title back, to be state champion again, that really drove me throughout the season,” the Michigan State University-bound diver said. “There’s minimal room for error here, diving against the best in Michigan. I really enjoy diving against the best; it brings out the best in my diving.”
Holland would go on to win five other races on the day to continue its dominance and ensure the title. Kimble, who also coached the Dutch girls team to the Division 2 championship in the fall, joked that perhaps his girls are the only ones who can look down on his boys squad. The Holland girls have won two straight titles.
“The girls like the bragging rights because they have two in a row, so they have a little edge on the boys,” Kimble said. “The boys just take longer to develop this type of level of team. The girls have gotten used to reloading every year and coming back. The guys, we have to reload. And we have a big senior class this year, so we’ll see what happens next.”
But to Bosko and his teammates, all that matters is they went home with the trophy Saturday.
“It’s just expectations really of Holland swimming,” the Dutch senior said. “We’ve always had a tradition of getting a trophy, and really this year, it was all or nothing. It was first or nothing.”
PHOTOS: (Top) A swimmer celebrates during Saturday's Lower Peninsula Division 2 Final at Oakland University. (Middle) Holland holds up its trophy after edging Ann Arbor Pioneer for the title. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Performance: Grosse Pointe South's Jacob Montague
March 17, 2016
Jacob Montague
Grosse Pointe South senior – Swimming
Montague already was going to graduate as one of the fastest swimmers in MHSAA history. But Saturday, he finished his final high school meet by setting Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals records in two events for the second straight season, earning the Michigan National Guard Performance of the Week.
Montague’s championship race time in the 200-yard individual medley of 1:47.40 at Saginaw Valley State University broke the record he set at last season’s Division 2 meet by nine tenths of a second. His 53.93 in the 100 breaststroke broke his previous meet record by 73 hundredths of a second. He also swam on a 200 medley relay that came in runner-up and a 400 freestyle relay that came in fourth.
Montague holds all eight individual swimming records at Grosse Pointe South and has been part of record medley and 400 freestyle relays. He is the son of former University of Michigan swimmer Andy Montague and started in the sport at an early age, but gave it up during middle school to play baseball and tennis. He returned to the pool as a freshman and played all three sports that year at South before injuring a knee and focusing on swimming the rest of his career. Montague will follow his dad to U-M and is considering majoring in business.
Coach Eric Gunderson said: “In addition to setting new D2 records in both of his individual events, Jacob made a huge contribution to our relays. His breaststroke on the medley relay was incredibly fast … and his anchor leg of the 400 free relay was really fun to watch as he caught up to people at the end of it. Jacob is quite talented, but he also has an amazing work ethic. It has been a privilege for everyone to watch and to be a part of his success and dramatic improvement over the course of four years. It will be exciting to see what he can achieve going forward.”
Performance Point: “I’d say the most fun parts were the relays this year. We finished second in the medley relay and fourth in the 400 free relay, and our 400 free relay brook our school record set in 2010. That’s what was most exciting for us; we were a little off it from prelims, and we said that’s our goal. It wasn’t about place; it was about breaking that record. I was happy with my individual swims as well. I was hoping to go a little faster, but for where I’m at with my season with my taper and everything, I was happy with my times.”
Different this time: “My junior year, nobody really knew me. Everybody was expecting other people to win. Other people were seeded higher than me going into the meet, and I had nothing to lose. I would just go for it. This year there was a little more pressure having won last year. But I tried my best not to think about that really, just to focus on swimming. And it still turned out well.”
Destination reached: “It definitely was a long journey, a lot of hard work and a lot of practices the past three years. My mind was on one goal – to be the best I can be. Definitely at times I’d get tired of it, worn out going in every day for three hours and swimming back and forth. But you get to the end of the season, you’re feeling better, swimming faster, and it pays off at the end. I didn’t really have any expectations my freshman year, especially. I was just excited to be part of a team. And our team has been good since my freshman year as a whole, and I was excited to be a part of that.”
Pools of knowledge: “My dad, he’s definitely made a big impact. He doesn’t try to intrude on my training; I control what I do and make my own decisions what I do. But he definitely gives me pointers all the time. And also (Grosse Pointe South assistant and club coach) John Fodell. … He’s fixed my stroke, made me faster every day.”
Born to swim: “Especially my freshman year when I was getting back into it, it got monotonous. Every day, doing pretty much the same thing, back and forth, over and over for three hours. But as I improved and got better, I realized I can’t improve unless I enjoy the process of getting to that point. You have to enjoy the pain you feel during and after, being sore and what not. It’s almost soothing being in the pool. There’s nothing else to think about besides swimming."
– Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2015-16 school year, Second Half and the Michigan National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom, or protecting lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2015-16 honorees
March 9: Kyle Tuttle, St. Charles boys bowling - Read
March 2: Brittney Schnicke, Caledonia girls bowling - Read
Feb. 24: Kamari Newman, Detroit East English boys basketball - Read
Feb. 17: Jason Whitens, Powers North Central boys basketball - Read
Feb. 10: Rachel Hogan, Grand Ledge gymnastics - Read
Feb. 3: Nehemiah Mork, Midland Dow swimming & diving - Read
Jan. 27: Mardrekia Cook, Muskegon girls basketball - Read
Jan. 20: Sage Castillo, Hartland wrestling - Read
Jan. 13: Rob Zofchak, Dexter swimming & diving - Read
Jan. 6: Tyler Deming, Caro wrestling – Read
Dec. 15: Jordan Weber, East Jordan boys basketball – Read
Dec. 8: Kaitlyn Geers, Kent City girls basketball – Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Jacob Montague swims the individual medley during Saturday's Lower Peninsula Division 2 Final. (Middle) Montague swims the breaststroke; he won both races. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)