Comerford, Cranes Repeat as D3 Champs
November 17, 2012
By Gary Kalahar
Special to Second Half
YPSILANTI – By the time she is finished with her high school career, perhaps Plainwell’s Mallory Comerford will be an MHSAA champion in all eight individual swimming races.
Sounds a bit far-fetched to be sure. But after Comerford’s performance Saturday in the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 3 meet at Eastern Michigan University, would anyone care to bet against her?
Comerford, a sophomore, made it four championships in four different races by winning the 200 freestyle and 500 freestyle in dominant, record-breaking fashion.
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood used its outstanding depth – scoring at least 15 points in every race – to swim away with its second consecutive Division 3 team title. The Cranes scored 361 points, and Bloomfield Hills Lahser finished second with 211.
As a freshman, Comerford was the champ in the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle. Plainwell coach John DuBois said with another excellent long-distance freestyler last year, Comerford was placed in the sprints to give the Trojans the potential for more points.
“So we trained her in sprints, but her love is distance,” DuBois said. “It wasn't a hard transition at all.”
It certainly didn't look like it, especially on the final weekend.
“I was real happy with how I did,” Comerford said. “I’m very excited. I felt smooth going in the water Friday, and it was the same way (Saturday).”
In the 200 freestyle, Comerford set the Division 3 record with a 1:50.92 in the preliminaries and lowered it to 1:48.07 to win the final by more than six seconds.
“In my heart, I thought she could go 1:48,” DuBois said. “But I didn't know it would be that easy. Easy as in the way she swam – it was so effortless. She was in a groove.”
Comerford’s 4:58.18 in the 500 freestyle preliminaries established a meet record. That one lasted about 24 hours, too, as she went out fast and never slowed down in a 4:53.14 final. She won by 13 seconds with a time that would have made her a winner at the day’s Division 1 or Division 2 Finals.
“That was a surprise to me,” Comerford said.
Ten minutes after that race, Comerford was back on the blocks for the anchor leg of the 200 freestyle relay, boosting the Trojans from sixth place to fourth.
“I had to be there for my team,” Comerford said. “I just had the belief that I was fresh and I could do it."
She brought Plainwell from seventh to fourth on the final leg of the 400 freestyle relay, but the Trojans were disqualified.
“I knew it would be tough, but it was definitely worth it,” Comerford said about switching her focus to the longer distances. “It was a lot more yardage, a lot tougher on your body to be prepared for the longer races. My coaches, John DuBois here and Jeff Russell with USA Swimming, have pushed me as hard as I could go. I couldn't do what I've done without them.”
DuBois, whose team finished fifth with 140 points, said Comerford’s willingness to swim the events where she could most help the team is representative of her attitude.
“She’s a phenomenal athlete, she has great character and she’s an unbelievable worker,” he said. “She obviously is gifted, and we’re lucky to have her at Plainwell. She’s been a model academically and athletically. She’s all the things coaches love to have.”
Another thing all coaches would love to have is the depth of Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood rode to the team title. The Cranes had no divers but had girls swimming in every final race. In nine of the 11 events, they scored at least 23 points.
“A lot of it goes to the competition that we started with the first day of practice,” first-year Cranbrook-Kingswood coach Chris Bagley said. “It’s unbelievable to think about how deep we are.”
Senior Kylie Powrie swam on teams that finished second in Division 3 her freshman and sophomore years and won titles the last two.
“It’s amazing,” Powrie said. “Our team has come so far. We've improved so much over the years. I never would have thought this was possible my freshman year. When I started, it was hard for us to fill up all the events.”
Powrie, the 2011 champion in the two races won by Comerford this year, finished her career by helping the 200 freestyle and 400 freestyle relay teams to victory, the latter in a Division 3-record 3:33.63.
“We just wanted our team record, and we got it and got the state record,” Powrie said.
Lara Kokubo was Cranbrook-Kingswood’s lone individual champion, winning the 100 freestyle. She also swam on the two winning relay teams.
“We knew we were going to have high expectations, but to do what we did, the way we did it, is just unbelievable,” Bagley said. “We set our goals at the beginning of the year, and we never talked about winning a state title. We talked about being the most improved team in the state, and I think we did that.”
Ines Charles led runner-up Bloomfield Hills Lahser. She repeated as champion in the 100 backstroke, helped her 200 medley relay team to a second straight title and finished second in the 100 butterfly.
PHOTO: Members of the Cranbrook-Kingswood 400-yard freestyle relay team celebrate their LP Division 3 Final record time Saturday. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Preview: Racing Toward Greatness Again
November 21, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This weekend’s Lower Peninsula Girls Swimming & Diving Finals will welcome a handful of reigning title winners and even a few record holders from past championship meets. As is often true, the team races will feature annual powers among the forecasted contenders.
But if there’s a more intriguing common theme connecting all three Finals, it’s the large group of individual contenders who have been on the verge of reaching the podium’s top step – and will have their best opportunities yet to finish the climb for the first time.
The Division 1 Final will be hosted by Holland Aquatic Center, while Divisions 2 and 3 both will be competed at Oakland University. Preliminaries are Friday and Finals are Saturday, and all three Finals will be streamed live and can be watched with subscription on MHSAA.TV. Division 1 competition begins at noon both days, while Division 3 begins at 10 a.m. Friday and Saturday and Division 2 begins at 5 p.m. both days. Click for lineups and seed times for all three meets.
LP Division 1 at Holland Aquatic Center
Reigning champion: Farmington Hills Mercy
2018 runner-up: Brighton
2019 top-ranked: 1. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 2. Farmington Hills Mercy, 3. Saline.
Pioneer is seeking its first team championship since ending a string of nine straight in 2008, and after finishing seventh at a close meet in 2018 that saw the top seven teams separated by just 39 points. The Pioneers have three relays and 13 individuals seeded to score (among the top 16 in their events). Mercy has won the last two LP Division 1 championships to bring its total this decade to four, and the Marlins have a returning placing diver, three relays and nine individuals seeded to score – with a number of additional individuals seeded just outside the top 16. Saline is seeking its first title since 2014 and will bring two relays and 12 individuals seeded to score, plus four divers after coming in fifth in 2018. Fourth-ranked Rockford was the 2016 champion and came in fourth last season. The Rams enter this weekend with all three relays and seven individuals seeded to score, but might get an additional boost because it should compete for at least a handful of championships – two of three relays are top-seeded.
Kathryn Ackerman, Grand Haven senior: The three-time Finals champion is looking to finish with at least two more individual titles while also swimming on two relays. She’s the top seed in the 200-yard individual medley (2:01.65) after winning that race the last two years and swimming the all-Finals record (1:57.25) in 2018. She’s also the fourth seed in the 100 backstroke (57.22); last year she also swam and won the butterfly.
Greta Gidley, Farmington Hills Mercy junior: As a sophomore, Gidley finished sixth in the 100 freestyle, 16th in the 200 free and swam on two placing relays. She could take things up a notch or two entering as the top seed in the 100 (51.02) and the second seed in the IM (2:06.06) while again expecting to swim on two contending relays.
Allison Haak, Ann Arbor Skyline senior: Haak is another returning placer expected to make a jump this weekend after coming in fifth in the 100 and sixth in the 200 free and swimming on two placing relays in 2018. She’s seeded first in the 200 (1:50.68), second in the 500 (4:58.60) and set to swim again on two contending relays.
Amelia Hayes, Saline sophomore: Hayes is the top seed in the backstroke (56.26) after finishing third in that race as a freshman, and 12th in the IM after just missing the final heats last year. She did swim on two top-three relays at the 2018 Final, and her two relays this time are both seeded sixth or higher.
Brady Kendall, Plymouth sophomore: Kendall was another standout freshman a year ago, finishing third in the 50 and fifth in the butterfly and swimming on two consolation relays. She’s seeded second in the 50 (23.42) and first in the butterfly (54.53) this weekend, her latter time eight tenths of a second off the all-Finals record swam in 2017.
Lola Mull, Grand Ledge senior: Mull is seeking a three-peat in the 500 and seeded first (4:54.42) as she also goes after her all-Finals record time of 4:44.47 swam two years ago. She also was runner-up last year in the 200 free and is seeded third (1:52.37) in that race.
Claire Tuttle, Hudsonville senior: Tuttle also is swimming for a three-peat after winning the breaststroke the last two seasons. She’s seeded first in that race (1:01.55), just under a second off the all-Finals record time swam in 2014. Tuttle also is seeded first in the 50 (23.34) after finishing fourth in the 100 last year, and is expected to also swim on two top-four relays.
Rockford 200 medley relay: Seniors Masy Folcik and Rachel Gamm, junior Sara Kraus and sophomore Ashley Lund enter with a top seed time of 1:43.84 and could make a run at the LPD1 Finals record of 1:43.10 swam in 2016. Kraus, Folcik, Lund and then-senior Morgan Kraus won the race last season in 1:43.72.
Annie Costello, Ann Arbor Huron junior: Costello finished fourth in diving at the Final as a freshman and runner-up a year ago, less than eight points off the lead. Her 431.40 winning score was more than 27 points higher than anyone’s in LPD1 at any of the three qualifying meets last week.
LP Division 2 at Oakland University
Reigning champion: Rochester Adams
2018 runner-up: Birmingham Seaholm
2019 top-ranked: 1. Birmingham Seaholm, T-2. Birmingham Groves, T-2 Grosse Pointe South.
Seaholm missed out on a second championship in three seasons last fall by 30 points, but enters this weekend the favorite with all three relays seeded second in their races and 16 more individual seeds among the top 16 in those respective events. Groves hasn’t finished among the top two at a Final since winning four straight Division 2 titles from 2003-06, but this could be the year for serious contention again. Groves has all three relays and seven individuals seeded to score, plus three divers including a 2018 placer. Grosse Pointe South is seeking its first top-two finish after missing by six points last season while placing third. The Blue Devils could be a force for the next few years; this weekend they bring three relays and 12 individuals seeded to score, plus two divers, and nearly all of their contenders are underclassmen.
Elly Belmore, St. Clair Shores Lakeview sophomore: Belmore finished fifth in the breaststroke and ninth in the IM last season as a freshman, and could have an even more memorable weekend this time. She’s seeded first in the breaststroke (1:06.25) and second in the IM (2:07.37).
Sage Gettings, Holland senior: After finishing fourth in the 50 and third in the butterfly a year ago, Gettings is seeded first in the butterfly (56.66) and also will swim the 100. She’s also part of two top-11 seeded relays.
Madeline Greaves, Farmington junior: Greaves finished third in both the IM and butterfly in Division 1 last season as part of the Harrison/Farmington co-op. She’s seeded first in both of her races this weekend, but a different combination – the IM (2:05.38) and 500 (5:00.26).
Claire Newman, Midland Dow senior: The Chargers’ standout will look to add a few more titles to last season’s championships won in the 50 and 100 freestyles. She’s seeded first in both races (23.00 and 50.40, respectively), with her 100 time 81 hundredths of a second off the meet record swam in 2017. She’s also part of top-seeded 200 and 400 freestyle relays.
Gracie Olsen, Fenton sophomore: Olsen had a memorable freshman year meet last year winning the IM, finishing second in the butterfly and swimming on two scoring relays. This time she’s seeded fourth in the butterfly (57.43) and second in the 200 free (1:52.49), with spots on two seventh-seeded relays.
Charlotte Schultz, Dexter junior: After swimming to a fifth place in the 500, sixth in the 200 free and on two scoring relays last season, Schultz is seeded first in the backstroke (58.81) and also sixth in the 200 (1:55.51). She’ll also swim on two top-seven seeded relays.
Hannah Williams, Portage Northern freshman: Williams enters her first MHSAA Final as the top seed in the 200 free (1:51.21) by more than a second. She’s also seeded ninth in the 100 free (53.62) and will swim as part of two top-six seeded relays.
Kamila Podsiadlo, Walled Lake Western junior: Podsiadlo rose from sixth as a freshman to champion last season, winning the title by more than 16 points. She finished second at her Regional to Dexter’s Lily Witte (see below).
Lily Witte, Dexter freshman: Witte has won five junior national championships and earned fourth and sixth places at the 2019 Junior Pan American Championships. Her qualifying meet score last week of 467.90 was more than 25 points higher than anyone else’s in Division 2.
LP Division 3 at Oakland University
Reigning champion: East Grand Rapids
2018 runner-up: Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
2019 top-ranked: T-1. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, T-1. Bloomfield Hills Marian, 3. East Grand Rapids.
East Grand Rapids has won six of the last 10 Division 3 championships, plus a seventh in Division 2 in 2017 to make the Pioneers’ current streak three Finals titles in a row. They scored 330 points last year to win by 46, and enter this weekend with all three relays and 14 individuals seeded to score plus a returning placer in diving. Cranbrook won three of the four Division 3 titles EGR didn’t over the last decade and enters with all three relays and 12 individuals seeded to score – including three tops seeds – plus a placing diver from 2018. Marian was fourth last season after finishing runner-up in 2016 and 2017. The Mustangs will be in the mix of what could be a close meet with three relays and 13 individuals seeded to score.
Ellie Frost, South Haven junior: Frost won the 50 and finished third in the 100 freestyle last season, and she’s expected to score big in both again. She’s seeded first in the 50 (23.83) and sixth in the 100 (53.65).
Justine Murdock, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood junior: After winning the backstroke championship a year ago, she’s seeded first in that race (57.58). She’s also seeded second in the IM (2:10.05) after finishing fifth last season, and is part of top-seeded 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays.
Riley Nugent, Plainwell sophomore: Last season’s 500 champion also came in seventh in the 200 free and swam on a scoring relay. She’s seeded first in the 500 (5:01.89) and 200 (1:53.28) this time and swimming on two relays seeded to score.
Mary Snyder, Bloomfield Hills Marian sophomore: Snyder started her high school Finals career by finishing fourth in the breaststroke, eighth in the IM and as part of two scoring relays including the champion in the 200 medley. She’s seeded first in the IM (2:09.87), second in the breaststroke (1:06.86) and will swim on two second-seeded relays.
Emily Solarski, Tecumseh senior: Solarski will look for a strong finish to her high school career seeded first in the butterfly (56.89) and also swimming the 50 and as part of two top-five seeded relays.
Alysa Wager, Battle Creek Harper Creek senior: Wager posted a second place in the butterfly and third in the breaststroke and also swam on two scoring relays last season. She’s seeded first in the breaststroke (1:06.27) and seventh in the butterfly (58.13), plus will swim on two relays seeded to score.
Delaney Wesolek, Bay City John Glenn senior: After finishing ninth in the 100 free and 14th in the backstroke and swimming on two scoring relays in 2018, Wesolek is expected to score even more in her final high school meet. She’s seeded first in the 100 (52.86), third in the 200 free (1:55.16) and as part of the top-seeded 200 free relay and third-seeded 400 relay.
Gwenyth Woodbury, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood junior: She finished second in both the 100 and 200 freestyles last year but won both races as a freshman. She’s seeded second in the butterfly (57.18) and 200 free (1:53.67) this weekend and will swim as part of two top-three seeded relays including the favorite in the 400.
Rayah Blood, Hamilton junior: Blood moved up from third as a freshman to second last season, and her 446.20 score to win her diving qualifier last week bested the entire Division 3 field by nearly 18 points.
PHOTO: Ann Arbor Skyline's Allison Haak swims to a fifth-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle at last season's LPD1 Finals. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)