Grand Blanc Champ's Choices Paying Off
September 29, 2015
By Bill Khan
Special for Second Half
GRAND BLANC — Emma Curtis had two decisions to make as she entered high school.
The first: Volleyball or swimming?
"I had a lot more fun during swimming, because of the people that I met," the Grand Blanc junior said. "When you get really good times, it's the best feeling in the world, so I just stuck with swimming."
The second: High school or club swimming?
Travel seasons in most sports don't conflict with high schools seasons, but swimmers have the option of competing in non-school programs rather than their high school teams. It was certainly a consideration for Curtis, a year-round swimmer who was beginning to hit her stride entering ninth grade.
Once again, as was the case when choosing a sport, the personal relationships she developed tipped the scales in favor of the high school team.
"I met great people," she said. "I just wanted to stick with them. I just loved the people. They have really good practices and I love the coach, so I just stuck with high school."
That was a huge relief to Grand Blanc coach Emily Overmyer, who knew about Curtis from her summer club performances and who coached her brother, Bailey.
"We were really glad she came out," Overmyer said. "She started to drop time instantly and became a very big factor on the team as a freshman."
According to Monday’s post by the Michigan Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association, Curtis has swam the third-fastest 50 time this fall statewide (24.19, second-fastest for LP Division 1 swimmers only), the eighth-fastest Division 1 time in the butterfly (1:00.98) and the fifth-fastest Division 1 time (and ninth overall) in the 100 freestyle (53.83).
Curtis had her first all-state performance as a freshman in the 2013 MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 meet, swimming the first leg for the seventh-place 200-yard freestyle relay team. Curtis teamed with Eryn Scannell, Rachel Eaton and Lindsay Baywol, a quartet that previously had set the Kensington Lakes Activities Association Lakes Conference record with a time of 1:38.46.
Curtis missed out on all-state in the 50 freestyle when she lost a swim-off with South Lyon's Stormy Malarik for the eighth and final spot in the championship heat. All eight swimmers in the final make all-state from MISCA. Curtis wound up with a 10th-place finish after swimming the consolation heat.
She was 14th in the 100 freestyle and was on the ninth-place 400 freestyle relay team.
Those were solid performances for a ninth-grader in her first MHSAA Finals meet, but they didn't foreshadow what was to come for Curtis last year. Even Curtis had no idea that the stage was set for her to make history the following season.
"Going to states my freshman year, I didn't really place well because it was my first time," she said. "I wasn't very good back then, so going into my sophomore year, I didn't expect to place really high."
She came to the LP Division 1 Finals at Eastern Michigan University to culminate a season in which she set five individual or relay school records, giving her a total of six in her first two years.
When Curtis stood on the starting board for the 50 freestyle final, she was about to hit the water with three other swimmers who beat her the previous year. Not only did Curtis have to lower her own times as a sophomore, but she needed to improve at a greater rate than her competition.
Curtis touched the wall with a time of 23.60 seconds, but it wasn't a clear-cut victory. Rockford senior Erin Hudson, who was second in 2013, hit the wall at nearly the same time.
"It was a very, very close race," Overmyer said. "Everybody had to look at the scoreboard to see what the actual result was, because you couldn't tell by the naked eye."
Curtis' name was in first place by one-hundredth of a second over Hudson. Curtis didn't look at the scoreboard to see if she had won. The faces of her teammates on the pool deck said it all.
"When I finished at the wall all of my teammates were screaming, 'You won states, you won!" Curtis said. "My friend (Scannell) actually pulled me up out of the water when I won; she's just funny."
Curtis knew she was in a close battle, catching occasional glimpses of Hudson during the race.
"That was really exciting," Curtis said. "When I would take a breath, I would see she was right next to me. I was trying to push through and go fast."
The Bobcats have had a strong swimming and diving program over the years, but Curtis became only the third MHSAA champion from Grand Blanc. Julie Little was the Class A diving champion in 1989 and Sarah Salenski won the 100 breaststroke in 1992.
Curtis' day wasn't done. She improved to fourth place in the 100 freestyle with a time of 52.01 seconds, then helped Grand Blanc take fifth place in the 200 freestyle relay, along with Sydney Schmit, Lindsey Sieloff and Scannell.
Earlier, Curtis was on a 12th-place 200 medley relay team.
"At the last state meet, I just did not feel good at all," Curtis said. "I was really tired when it got to the 100. Both are sprint races, so the 100 takes a whole lot more out of you. You could say I'm better in the 50. I'm getting a lot stronger in the 100. I did really good during the summer. It's a long course (during non-school events), so it's 100 meters instead of 100 yards. I don't really know what my time would be in yards, but it was a good time for a long course."
Now that Curtis is a defending MHSAA champion, she can't sneak up on anybody when the Division 1 Finals are held Nov. 20-21 at Holland Aquatic Center.
Overmyer is trying to ensure Curtis doesn't feel any undue pressure to repeat.
"We're trying not to focus on that," Overmyer said. "She doesn't appear to be putting any extra pressure on herself. She always puts extra pressure on herself because she doesn't want to let the team down. She always competes for the team and goes where she's needed. When it comes to pressure, that's the main aspect of it."
Bill Khan served as a sportswriter at The Flint Journal from 1981-2011 and currently contributes to the State Champs! Sports Network. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Emma Curtis, goggles off, looks to the scoreboard after the 50 freestyle final at last season’s LP Division 1 meet. (Middle) Curtis stands on the top of the award stand, flanked by Rockford’s runner-up Erin Hudson and third-place finisher Meegan Snyman.
Final Relay Win Gives Marian Team Title
November 22, 2014
By Butch Harmon
Special to Second Half
HOLLAND – Heading into this year’s MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 2 Girls Swimming and Diving Finals, Bloomfield Hills Marian coach William Thompson expected a wide-open battle.
He also expected the title to be decided in the final race.
And that’s exactly what happened as his 400-yard freestyle relay team edged Ann Arbor Skyline by six hundredths of a second to claim the deciding points and deliver Marian its third MHSAA title.
Marian finished with 231.5 points to edge Skyline, which finished with 220 points at the Holland Aquatic Center.
“During the 400 relay, I walked over to the Skyline coach and told her if you don’t think this is fun, holy smokes,” Thompson said. “She was tickled pink too.
“My hunch is that this was the best meet to be at. It was such a close finish.”
Portage Central took third with 219.5 points, followed by Dexter (215) and Birmingham Seaholm (211) to round out the top five.
Marian’s 400 relay of junior Christian Schott, sophomores Sophia Schott and Kailyn Swantek, and senior Mollie Pulte pulled it out for the Mustangs in the final event.
“We knew we had to win the 400 to win the meet,” Pulte said. “It was a close race and I was going up against Katie Portz, who I went up against in the 100 and 200 free(style) finals. I knew it was close at the end, but I didn’t want to let my teammates down. I’ve never had a greater feeling in my life. All the hard work of the last four years paid off. It’s such a great feeling.”
The two-day meet was a memorable end to her outstanding high school career.
Pulte, who set MHSAA Finals records last year in both the 100 and 200 freestyles, added a pair of individual titles to go with the team title this season. She won the 200 free in a time of 1:48.28 and by only 15 hundredths of a second.
Pulte, who is headed to the University of Florida to continue her career next season, won the 100 free in 50.21 and also broke her LP Division 2 Finals record in the 200 free in Friday’s preliminaries with a time of 1:47.88.
Winning the team title, however, was the biggest highlight.
“Friday I was swimming for myself, to have the best time,” Pulte said. “(Saturday), it was all about the team. All I wanted to do was to be the first to touch the wall. I just wanted to help my team get points and win the title. To go out as a senior with a team state championship, it was just the biggest day. There was no way I was going to let down the other 20 girls on the team. They were all behind me cheering me on, and I was not going to let them down.”
Pulte was not the only Marian individual champion. Sophia Schott won the 50 freestyle in a time of 23.66, by two hundredths of a second.
“I knew it was real close,” Schott said. “I just put my head down and went as hard as I could. I didn’t see the time at the end, but then all my teammates came up to me yelling and screaming and telling me I won. It was so exciting.”
Schott also got the Mustangs off to a fast start in the 400 free relay as the first leg.
“It’s a feeling I’ve never felt before,” Schott said. “I’m so proud of everyone. It was real exciting, and everybody was so pumped up and so excited. We knew we had to have everyone step up.”
Team effort was the key, Thompson said.
“It was not the superstars that win a meet like this,” Thompson said. “The kids that you don’t hear about were the ones who won the meet (Saturday). We needed the whole team to step up. It wasn’t about individuals; it was everyone on the team contributing to get this.”
For second-place Skyline, just being in the hunt was a big accomplishment. Skyline was on pace to finish fifth at the end of Friday’s preliminaries, but was keyed in part by a couple of close runner-up finishes by Portz.
“We never expected to be here,” Skyline coach Maureen Isaac said. “We had a pretty tough day (Friday), but the girls came back today. They scratched and clawed and came back today. We were not even in the hunt at the end of the day yesterday, but the heart that these girls showed was amazing. They refused to give up and just kept clawing back.”
The runner-up finish was the second in three years for Skyline, as the Eagles also placed second at the 2012 meet.
Saturday’s Final also provided a memorable end to the high school career of Holland senior Taylor Garcia. Garcia, who will swim at the University of Arizona next year, entered the finals with six individual titles and was also part of six relay winners as she helped Holland win the last three team titles.
While Holland finished 10th as a team this season, Garcia again enjoyed a big meet as she won both the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke. Garcia set a new meet record in the 100 butterfly with a time of 53.95, which broke her record of 54.01 set last year.
“I really wanted to break my state record,” Garcia said. “I didn’t break it by much, but I’ll take it. It was very exciting winning it here in Holland. My family and friends were all here, and that meant a lot. It also meant a lot to do it here for the entire Holland community and our team.”
Garcia won the 100 backstroke in a time of 53.37, giving her four straight Finals titles in that race to go with four straight in the 100 butterfly.
Krissy Harmon of Bay City Western wrapped up her high school career as a two-time Finals champion in the 500 freestyle. Harmon, who came in unseeded to win the 500 last year, was the top seed this time and swam a time of 4:55.38.
“I definitely felt a lot more pressure this year,” Harmon said. “Last year I barely had any pressure. This year I felt the pressure. It feels real good to win it again, and it is a relief. I’m really happy to end my high school career on a good note.”
Harmon will be continuing her career at Oakland University next year.
Another record fell in the diving competition, where Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central sophomore Erin Neely set an LP Division 2 Final record with a score of 450.75. Neely finished third at last year’s Final and came into this year’s event with the top score from the Regional round.
Rochester Adams sophomore Nicole Pape also enjoyed this year’s Final much more than her first trip last year. In 2013, Pape experienced a case of food poising during the Final. This year, she was at full strength and won the 200 individual medley with a time of 2:02.74.
“It is so exciting to be here and win,” Pape said. “I felt like I was cheated last year, so I was so happy to make it back and be healthy.”
Pape also placed second in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:04.08. Senior Celia Hoag of Birmingham Seaholm won the breaststroke with a time of 1:03.66.
PHOTOS: (Top) Bloomfield Hills Marian hoists its team championship trophy Saturday at Holland Aquatic Center. (Middle) Holland’s Taylor Garcia swims for the title in the 100 butterfly. (Below) Rochester Adams’ Nicole Pape completes her championship swim in the 200 freestyle. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)