Marquette Girls End Title Wait with Big Win
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
February 16, 2019
MARQUETTE — It was a dominating performance by the Marquette girls to say the least as they ran away with the Upper Peninsula swimming & diving title with 352 points Saturday.
The Redettes, who won for the first time in four years, were followed by Kingsford with 217 points and Houghton at 185.
“We’ve been kind of waiting for this,” said junior Mollie Kilpela, who helped the Redettes win the 200-yard medley relay in a school-record 1 minute, 57.2 seconds. “That got us hyped up and excited for the rest of the meet.
“This is a nice way for our team to end the season. We have only one senior on the team. Next year we’re going to be better, I think.”
Joining Kilpela in the day’s first race were sophomores Lexi LaCombe and Erin Vanderschaaf and freshman Kelsey Glover.
Vanderschaaf also helped Marquette set the U.P. Finals and school record in the 400 freestyle relay at 3:48.56, with LaCombe and Kilpela helping the Redettes take second in the 200 freestyle event in a school-record 1:44.65.
“I knew this was going to be pretty special for sure,” said eighth-year Marquette coach Nathan McFerrin. “Overall, this is the best team I’ve had as coach. We were very balanced. In many events we had three place among the top six.
“My coaching technique is it’s difficult to be successful if you don’t trust yourself, teammates and coaches. This was a big culmination of our season, and today it all came together.”
Marquette sophomore Kali McDonough won Friday’s diving competition with 163.9 points.
Vanderschaaf won Saturday’s 500 freestyle (5:14.14), and junior teammate Taryn Aho took the 200 freestyle (2:02.01).
Kingsford senior Peyton Johnson set a U.P. Finals record in the 100 backstroke in 59.51 seconds, shattering the old mark (1:03.32) by Ashley Oliver of Painesdale Jeffers-Ironwood from 2005.
Johnson also helped the Flivvers establish a record in the 200 freestyle relay (1:43.51) and was runner-up to Robertson in the 200 IM (2:17.7).
Joining Johnson on the winning relay were seniors Emily Bruns and Ailie Schoenborn and freshman Sydney Scott.
Sault Ste. Marie sophomore Aliah Robertson set the U.P. Finals record in the 200 individual medley at 2:10.02, topping the previous best by Marquette’s Jenny Laughna (2:12.43) swam in 1994, and retained her 100 butterfly title at 59.4 seconds.
“I always take one or two of my teammates to help me at the starting line,” said Robertson, who was also crowned champion in the 100 breaststroke a year ago. “They encourage me and give me pointers. They help keep my mind off things so I don’t get too nervous. I was really excited when I found out I set the record in the 200 IM. This is a bit of a confidence boost.”
Sault freshman Joanne Arbic was also a double winner, taking the 50 freestyle (25.87) and 100 freestyle (56.21).
Reigning team champion Gladstone had an individual winner in senior Sydney Herioux, who took the 100 breaststroke (1:08.95).
“It was really awesome,” said Herioux, who will attend Saginaw Valley State University this fall and play softball for the Cardinals. “This is the last race I’ll ever swim. It feels great to go out like that.”
PHOTOS: A Marquette swimmer powers off the block during a relay at Saturday's Upper Peninsula Finals. (Middle) Gladstone's Sydney Herioux powers to the win in the breaststroke. (Click for more from Jarvinen Photos.)
Added Inspiration Boosts EGR to Title 23
November 23, 2019
By Keith Dunlap
Special for Second Half
ROCHESTER – This one was for the coach.
The East Grand Rapids girls swimming & diving team drove across the state this weekend to Oakland University to attempt to repeat as Lower Peninsula Division 3 champion without a key figure: legendary head coach Butch Briggs.
Briggs, who had led East Grand Rapids to 22 MHSAA Finals titles, is still recovering from surgery performed last week and wasn’t present for this year’s meet.
But Briggs no doubt had a smile on his face after his girls entered the meet as underdogs but once again left as champions.
Despite entering ranked No. 3 in LPD3, East Grand Rapids won its fourth straight title (the 2017 title was in Division 2) and 23rd overall, this time with 317 points.
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood was runner-up with 306 points, while Bloomfield Hills Marian was third at 245.
East Grand Rapids assistant coach Chris Ingram didn’t want to get into specifics about Briggs’ surgery, but was obviously thrilled with how his girls rallied around the situation.
“We knew it would be a tight meet,” Ingram said. “The kids, they just swam well. A great group of kids to work with. We don’t talk much about other teams. We can only take care of what we can take care of. We swam lights out.”
The East Grand Rapids team of sophomore Sophie Williams, junior Claire Witting, junior Emma Israels and sophomore Barbara Bart won the 200-yard medley relay in a time of 1:45.04, and sophomore Greta Milnes won the 100 freestyle to comprise the first-place finishes for East Grand Rapids.
The Pioneers had three second-place finishes, two of which came in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays, and a third-place finish as well.
“They’re champions,” Cranbrook head coach Chris Bailey said of East Grand Rapids. “A shoutout to their coach, who is in the hospital now. No doubt, those girls swam inspired for him. He’s a great guy, and I’ve learned a lot from him. They’re rock stars.”
The individual standouts of the meet were Cranbrook junior Justine Murdock and Battle Creek Harper Creek senior Alysa Wager.
Wager won the 100 butterfly in a time of 54.88 and the 100 breaststroke in a time of 1:04.50.
Murdock won the 200 individual medley in 2:05.62 and set an LPD3 Finals record with a first-place time of 54.53 in the 100 backstroke.
Murdock repeated as backstroke champion and improved on a fifth-place finish at last year’s meet in the individual medley.
“I was a little bit sick last year at the state meet, so that kind of made my state meet harder to manage,” Murdock said. “I’m a little healthier now, and I was ready to do this for my team. I definitely was hungry, and I’m really excited for sure.”
Other individual winners were Cranbrook junior Gwenyth Woodbury in the 200 freestyle (1:49.07), Hamilton junior Hannah Fathman in the 50 freestyle (23.95), Adrian senior Anabelle Hurley-Rosen in diving (459.15) and Plainwell sophomore Riley Nugent in the 500 freestyle (5:01.39).
Cranbrook won the 200 and 400 relay events with times of 1:36.20, and 3:27.93, respectively.
PHOTOS: (Top) East Grand Rapids' Greta Milnes swims to the championship in the 100 freestyle Saturday at Oakland University. (Middle) Cranbrook's Justine Murdock swims to the win in the 200 IM, one of her two Finals victories. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)