Practice Makes Champion for Saline
November 22, 2014
By Chip Mundy
Special to Second Half
YPSILANTI – Saline swimming coach Todd Brunty often ends practice the same way, setting up a relay with the atmosphere of a race that would decide the outcome of a meet.
Practice became reality Saturday afternoon at the Michael H. Jones Natatorium on the campus of Eastern Michigan University.
But this time, the final race – the 400-yard freestyle relay - didn’t decide a normal meet; it decided the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 swimming and diving championship.
“Every single time we finish practice, Todd always says, ‘Swim like it’s coming down to the last relay,’ and that’s exactly what we did,” said Saline senior Alex McPherson, who swam the second leg on the relay as Saline won it in 3 minutes, 28.13 seconds.
Farmington Hills Mercy, which led the meet by a half-point coming into the final event, was second in the relay in 3:31.26. Saline won the championship by a margin of 267.5-262.
Junior Amelia Armstrong-Grant swam the first leg for Saline, followed by McPherson, junior Allison Eppinga and freshman Lizzy Spears.
Brunty said he had no reservations about having a freshman swim the last leg in such an important race.
“She had a tough meet. It was her first year here, but we stuck with her,” he said of Spears. “She got a baptism by fire right there.
“She did a job, and that’s part of this team. We have expectations here, and no matter who you are, at any given time you have to be willing to swim.”
The girls made a point to say they were swimming more for each other than for themselves.
“When I was on the blocks, I just thought, ‘This is it. Swim for them, not for yourself,’” McPherson said. “I love these girls more than anything, and I just wanted to win for them. I consider all of those girls my sisters, and I’m not going to let down my family.”
McPherson was the only senior on the relay, and Spears – the freshman who swam the last leg – said winning for McPherson was important.
“I had to do it for Alex because it’s her senior year, and I had to do it for the rest of the team,” she said. “It’s such an honor to swim the last leg. All I was thinking was that I had to be the first one to the wall, and the team was counting on that.”
Saline had roughly a 3-second lead when Spears entered the water for her final leg, and the winning margin was roughly 3 seconds.
“I told them all I needed was a lead,” she said.
It was the third MHSAA team championship for Saline, and like the two previous ones, it came without an individual champion on the swimming side.
However, Saline did have a champion in diving, and it dominated the event with four divers finishing among the top 15. Sophomore Amy Stevens defended her title and won with 488.20 points – an LP Division 1 Final record – while Camryn McPherson was second, Miranda Eberle seventh and Emmi Ruela 15th.
Stevens had roughly a 10-point lead over McPherson after the semifinal and maintained that edge throughout the final. McPherson had won the Regional title by 19 points.
“You always want your teammates to do good, but you don’t want them to do better than you,” Stevens said. “It’s great competing with them because it’s a fun environment, and when you are having fun you always dive well.”
Brunty made a point to single out the divers for their contribution to the overall championship.
“The divers were paramount to our win,” he said, pointing to the trophy. “It does say swimming and diving, and a lot of people think it’s something else, but we’re going to make sure people understand that we are a program that believes in everything.
“We support diving. A lot of coaches sometimes forget how important it can be, but I think we proved today that diving is an integral part of the sport. It is a swimming and diving state championship, and we are the state champs.”
Armstrong-Grant finished second in the 200 freestyle and third in the 100 freestyle, while McPherson was runner-up in the 500 freestyle and fifth in the 200 freestyle. Eppinga also tied for fifth in the 100 freestyle and took sixth in the 100 backstroke.
Saline also was third in both the 200 medley relay and the 200 freestyle relay, and the meet took a dramatic turn in the latter. Farmington Hills Mercy was disqualified when its leadoff swimmer moved in the blocks before the race began. The Marlins finished third but had to forfeit their 32 points from that event.
“Everybody drops the ball every now and then,” Mercy coach Shannon Dunworth said. “Our girl flinched on the blocks. You have to remain motionless, and she twitched.
“The kids did marvelous. I think they’ve got their heads up, and my hat’s off to Saline for sure.”
Mercy won the meet-opening 200 medley relay in 1:45 with Katie Minnich, Maddie Loniewski, Alaina Skellett and Roxanne Griffore making up the team. Minnich, a freshman, later won the 100 backstroke in 55.06 for Mercy’s only individual championship.
The meet also was highlighted by record-breaking efforts by two Waterford swimmers who successfully defended their 2013 championships.
Senior Miranda Tucker, who plans to swim at Indiana University next year, broke her all-division record set last year in the 200 IM (1:59.14). She also broke her all-division record in the 100 breaststroke in the prelims on Friday (1:00.58) and again in the final (1:00.56).
Tucker admitted she was a little disappointed that she was not able to take her breaststroke time under 1 minute.
“I was pretty mad that I didn’t break that minute barrier that I’ve been hoping for all this time,” she said. “But I got to thinking it over. I’m just enjoying myself. I’m going all out to see what I can do. There’s always another chance.
“I felt like I could have done better, but I’ll take what I can get. I gave it my all.”
Waterford senior Maddie Wright closed out her high school career with her seventh and eighth Finals championships. She repeated in the 200 freestyle in 1:49.30 and had to come from behind to edge Morgan Bullock of Zeeland in the 100 butterfly with a time of 54.51.
“Morgan has incredible underwaters, and she was just beating me on all of those,” Wright said. “For a while, I was thinking maybe it’s someone else’s turn to be the champion, and then on the last turn I just saw her and said, ‘I know I can make that up. I know I can do it.’ It was very close.
“I loved every second of it.”
Another successful defense was turned in by Northville sophomore Laura Westphal in the 500 freestyle. She won in 4:54.46, less than a second ahead of Saline’s Alex McPherson.
“It was really fun,” Westphal said. “I enjoyed it. I was a little concerned as they were gaining on me the last bit. I think we all went faster because we had better competition. I’m glad how it turned out.”
Grand Blanc sophomore Emma Curtis took the 50 freestyle in exciting fashion as she out-touched Erin Hudson of Rockford to win by one hundredth of a second in 23.60.
“Honestly, I didn’t know if I had won,” Curtis said. “I had no idea. As it was getting close to the end, I took a breath and saw her. She was right next to me, so I knew it could have went either way.”
Hudson was part of Rockford’s winning 200 freestyle relay team that finished in 1:35.88. Other members of that relay were Meegan Snyman, Dakota Noble and Peyton Rayburn.
Brighton sophomore Taylor Seaman won the 100 freestyle in 51.16, while Rockford won the 200 freestyle relay in 1:35.88.
But the day belonged to Saline.
“I’m just proud of the girls and the resolve they showed throughout the day,” Brunty said. “We didn’t swim our best, but we swam good enough to be state champs, so we’ll take it.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Saline's Amy Stevens performs a dive en route to repeating as champion of the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final on Saturday. (Middle) A Saline swimmer competes for the eventual team champion at Eastern Michigan University. (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.)