Rockford Wins 1st Finals on Last Event
November 19, 2016
By Ed Wright
Special for Second Half
ROCHESTER – During the final climactic moments of Saturday’s drama-saturated MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Girls Swimming and Diving Championship Meet, possibly the coolest customer in the jam-packed Oakland University natatorium was the one bearing the most pressure – Rockford’s 400-yard freestyle relay anchor Peyton Rayburn.
With her team clinging to a precarious four-point lead over Farmington Hills Mercy heading into the final event and needing to finish ahead of the Marlins in the race to capture its first MHSAA girls swimming and diving title, Rayburn proved to be Ram tough, overcoming a fraction-of-a-second deficit to push past her Mercy counterpart and spark a joyful orange-and-black victory explosion on the nearby deck.
“Relays are the most fun part of the meets for me so, honestly, I was more excited than nervous,” Rayburn said, reflecting on the seconds leading up to her exclamation-point performance. “My mindset was, ‘Hey, I’ve been training and practicing for this for a long time; now it’s time to let the hard work pay off, give it everything I have, and hope it’s good enough.’
“This is the best team in the history of Rockford swimming, so it feels great to be able to contribute. It probably won’t totally set in for me though until the drive home when I’m eating my ice cream.”
Setting the stage for Rayburn’s last-leg heroics were her three 400 relay teammates: Hunter Ignasiak, Morgan Kraus and Sara Fredricks. The foursome’s time of 3 minutes, 26.55 seconds placed it behind first-place Saline, but comfortably ahead of Mercy (3:28.21).
The Rams, who joined their coaches in a celebratory dip in one of the warm-up pools after receiving their trophy, piled up 249 points, 10 more than the runner-up Marlins.
Also in the hunt throughout the day were third-place Saline (231.5 points) and fourth-place Ann Arbor Skyline (221).
Sealing the deal
After three straight years of knocking on the door of an MHSAA Finals title, it felt good to finally break the door down, noted Rockford coach Tom Parks.
“Even though we finished in the top four the last three years, we didn’t really have a shot at winning it,” said Parks. “This year, though, the girls knew it was possible. They knew they belonged here and they knew what they were capable of.
“I really didn’t think about us winning today until the 400 relay. The three girls in front of Peyton swam out of their minds. Peyton is a 49-second swimmer in the 100, so I felt pretty good when she hit the water.”
The Marlins reached the threshold of a championship with a team that included seven freshmen and a solid nucleus of upperclassman, including champion backstroker Katie Minnich.
“There is nothing better than for a state championship meet to come down to the last event like it did today,” said first-year Mercy coach Mike Venos. “I was very proud of the way our girls stepped up – not just today, but throughout the entire season.”
The meet was peppered with several LPD1 Finals record performances, including Saline senior diver Camryn McPherson’s monumental effort on the board.
The reigning D1 champion, McPherson rang up 509.50 points to out-distance runner-up Zain Smith of Skyline by nearly 34.
“I was nervous coming into today, but once it’s my turn to compete, I focus on doing well for my team and having fun,” said McPherson, an Ohio State University commit. “My favorite dive is my last one, so once I hit it, I felt pretty good.”
Taylor-made sweep
Brighton senior freestyler Taylor Seaman capped her brilliant high school career with a golden sweep of the 50- and 100-yard freestyle races.
The top seed in the 50 following Friday’s preliminaries, Seaman edged Farmington Hills Harrison’s Ashley Turak, 22.86 seconds to 23.08. Seaman then delivered a 49.64 effort in the 100 to edge runner-up Rayburn by an eyelash.
“Last year, I wasn’t able to cut my time from the conference meet to the state meet, so that was my main goal coming into this weekend,” Seaman said.
Headed to Brown University next year, Seaman revealed that a solid suggestion from her parents helped put her in a good frame of mind for Saturday’s success.
“A lot of my teammates stayed in hotels around here (following Friday’s preliminaries), but my parents thought it would be better if I slept in my own bed and went through my normal routine, since it was only a 45-minute drive (from Brighton),” Seaman said. “It was nice being able to wake up and cuddle with my dog (Murphy), eat breakfast like I always do, and then drive out here. I got to meet (U.S. Olympic Swimmer and Canton native) Allison Schmitt, too, so that was cool.”
Skyline’s strong showing was fueled by double-winner Emma Cleason, who touched first in both the 200 individual medley (2:00.86) and the 100 butterfly (54.28).
While Rayburn’s last-race heroics were huge, the Rams won with depth, Parks emphasized.
Among the winners’ sterling standouts was Sydney McDowell, a senior who will be returning to Oakland next fall to swim for the Grizzlies.
McDowell won the 100 breaststroke in addition to contributing fifth-place points in the 200 IM.
“We knew we’d be in the mix this year, but we knew it would take a total-team effort,” said McDowell, who celebrated her final high school meet by consuming a package of Nutella. “Everybody did their part today, which makes it even more special."
With his team flashing 100-watt smiles around him, Parks said he was proud to bring Rockford – and the western side of the state – a long-awaited Division 1 championship.
“Since 1975, with the exceptions of a couple of years, the Ann Arbor schools and the teams from the Oly Swim Club have pretty much dominated the state meet,” he said. “The fact we were able to break through this year is truly amazing and a reflection of how hard these girls worked.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Rockford celebrates its Division 1 championship from atop the medal podium. (Middle) Saline diver Camryn McPherson competes Saturday on the way to a repeat title. (Below) Swimmers fill the pool at Oakland University. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.
East Grand Rapids Legacy Adds Title 22
November 17, 2018
By Butch Harmon
Special for Second Half
HOLLAND – The more things change for the East Grand Rapids girls swimming & diving team, the more they remain the same.
After graduating a large and talented senior class that led East to the 2017 Lower Peninsula Division 2 championship, the Pioneers moved back into Division 3 and won their 22nd MHSAA Finals title in the sport, and third consecutive title.
East Grand Rapids totaled 330 points this time to win by 46 over Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, while Hamilton placed third with 191 points.
For East Grand Rapids, the keys were a new crop of talented swimmers carrying on the tradition of hard work and winning, and a senior class determined to carry on the legacy as well.
“We lost two great senior classes the last two years that have been able to win state championships,” said East Grand Rapids coach Butch Briggs. “Losing 20 kids each year and being able to come back and keep it going is really extra-special for this group of kids. We had a lot of young kids that helped us immensely.”
Two who came through for the Pioneers were freshmen Greta Milnes and Sophie Williams. Milnes and Williams swam the first two legs of the 400-yard relay. Senior Sydney Higgins and sophomore Emma Israels swam the last two legs as the Pioneers won in a time of 3:29.66.
Higgins also won the 200 individual medley in a time of 2:07.82. Higgins used a strong finishing kick to come back and pick up extra team points.
“I’m really happy,” Higgins said. “It’s good points for the team, so I’m excited. I just swim my own race and don’t really look at anyone else.”
East Grand Rapids senior Laura Levine earned all-state honors in both the 50 freestyle and as part of the 200 free relay.
“It’s crazy,” Levine said. “Honestly, I couldn’t ask for a better team, a better state team and better coaching. Coach has been with me since I started swimming. We had a lot of freshmen this year that really pulled their weight. They were all super positive. Our seniors were also amazing. We lost a lot of good people, and we filled those spots and came out victorious.”
Lauren Ors and Emily Bergstrom were part of this year’s senior class that carried on the Pioneers’ swimming legacy.
“This is one of the most special meets of my whole life,” Ors said. “It’s because of the people I’m with. This team is absolutely incredible, and we’re so lucky to be a part of it.”
Bergstrom also credited the chemistry of the entire program for the team’s success year after year.
“This is such a special experience, and we are so blessed to be with such a great coaching staff and such great teammates,” Bergstrom said. “This is absolutely incredible. This team has just worked so hard for such a long time.”
Along with East Grand Rapids winning three straight team championships, Milan senior diver Mackenzie Crawford closed out her career with a third straight title. She also set a Division 3 meet record, as she totaled 494.8 points.
“Today I was really trying to break the D3 record, and I did so I’m really freaking out right now,” Crawford said. “I was so close. It was by five points that I broke it.”
Crawford, who signed with Ohio State University earlier in the week, broke the record by coming up big on her final dive, a reverse one-and-a-half, one-and-a-half twist.
“It’s so hard for me to do,” Crawford said. “It’s more of a dive that huge guys do. It’s one and a half flips, one and a half twists and it’s reverse too, so it’s scary. I needed to get sevens on it, and I got a lot of big points.”
Cranbrook Kingswood, last year’s Division 3 champion, was led by sophomore Justine Murdock, who won the 100 backstroke in 56.34.
Hamilton was led by its 200 free relay team of Hannah Fathman, Ayvah Johnson, Jenna Kloosterman and Nella Pashak, who turned in a winning time of 1:36.30.
Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett placed sixth as a team led by a pair of swimmers who won a combined three individual titles. Junior Sophie Housey claimed a pair, in the 100 freestyle in a meet record time of 50.23, and then the 200 freestyle in 1:48.37.
Freshman Ginger McMahon won the 100 breaststroke in 1:04.94.
Pontiac Notre Dame Prep junior Rhianna Hensler won the butterfly for a third time in her career. Hensler took first in 55.67.
Bloomfield Hills Marian finished fourth as a team, led by its 200 medley relay team of Lauren Sielicki, Mary Snyder, Anika Fassett and Julie Waechter. They placed first in a time of 1:46.71.
A pair of West Michigan teams recorded firsts.
Plainwell freshman Riley Nugent, competing in her Finals, claimed her first championship as she won the 500 freestyle in a time of 5:02.02. The top seed coming into the race, Nugent shrugged off the pressure and set a new personal record by some four seconds.
“It’s amazing,” Nugent said. “I’m so beyond happy. I was very nervous because there were seniors and juniors all around me. I was very nervous, but I went out there and I tried my best, and that’s all I could ask for myself.”
South Haven sophomore Ellie Frost won the 50 freestyle in a time of 23.59. As a freshman, Frost was runner-up in both the 50 and 100 freestyles. Not only was it Frost’s first Finals title, but the first in South Haven school history.
“It’s real exciting,” said Frost. “I’m so happy. I just tried to focus on the end goal this year, and it worked out. It was a really close race. I’m really happy with it, and it’s so exciting to have my teammates here with me to share it.”
PHOTOS: (Top) East Grand Rapids hoists a girls swimming & diving champion’s trophy for the 22nd time at Saturday’s Division 3 Finals. (Middle) South Haven’s Ellie Frost launches; she won her school’s first Finals title in this sport. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)