Swimming and Diving: Beware Falling Finals Records

November 19, 2011

Two 2010 MHSAA swimming and diving runners-up took the final step and claimed first-ever championships at Saturday’s Finals in Holland and Rochester. 

The third MHSAA champion, Farmington HIlls Mercy, added a fifth-straight title despite moving up to Division 1 and a less familiar group of competitors in Ypsilanti. 

A total of 12 records fell at the three Finals, including a few times that were the fastest in MHSAA Finals history, regardless of meet. Read on to find out who claimed all three team championships and all the broken records.

(Click for full results from all three Finals). 

Division 1 at Eastern Michigan

Farmington Hills Mercy won its fifth-straight MHSAA championship -- but first in Division 1 after claiming Division 2 titles the last four seasons. The Marlins scored 258 points, 14.5 more than two-time reigning champion Saline. 

Six Division 1 meet records fell. Ann Arbor Huron senior Anna DeMonte repeated as 200-yard individual medley champion with a Division 1 meet record time of 1:59.67. She did the same in the 100 backstroke with another meet record time of 54.56.

Other record breakers were Lake Orion senior Annie Jongekrijg in the 100 freestyle (50.32), Bloomfield Hills Marian’s Jaynie Pulte as a repeat champion in the 50 freestyle (23.23),  Saline’s 200 medley relay of junior Maddy Frost, senior Sammy Richart and juniors Emily Lau and Cristina Czyrka (1:45.97), and Hudsonville’s 200 freestyle relay of seniors Michaela Rookus, Audra Thornton, sophomore Makayla Myers and junior Danielle Freeman (1:35.46).

Waterford freshman Maddie Wright also won two individual events: the 200 freestyle by more than a second in 1:49.04, and the 100 butterfly by more than a second in 54.82.

Division 2 at Holland Aquatics

After three seasons coming in second, Holland won the MHSAA title by 131 points over runner-up Birmingham Seaholm. The championship was the Dutch’s first in girls swimming and diving.

Senior Courtney Bartholomew finished her career with four more championships, and all four set records at some level. She improved on her Division 2 meet record in the 200 IM with a time of 2:00.06, more than two seconds better than her previous record time. She also set an all-Finals record in the 100 backstroke with a time of 51.99.

Holland’s 200 medley relay of Bartholomew, junior Melissa Vandermeulen, freshman Taylor Garcia and sophomore Holly Morren set an all-Finals record of 1:41.12. Morren, Garcia, senior Klare Northuis and Bartholomew also set a Division 2 meet record of 3:24.46 in the 400 freestyle relay.

Garcia added the Division 2 meet record in the 100 butterfly by winning in 54.39 seconds, more than two faster than the previous record.

Although she didn’t improve on her meet record set previously, Birmingham Groves senior Annie Lazor won the 100 breaststroke title for the fourth time, in 1:02.43.

Division 3 at Oakland

After two seasons of East Grand Rapids first followed by Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, the annual contenders switched places Saturday with Cranbrook-Kingswood winning the MHSAA championship -- also its first.

Cranbrook-Kingswood scored 328.5 points, followed by East Grand Rapids with 265.5.

Only one meet record was set, but three athletes won multiple individual championships. Plainwell freshman Mallory Comerford set that Division 3 meet record, swimming the 50 freestyle in 23.62. She also won the 100 freestyle in 50.46.

Cranbrook-Kingswood junior Kylie Powrie won the 500 freestyle (5:04.30) and 200 freestyle (1:54.98) and Bloomfield Hills Lahser sophomore Ines Chares won the 100 backstroke (56.2) and 100 butterfly (57.21).

East Grand Rapids junior Olivia Kassouni repeated as diving champion with a score of 451.45, and sophomore teammate Anna Stephens was a repeat champion in the 100 breaststroke, in 1:05.75.

Preview: Could This Be Sault Ste. Marie's Season?

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

March 11, 2021

One of the most successful swimmers in Upper Peninsula high school history will have the opportunity Saturday to lead her team to a historic finish as well. 

Sault Ste. Marie senior Aliah Robertson will bring five individual and two relay championships into this weekend’s MHSAA Finals at Marquette High School with the Blue Devils strong contenders to claim their first team title. 

Diving is Friday at all swimming Saturday – click for more meet details. Both will be streamed live and viewable with subscription on MHSAA.tv

Here’s a glance at team and individual favorites:

Reigning champion: Marquette
Reigning runner-up: Sault Ste. Marie

Marquette has won the last two championships after finishing runner-up in 2017 and 2018, and the Redettes claimed last year’s title by 77 points. Sault Ste. Marie’s second place in 2020 was its highest finish since 2005. The Blue Devils enter with the top seeds in all three relays and five individual races, plus the reigning champion diver.

Joanne Arbic, Sault Ste. Marie junior – The two-time reigning champion in both the 50 and 100-yard  freestyles is seeded first in both (25.87 and 57.16, respectively). She also was part of two relay champs in 2020. 

Anna Hildebrand, Sault Ste. Marie junior – She also was on those two relay champions with Arbic and was second in the 200 free and third in the 500 last season. She’s the top seed in the 200 by more than three seconds with a 2:09.50 and the second seed to Arbic in the 100 (57.60). She set the meet record in the 50 last season. 

Delaney Marchiol, Marquette junior – The reigning 500 champion also has been part of relay winners each of the last two seasons. She is seeded second in the butterfly (1:06.74) and third in the breaststroke (1:17.62) this weekend. 

Adelaide McRoberts, Kingsford freshman – She enters her first Finals with the top seeds in the butterfly (1:00.06) and backstroke (1:00.96). 

Aliah Robertson, Sault Ste. Marie senior – She is seeded first in the breaststroke (1:07.39) by 10 seconds and the individual medley (2:12.88) by nearly 14. She holds in the meet records in both of those events and the breaststroke. 

Grace Sobczak, Marquette freshman – She also enters her first Finals with a chance to make a quick impact, seeded second in the IM (2:26.56) and first in the 500 (5:38.80). 

Sault Ste. Marie 200 medley relay – Robertson, Arbic, Hildebrand and sophomore Julie Innerebner have a seed time five seconds faster than the field at 1:56.24 after the same group won in a U.P. Finals-record 1:54.26 last season. 

Sault Ste. Marie 200 freestyle relay – Robinson, Arbic, Hildebrand and Innerebner also are the reigning champs in this relay, hoping to cut last season’s meet-record time of 1:42 and entering this weekend with a seed time of 1:45.26. 

Brianna Jones, Sault Ste. Marie sophomore – The reigning diving champion won last season with a 174.95. 

Avery Mariuzza, Ishepming Westwood senior – She finished second to Jones last season scoring a 173.80, and also fourth as a sophomore and third as a freshman. 

PHOTO: Sault Ste. Marie’s Aliah Robertson swims the winning 100-yard butterfly during the 2019 Upper Peninsula Finals. (Click for more from Jarvinen Photos.)