Pennsylvania High School State Championships

By David Rieder

LEWISBURG, Pennsylvania, March 21. THE Pennsylvania High School State Championships took place March 16-19 at Bucknell University. The meet featured four National High School, and one National Public High School, records.

AA Girls
Northwest Lehigh's Madison Burns doubled with wins in the 200 IM and 100 breast (1:03.72), including a state record in the former race. Burns clocked 2:00.48 for the record in the 200 IM. Kutztown's Gillian Ryan also earned two individual wins, taking the 200 (1:47.80) and 500 free (4:44.29). Mars Area's Margaret Gruber won the 100 fly (54.84), while Mercyhurst Prep's Marie Georger took the 100 back (55.69). Trinity's Ashley Bucher won one meter diving with 448.70 points.

Central Columbia's Katie Soloky took first in the 50 free (23.45) and led her team to the top spot in the 200 medley relay. Kelsey Chyko, Dani Blass, Beth Grazio, and Saloky won in 1:47.71. Meanwhile, Villa Maria Academy's Sarah Hitchens stormed to a 100 free victory (51.45) and swam key legs on two winning relays. Villa Maria's Hitchens, Kaitlin Alvanos, Julia Murphy, and Julia Wisler grabbed the win in the 200 free relay (1:37.34), while Molly O'Brien joined Wisler, Murphy, and Hitchens on the winning 400 free relay (3:32.30).

Villa Maria Academy won the race for the team title with 178.5 points. West Allegheny took second with 159, while Central Columbia earned third with 145.

AA Boys
Shady Side Academy won five events at the meet, three individual and two relays. David Paulk doubled with wins in the 200 (1:38.53) and 500 free (4:29.41), while teammate Broderick Kelley won the 100 fly (49.93). Paulk, Grant Zentgraf, Kelley, and Chris Leech teamed up to win the 200 medley relay (1:36.83), while Kelley, Paulk, Peter Scott, and Ryan Koul won the 400 free relay (3:11.91).

Bloomsburg's Zach Stephens set a state record of 55.64 to win the 100 breast, and he also took the 200 IM (1:51.12). Holy Ghost Prep's David Gosek took two individual wins as well, sweeping the 50 (20.57) and 100 free (45.38). Annville's Travis Bohn took the win in the 100 back (50.99), while Springfield's team of Chris McTear, Bill Riley, Ryan McWilliams, and Jake Oescheger won the 200 free relay (1:26.85). Fairview's Dan Roberts won one meter diving with 479.45 points.

Shady Side Academy won the meet with 190 points, followed by Fairview (163) and Franklin Area (139).

AAA Girls
Hershey dominated the meet, winning three individual events and two relays. Freshman Meaghan Raab starred, setting two individual state records, clocking 49.32 in the 100 free and 1:46.16 in the 200 free. Teammate Yurie Nakano won the 100 fly in 54.98. Raab, Madelyn Veith, Alexis Grier, and Katelyn Miller took the win in the 200 free relay (1:34.23), while Samantha Surfus, Raab, Nakano, and Miller swam to a national public school record of 3:22.85 in the 400 free relay. That swim beat the 3:23.10 set by Austin Westlake back in 2008.

Warwick's Emily Cameron set a state record of 1:57.74 to win the 200 IM, and Oakland Catholic's Catholic's Leah Smith matched her feat with a 4:39.96 record in the 500 free. State College's Emily Cameron won the 50 free (23.22), WC East's Christina Leander took the 100 back (54.83), and Pine Richland's Kristen Murslack hit the wall first in the 100 breast (1:02.12). Wilson's team of Taylor Straub, Kylie Reiter, Erin Timochenko, and Alexandra Rockett won the 200 medley relay in 1:44.45. Cedar Cliff's Rachel Mumma took the win in one meter diving with 513.95 points.

AAA Boys
Hershey and star swimmer David Nolan lit up the meet, setting a total of four national high school records. As previously reported here and here, Nolan set individual NHS records in winning the 200 IM and 100 back. In the 200 IM, his time of 1:41.39 obliterated his mark of 1:43.43 set one year ago. He clocked 45.49 in the 100 back to chop more than a second off Cole Craigin's former record of 46.75 from 2009.

Nolan led off Hershey's 200 free relay in 19.58, falling a fingernail short of Vlad Morozov's national record of 19.43 in the 50, established last year. Shota Nakano, Jeff Young and Ben Bauchwitz would go on to clock 1:21.01 for the 200 free relay, annihilating the national mark of 1:22.15 that Glenbrook South established back in 2009. Nolan also swam the lead-off leg on Hershey's 400 free relay, where he clocked 42.34, taking more than a half second off Morozov's national record of 42.87 from 2010. Nakano, Phillip Mancuso, and Bauchwitz completed the relay, posting an overall time of 3:00.71, falling just shy of Saratoga's national record of 3:00.68 from 2009.

WC Henderson's Andrew Kosic took two individual wins with two state records. Kosic clocked a record-time of 47.68 for the win in the 100 fly and matched the feat with a 43.32 record in the 100 free. Warwick's Dain Bomberger hit the wall first for the win in the 50 free (20.35), after establishing a state record of 20.18 in prelims. Nolan would later lower the records in both the 50 and 100 free.

Haverford's Shane Ryan took the 200 free (1:38.36), while Mount Lebanon's John Nappi won the 500 free (4:27.64). LaSalle College's David Speese won the 100 breast (55.95) and swam on LaSalle's victorious 200 medley relay; Joe Maginnis, Speese, Luke Maguire, and Eric Schultz clocked 1:32.80 for that win. North Allegheny's Connor Kuremsky won one meter diving with a state record-total of 599.50 points.

Hershey cruised to an easy win in the team race, scoring 344 points. LaSalle College was next best with 228, followed by Wilson (151).

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