Indiana Women’s High School State Championships

By Brian Savard

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana, February 12. WITH the limelight mainly on Center Grove swimmer and Swimming World six-star recruit Michelle McKeehan at the Indiana Women's High School State Championships, many overlook the fact that Carmel is just plain unstoppable.

Carmel, under its fifth coach since it started its national-record 22 consecutive state title streak, compiled 387 points throughout the course of the meet and brought home yet another piece of hardware. Hamilton Southeastern, who placed second for the second straight year, accumulated 317.5 points. Homestead snagged the third-place position among competing schools, amassing 216 points.

McKeehan certainly justified the plethora of national attention she received. She went out in the Saturday morning final session and posted a 1:56.87 200 IM time that stood as the national high school record for an hour until the former record holder, Mary Beck of Austin Westlake (Texas) took it back with a 1:56.45 in Texas. The 1:56.87 standard eclipsed Beck's 2007 mark of 1:57.41.

McKeehan's performance also topped her own 2007 state record that she swam in 1:58.06. McKeehan dropped another state standard when she flirted with the one-minute barrier in the 100 breaststroke, clocking a 1:00.12. She formerly held the state standard of 1:00.23 that she set at last year's state championship meet. McKeehan will attend the University of Georgia next season.

Jenny Connolly of Harrison pulled in two wins as well and downed two state records in the process. Connolly's 53.54 swim in the 100 backstroke in the preliminary heats erased Jenni Anderson of Chesterton's former mark of 55.24 that she set at the 2001 state meet. It also gave Connolly the national public school record in the event. Connolly also won the 100 butterfly in record time. Her 53.91 swim during finals eclipsed Katherine Robinson of South Dear's 2003 standard of 54.64.

Connolly, a Swimming World five-star recruit, will attend the University of Tennessee in the fall.

Hamilton Southeastern dropped two state records in two relay event wins. The 200 medley relay team of Maegan O'Connor, Christina Jacobs, Lindsay Rogers and Carly Mercer joined up to clock a 1:43.39, erasing the 1:44.70 mark that Hamilton Southeastern set last year. Paige Copeland, Rogers, Aubrey Hertzler and Mercer dueled with Carmel in the 400 freestyle relay, and the Hamilton Southeastern foursome emerged victorious with the help of a 50.00 anchor split by Mercer. Their 3:26.61 time erased Carmel's 1994 standard of 3:26.92.

Gabrielle Agostino of South Bend St. Joseph's came away with the 2008 diving title, scoring a 428.50. Krissy Riley of Pendleton Heights claimed the second-place honor with a 417.20 score while Sarah Clay of Hamilton Southeastern placed third (408.40).

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