St. Xavier Takes Home 35th Overall Boys Title at Ohio Division 1 High School Champs

CANTON, Ohio, February 23. THE Bombers of St. Xavier collected their sixth straight boys title and 35th overall, and the Ursuline Lions repeated as girls champions (seventh championship overall) at the Ohio Division 1 Swimming and Diving Championships February 21-22 at the C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton. Five state records were set during the meet.

Girls
The Lions’ 400 free relay put an exclamation point on the girls portion of the meet by setting a state record 3:21.89. Three of the swimmers–seniors Emily Slabe, Temarie Tomley and Alisabeth Marsteller–swam on last year’s record-setting 3:23.19 relay; junior Sydney Lofquist replaced Bridget Blood, who graduated, to set the mark.

Ursuline’s 200 medley relay squad of Slabe, Lofquist plus freshmen Rollie Grinder and Julia Moran placed first in 1:43.53. Upper Arlington’s 200 free relay of juniors Gracie Long, Alexandra Hedden and Grace Van Fossen, with senior Jenny Smith anchoring, prevented a Lions sweep with their 1:33.87 clocking. Just behind them were the Ursuline quartet of Moran, Grinder, Tomley and Marsteller (1:33.96).

Three Lions claimed two individual event titles each. Marsteller set an individual state record in the 200 free (1:46.78), bettering Whitney Myers’ 2002 mark of 1:47.19. The Princeton-bound senior missed a second state standard by 8-hundredths in the 100 free with her 49.75, just off Grace Finnegan’s 2009 time of 49.67. Slabe, headed for North Carolina, set a state record 53.35 in the prelims of the 100 back and finished first in finals in 53.95, and beat out Sycamore junior Cara Norris in the 100 fly, 55.12 to 55.14. Lofquist earned victories in the 200 IM (2:00.13) and 500 free (4:46.63).

Ashley Volpenhein, a Mason freshman, defeated Tomley for first in the 50 free, 23.34 to 23.49. Walsh Jesuit freshman hanna Gresser posted a first-place 1:02.94 in the 100 breast.

Boys
St. Francis de Sales’ 200 free relay of seniors Jack DiSalle, Jack Barone and Nick Brodie, with junior Christian Sobczak swimming third, bettered the team’s record from 1999 (1:23.21) with their 1:22.85. The Stallions also claimed first place in the 200 medley relay in 1:32.67. Joining Barone and Brodie on that relay were juniors Evan Williams and Ben Gordon.

The victorious Bombers were led by freshman Grant House, who topped the field in both the 100 and 200 free (44.26 and 1:35.84). House also anchored St. Xavier’s winning 400 free relay with Matt Slabe (sophomore), Mitchell Frey (junior) and Mike Montague (senior).

The only other swimmer to claim two events was Hudson junior Ross Palazzo with his 1:48.75 in the 200 IM and 55.19 in the 100 breast.

Thomas Trace, a senior at Upper Arlington, touched out Ignatius senior Nathan Christian in the 50 free, 20.61 to 20.65. In another close race, Anderson sophomore Hassler Carroll’s 4:30.23 enabled him to win the 500 free over Lakota East freshman Joshua McDonald’s 4:30.46.

Westerville North junior Mason Miller’s 48.32 gave him first place in the 100 fly. Beavercreek senior Henrik Pohlmann, who finished second to Miller (49.01), climbed to the top spot on the podium in the 100 back with his 48.24.

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Results For: High School State Championships: Ohio Division 1

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