2024 FHSAA 4A State Championships
- November 9, 2024
- Florida Aquatics Swim & Training (FAST), Ocala, Florida
- SCY (25 yards)
- Full Meet Results (PDF)
Rylee Erisman stole the show on Saturday at the FHSAA 4A State Championships in Ocala, Florida, delivering a pair of record-setting performances for Windermere High School.
Her older brother Ryan Erisman was among the top standouts on the boys’ side, and both swimmers helped propel Windermere High School to a pair of runner-up finishes, though it was the Riverview Sarasota girls and Braddock Senior boys walking away with the team titles.
GIRLS RECAP
The top performer at the meet with a bullet was Rylee Erisman, as the 15-year-old swept the 50 free (21.61) and 100 free (47.14) to set numerous records for Windermere.
Erisman, a sophomore, broke Abbey Weitzeil‘s Public National High School Record in the 50 free, which stood at 21.64 from 2015, and she also downed Erika Pelaez‘s State Record of 21.98 set last year.
Erisman, whose previous best stood at 22.42, also climbed up to #2 all-time in the girls’ 15-16 age group, only trailing Claire Curzan‘s National Age Group Record of 21.50 set in 2021.
In the 100 free, Erisman clocked 47.14 to break Curzan’s 15-16 NAG record of 47.23 from 2020 while narrowly missing Weitzeil’s Public National High School Record of 47.09. Erisman came into the meet with a PB of 48.32.
The overall High School Records stand at 21.59 in the 50 free and 46.98 in the 100 free, both established by Gretchen Walsh.
Windermere High School Sophomore Rylee Erisman is taking home GOLD in the Girls 50yd Freestyle & 100yd Freestyle, setting NEW STATE RECORDS IN BOTH EVENTS!!! #FHSAA #StateChampionships #ThisGirlIsOnFIRE pic.twitter.com/B9tnqsvSS9
— FHSAA (@FHSAA) November 10, 2024
For the Riverview girls, it was junior Brynn Lavigueur leading the way as she won both her individual events, setting new best times en route to victories in the 100 back (52.67/52.57 prelims) and 200 IM (1:59.31). Lavigueur was notably 2nd in the 100 back and 3rd in the 200 IM last year as a sophomore.
Riverview also had wins come from senior Lauren Milbaum and junior Danica Aten, and they also piled up relay points with one win and two runner-up finishes.
Milbaum set a best time of 4:49.13 to lead a 1-2-3 sweep for Riverview in the 500 free, with juniors Clare Custer (4:50.78) and Taylor Schwenk (4:55.39) rounding out the podium.
Aten dropped more than a second to win the 100 breast (1:02.16) in a tight race with Windermere’s Carolina Daher (1:02.28) and Alonso’s Kate Baranova (1:02.39).
Lavigueur (24.78) and Aten (29.04) also contributed the opening two legs on the team’s winning 200 medley relay, which also included Angelina Lista (24.17) on fly and Isabella Cardenas (23.04) on free as they finished in 1:41.03, edging out a Windermere team (1:41.20) that had a sizzling 21.37 anchor from Erisman.
Windermere’s Daher, a senior and Harvard commit, was another standout as she added a win in the 200 free in 1:46.28, a lifetime best, in addition to her 2nd-place finish in the 100 breast.
She also led off Windermere’s winning 200 free relay with a 50 free best time of 23.33, and in the 400 free relay, set a PB of 50.38 in the 100 free as Windermere also came out on top.
In the latter, Erisman contributed a 48.52 anchor as Windermere cruised to victory by more than seven seconds in 3:21.36. The 200 free relay was much tighter, with Windermere clocking 1:33.35 to Sarasota’s 1:33.79. Sarasota notably had a 22.84 lead-off from Lavigueur, a new 50 free best time.
Also claiming wins were Viera High School’s Sadie Dempez in the 1-meter diving event (447.85), and Boone High School senior Arianna Wertheim in the 100 fly (53.96). A Kentucky commit, Wertheim’s 100 fly swim marked a new PB, as did her third-place clocking in the 200 IM (2:00.58).
Girls Team Standings (Top 5)
- Riverview Sarasota, 378
- Windermere High School, 311
- Joe E Newsome High School, 135
- West Orange High School, 117
- Creekside High School, 110.5
BOYS RECAP
Four boys swept their individual events at the meet, including two from the winning squad from Braddock, seniors Dylan Ferguson and George Gonzalez.
Ferguson had a pair of monstrous drops, winning the 100 back (47.32) and 100 fly (48.07) in new personal best times, with junior teammate Anthony Pineiro the runner-up in both after he won both last year. Pineiro also set new PBs, hitting times of 47.69 in the 100 back and 48.20 in the 100 fly.
Ferguson, an Air Force commit, was the runner-up last year in the 100 back, and didn’t even race the 100 fly, instead finishing 7th in the 500 free.
Gonzalez won a repeat title in the 100 free, setting a PB of 43.61 in the prelims before winning the final in 43.75. He also claimed the 50 free title in a lifetime best of 20.05, having raced the 200 free (and finished 2nd) instead last year.
Windermere senior and Cal commit Ryan Erisman won repeat titles in both the 200 free (1:36.20) and 500 free (4:17.63), the latter marking a personal best time and nearly breaking the State Record.
His time in the 500 free fell just shy of the Florida State Record of 4:17.29 set by Nicholas Caldwell in 2010. Erisman, 17, now ranks 75th all-time in the boys’ 17-18 age group in the event.
In the 200 free, Riverside senior David Melnychuk had an impressive showing, breaking 1:40 for the first time with a massive 1:37.98 to place 2nd, and he added a 3rd-place showing in the 100 back (48.28) with another best time.
Also sweeping their individual events was Winter Park senior Ian Heysen, who blasted lifetime bests of 1:46.61 in the 200 IM and 53.41 in the 100 breast (he won the 100 breast final in 53.95 after setting a PB in the prelims). The swims showed significant improvement for Heysen, who was 4th in the 100 breast (56.48) and 5th in the 200 IM (1:50.69) last year.
In the relays, Braddock had book-ending wins in the 200 medley and 400 free relays, while Windermere emerged atop the heap in the 200 free relay.
Braddock’s team of Pineiro (22.91), Robert Alvarez (25.85), Ferguson (21.81) and Gonzalez (20.06) combined to clock 1:30.63 and win the 200 medley comfortably, while in the 400 free, it was Gonzalez (44.19), Ferguson (44.53), Peyton Selts (44.95) and Pineiro (44.30) getting the job done in 2:57.97.
Windermere had three 44-second splits in the 400 free relay en route to a second-place finish, and in the 200 free it was Walter Kueffer (20.30), Scott Robinson (21.21), Roberto Zarate (20.93) and Erisman (20.27) combining for a time of 1:22.71, winning by more than a second.
Kueffer, a senior, was another notable performer with runner-up finishes in the 50 free (20.16) and 100 free (44.31) individually for Windermere.
In the 1-meter diving event, Freedom High School’s Jack Sparks earned victory with a score of 562.00 after he was 4th last season.
Boys Team Standings (Top 5)
- G Holmes Braddock Senior High, 306
- Windermere High School, 227
- Riverview Sarasota, 200
- Sarasota High School, 186
- Winter Park High School, 140
I mean, all these times are crazy, but that one kid who went from 140 to 137 in the 200?!?! Where do you find things to improve at that level for that massive of a time drop!
I mean, how does one get to 1:31? There are always things to improve on. It’s how the sport works. If you were 1:40 already and shave and rest than 1:37 is not uncommon. Train all aspects and there will be improvements. How much depends on the person.