The 2012 Minnesota Girls’ High School State Championship meet was full of both the highest-of-highs and the lowest of lows, as a total of 5 State Records went down between class A and class AA, but one high school was cost a State Championship because of errors in their entries.
In Class AA, which are the larger schools, a tightly-contested team battle saw the top three squads finish within 8 points of each other. That, however, was only after Minnetonka High School was stripped of over 70 points, or all of their relays, for what meet officials deemed to be several errors on their relay cards. The losses dropped them from easily in 1st, to a 4th-place finish.
That left Edina ast the State Champions thanks to a big relay victory and a lot of depth.
Class AA final standings:
1. Edina 228
2. Wayzata 222
3. Eden Prairie 220
4. Minnetonka 200.5
5. Chanhassen 173
6. Stillwater Area 172
The unfortunate disqualifications should not overshadow what came to be phenomenal performances by Edina. They started the meet off with a 1:43.97 in the 200 medley relay. That broke a record held by the 2010 edition of Eden’s Prarie that included Katie Bootsma on backstroke and sophomore Rachel Bootsma as a breaststroker in 1:44.80.
The group swiming here included Madeleine Eden, Olivia Anderson, Heather Laedtke, and Rachel Wittmer. Wittmer, just an 8th grader, anchored in an impressive 22.85, and Anderson was a 28.19 on the breaststroke leg.
Minnetonka then took two of the top three spots in the girls’ 200 free, with Amelia Schilling winning in 1:48.61 and Isabel Wyer taking 3rd in 1:49.80. They sandwiched a runner-up performance from Armstrong’s Courtney Evensen in 1:48.88.
Kasey Roberts won the 200 IM state crown in 2:02.63.
In what was a very diverse cast of winners, Chanhassen would pick up a trio of titles in the next segment of the meet thanks to a 23.06 in the 50 free from sophomore Kaia Grobe and a 54.30 from sophomore Zoe Avestruz in the 100 fly. Avesztruz touched just ahead of Eden Prarie freshman Bre Thorne in 54.73; Thorne has been a part of the Aquajets club relays that have been making a mess of the National Age Group relay records over the last year.
Grobe wouold pick up another victory in the 100 free with a 49.97 to complete a sprint sweep. Freshman Megan Wenman of Rosemont took 2nd in 51.07, followed by Wyer and Carolyn Kane, both of Minnetonka, showing how good their 400 free relay could have been.
Minnetonka’s Amelia Schilling broke the State Record in the 500 free with a 4:48.96, becoming the first Minnesota girl to crack 5:50 in high school competition. That took down a four-year old record held by current Minnesota Golden Gopher Kierra Janzen.
Eden Prarie picked up a relay win in the 200 free with a 1:35.65, followed by another Chanhassen title, this time from the sophomore Avestruz in the 100 backstroke in 53.50.
Anderson gave Edina their first individual state title when she skirted away with the 100 breaststroke crown in 1:02.96. Chanhassen finally got their relay victory to finish in 3:26.23, including 49.91 bookends from Grobe and Avestruz. Minnetonka was the first relay to the wall, but again were cost by the disqualification.
Look to Chanhassen as the early favorites for next year’s State Championship as they didn’t graduate a single swimmer from that closing relay.
Full AA finals results here.
Full AA prelims results here.
Class A Standings
1. Northfield 223
2. Sartell-Saint Stephen 175
3. Visitation 172
4. Mankato West 163.5
5. Breck School 148
6. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 120
If you didn’t stick around to read the results of the small schools, you missed out on a special swim. Swim fans: let me introduce a brand new name to your swimming lexicon: Lindsey Horejsi from Albert Lea High School in Albert Lea, Minnesota. The small southern Minnesota town of 18,000 people was once best known as the birthplace of Eddie Cochran now has a new headliner for its water tower: a freshman breaststroker.
Horejsi won the 100 yard breaststroke state championship in 1:00.16, splitting 28.19 and 31.97, and she’s only a freshman. That’s already the 2nd-best time in 15-16 history in the United States (behind only Megan Jendrick and Kasey Carlson, and she’s still on the bottom end of her age group.
That swim was truly a stunner as coming into the meet, she hadn’t been faster than a 1:04.9 in the event, meaning this was nearly a 5-second personal best time (although she had been a 1:11 in long course). In her two swims, she took down the old State Record of 1:01.08 held by Abby Duncan (who was an All-American as a freshman for Auburn last season).
Though Horejsi jumps to more of a sprint freestyle role (she was a 23.55 for 3rd in the 50), we can’t wait to see what she does in the 200 breaststroke at her next club meet.
That 50 free was won by junior Danielle Nack in a new Class A State Record of 22.82, breaking her own 22.93 set last season for Mankato West. The overall record still eluded her, just barely, at 22.73.
Nack then would get the overall State Record in the 100 fly with a 52.41. That swim broke Rachel Bootsma’s mark of 52.73 from 2010 thanks to going out in 24.08.
Back’s younger sister, sophomore Chantal Nack, took a title of her own, winning the 200 free in 1:51.64. In the 500, she was 2nd in 5:02.31: losing out to a 5:00.72 from Thomasin Lee of Chisago Lakes.
The two Nack sisters combined with Nicole Lohman and Madison Bacon to win the 400 free relay in 3:32.63.
It was the team from Northfield, however, that used superior depth to win this meet. They picked up only a single swimming event victory, in their 200 free relay by combination of Claire Walters, Grete Baker, Emily Lundstrom, and Emily Anderson, en route to the state crown. They got a big boost from sophomore diver Bailey Dupay who picked up valuable points by winning the 1-meter: an area where most of the other swimming powers were very weak.
What?
Tell me exactly what went wrong with the relay cards please. Was the same mistake made twice or three times. We’re the DQs after the meet? Did they swim the events? Details most welcomed.
Question has been asked, nobody we’ve talked to knows. Sounds like whatever it is they’re keeping it close to chest. Very unfortunate situation with a very good, very nice coach. We’ll update if we hear any other details.
the minnetonka coach forgot to update the relay cards from prelims. the girls that swam in the finals relays were all legal to do so, it’s just that the cards still indicated the girls that swam prelims. the coach of the 2nd place 400 free relay protested at the conclusion of the meet. at this time there was a claim that a minnetonka swimmer swam more than the legal number of events, but after an investigation, the high school league found this accusation to be groundless. it was an administrative oversight, pure and simple.
Trivia time, what do Katie Ledecky, Olivia Smoliga, and LIndsey Horejsi have in common?
They are all American, they are all girls and they are all swimmers but except that I don’t see.
They are all of Czech descent (father’s side).
That. Is clutch.
I think you mean that Wyer got 3rd in the 200 not 2nd
Amazing swim by Lindsey Horejsi! I didn’t know her. Big drop of time. Perhaps we will watch her at the junior nationals.
Thanks, Braden. Horejsi’s 100 breast was amazing…will be fun to watch her develop!
Horejsi had been under 1:04 during the regular MN High school school season, with a 1:03.91. I was the ref at that meet. I also happened to be the S &T official at MSHSHL prelim session when she went 1:00.31 to shatter the MSHL record. She jsut got faster the next day in the finals. She is smooth & effortless in the water. Her swim was absolutely amazing!