The January 17th edition of the Colorado High School Swimming & Diving Rankings, and with less than one month to go until the 2017 state championship meets, the girls from Fossil Ridge sit atop the class 5A (biggest school) rankings.
There have been a few changes in Colorado high school swimming recently, including a recent reorganization that added a 3rd level of competition for the state’s smallest schools.
At this point, 5A looks like a two-team race between Fossil Ridge (the 2015 champions) and Fairview (the 2016 champions), with the two sitting more than 100 points clear of the rest of the field in the latest projections. Fossil Ridge has a deep team that leads the 5A event rankings in 2 of 3 relays, plus 6 individual events. That includes the 2016 Winter Junior National Champion in the 100 and 200 yard breaststroke Zoe Bartel, who has already been 1:01.88 in the 100 breaststroke this year during the high school season (she was 59.04 at Junior Nationals).
In 4A Cheyenne Mountain appears to be a heavy favorite for the title, with dominating times so far in two of the three relay events. The defending class champions, Valor Christian, are ranked 3rd based on their current times after being hit hard by graduation – they graduated 3 of the 4 swimmers on the 4A Record-setting 200 medley relay last year.
The new 3A division is currently a toss-up between St. Mary’s Academy and Pueblo County – with only 1 point separating the two as scored.
The team rankings are calculated like a championship swim meet, with adjustments for athletes ranked in more than two events so that the results are not skewed too much by one athlete or school. Top 16 in each event score (just like the state meet), and times are pulled from MaxPreps – where coaches are required to be submitted to by the state association. Rob Nasser, the creator of prepswimco.com and head coach of Mountain Vista High School (and formerly of Valor Christian High School), maintains the rankings.
The 2017 Colorado Girls’ State Championship meets run from February 9th-11th.
5A Team Rankings
- Fossil Ridge 362
- Fairview 325
- Arapahoe 221
- Lewis-Palmer 164
- Regis 143
- Rock Canyon 139
- Rocky Mountain 128
- Legacy 90
- ThunderRidge 89
- Grandview 88
- Smoky Hill 86
- Cherry Creek 78
- Mountain Vista 70
- Castle View/Douglas County 61
- Monarch 48
- Chatfield 45
- Mountain Range 44
- Cherokee Trail 33
- Legend 28
- Broomfield 26
4A Team Rankings
- Cheyenne Mountain 323
- Heritage 240
- Valor Christian 234
- Evergreen 181
- Rampart 173
- Silver Creek 152
- Windsor 142
- Ft. Collins 133
- Loveland 115
- Niwot 96
- Pine Creek 78
- Highlands Ranch 77
- Thompson Valley 64
- Liberty 52
- Mullen 42
- Pueblo South 37
- Greeley West 24
- Denver South 23
- Golden 20
- George Washington 18
3A Team Rankings
- St. Mary’s Academy 224
- Pueblo County 223
- D’Evelyn 164
- St. Mary’s 148
- Glenwood Springs 147
- Centaurus 130
- La Junta 126
- Disc. Canyon 125
- Manitou Springs 124
- Estes Park 121
- Colorado Academy 114
- Durango 113
- Salida 112
- Longmont 95
- Kent Denver 80
- Eaton 63
- Montezuma-Cortez 51
- Green Mountain 29
- Conifer 28
- Fountain Valley 22
Ryan – Please don’t forget Fossil Ridge has other fast swimmers – in fact the girls who set the 15-18 NAG Record in the 200 MR at Winter Jr’s all attend Fossil. They were Bayley Stewart, Zoe Bartel, Coleen Gillilan, and Kylee Alons. They should have a good chance to break the National HS Record at the State Meet in Feb.
http://www.usaswimming.org/_Rainbow/Documents/a54821e6-2e81-4133-a567-58719deaa841/National%20SC%20AG%20Record%20Grid%20%202016-2017.pdf