Michigan Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association (MISCA) announced their boys 2023-2024 ‘Dream Team’ following the conclusion of the MHSAA Boys State meets earlier this month. MISCA announces a Dream Team at the end of every Michigan high school season. The team features the fastest swimmer in each event, as well as the fastest team in each relay from the season, and the highest scoring diver. Swimmers are only allowed to be on the team in a single individual event, so if, hypothetically, a swimmer held the top time in two events, MISCA would name them to the team in one event and take the next-fastest swimmer in the other. Relays, on the other hand, are simply the fastest relay from the season, and swimmers can be members of multiple Dream Team relays.
Without further ado, here is the boys Dream Team from the 2023-24 season:
- 200 free: Luke Mychalowych (Detroit Catholic Central) – 1:37.98
- 200 IM: Angus MacDonald (Birmingham Groves) – 1:46.51
- 50 free: Ben Sytsma (Grand Rapids Christian) – 19.98
- Diving: Julian Cardenas (Rockford) – 537.95
- 100 fly: Liam Smith (Ostego) – 48.02
- 100 free: Caleb Howe (Grand Rapids Northview) – 45.42
- 500 free: Owen Stevens (Zeeland) – 4:27.48
- 100 back: Olin Charnstrom (Oxford) – 48.10
- 100 breast: Luke Newcomb (Brighton) – 54.56
- 200 free relay: Grand Rapids Christian (Ben Sytsma, Emmett Vance, Mace Boender, Max O’Grady) – 1:24.56
- 400 free relay: Cranbrook Kingswood (Colin Zexter, AJ Farner, Andrew Delzer, Will Farner) – 3:05.00
- 200 medley relay: Cranbrook Kingswood (Colin Zexter, Joseph Wiater, Will Farner, Andrew Delzer) – 1:31.18
- Para 50 free: Jack Fritz (University of Detroit Jesuit) – 25.67
- Para 100 free: Aaron Thomas (Dewitt) – 54.07
You can view the document put out by MISCA here.
This year’s Dream Team is a great mix of Michigan’s top high school swimmers from all over the state. No school had multiple swimmers on the team in individual events. Grand Rapids Christian did see Ben Sytsma placed on the team in the 50 free, and they clocked the top 200 free relay in the state with a 1:24.56, which Sytsma was also a member of. Then there is Cranbrook Kingswood, which posted the top times in the 200 medley and 400 free relays, but didn’t have a swimmer on the team individually.
The Dream Team is filled with athletes set to go on and compete in college. Many are recruits at very high profile programs. Angus MacDonald, the 200 IMer on the Dream Team, is a Birmingham Groves senior set to join Notre Dame this fall. The 200 freestyler, Detroit Catholic Central’s Luke Mychalowych, will be heading to Minnesota in the fall. The aforementioned Ben Sytsma is set to head to Texas A&M following his graduation from Grand Rapids Christian this spring. Zeeland’s Owen Stevens is only a junior, though he’s already committed to compete at Louisville starting in the fall of 2025. Diver Julian Cardenas will be joining the University of Michigan diving program this fall as well.
Additionally, Oxford senior Olin Charnstrom is a recruit for Detroit-based Wayne State, a Division II program. There’s also Brighton senior Luke Newcomb, who will be joining Division III Hope College in the fall.
