By RICHIE HALL
NOBLESVILLE – Even during unusual circumstances, the Carmel boys swim team was its usual excellent self Saturday at the Noblesville sectional finals.
The Greyhounds won the team championship – its 14th consecutive and 34th overall – with a score of 543 points and qualified 22 of its 27 swims to Friday’s IHSAA state preliminaries at the IU Natatorium, with callbacks to state likely for the other swims. Carmel is the six-time defending state champion and put itself in good position to extend its streak to seven.
The meet was conducted without any spectators and with COVID-19 protocols in place. It was an adjustment, but everyone made the best of the circumstances, as all the teams at the sectional were as enthusiastic as ever.
“I thought we swam pretty well today, given all the challenges that this meet presents in terms of warm-up and warm-down and the COVID procedures,” said Greyhounds coach Chris Plumb. “We’re in a good spot. Hopefully we get everybody called up. We have a really strong team moving on to next week.”
Carmel won 10 of the 12 events. That included a new sectional record for senior Augustus Rothrock in the individual medley. The University of Tennessee commit swam the event in 1 minute, 48.24 seconds, beating out now-graduated Greyhound Wyatt Davis’ record by just over a third of a second.
It was the first of three wins for Rothrock. He also triumphed in the 100 butterfly and was part of the winning 200 freestyle relay team, with Ryan Malicki, Andrew Robertson and Kayden Lancaster.
“Gus has been working hard and I feel good about him heading into next week,” said Plumb. “He’s been a great senior leader and I think he’s peaking at the right time.”
Senior Griffin Hadley is also headed to Tennessee, and is also a three-time winner. Hadley paced the 200 and 100 freestyles, then joined Ethan Johns, Sean Sullivan and Gregg Enoch to take the 400 free relay.
The Greyhounds began the meet with a win in the medley relay, which consisted of Carter Lancaster, Ryan Malicki, Christopher Holmes and William Kok. Carter Lancaster would later triumph in the backstroke, with Malicki following that up by claiming the breaststroke.
Kayden Lancaster also picked up an individual victory, winning the 500 free. Carmel finished 1-2-3 in all but two events, the 50 free and the diving. Tipton’s Ayden Stanley won the 50 free, with the Greyhounds going 2-3-4 behind him.
The host Millers placed second as a team with 353 points. Noblesville had two relays finish as runners-up, starting with the medley relay squad of Jeremiah Ledwith, Aidan Biddle, Luke Whitlock and Cameron Cavan. At the end of the meet, Whitlock, Justin DuBois, Cavan and Biddle took second in the 400 free relay.
The Millers also had two divers place in the top four, thus advancing to Tuesday’s regional at Fishers. Parker Mutter placed third, while Evan Stingley was fourth.
Westfield scored 285 points to finish third as a team. The Shamrocks’ best finish was second in the 200 free relay, achieved by the foursome of Noah Brauer, Aiden Yonkus, Bennett Morse and Nathaniel Hand.
Guerin Catholic scored 128 points to place eighth in the team standings.
FISHERS WINS CLOSE MEET
At the Hamilton Southeastern sectional, Fishers edged out the Royals 511-492 to claim its third sectional title and first since 2018.
The Tigers won four events, and were helped by 1-2-3 finishes in two of them. Sebastian Otero led the way in the diving event, and he will join teammates William Jansen and Jack Roby at Tuesday regional.
Kyle Ponsler led a 1-2-3 sweep in the 500 free, winning the event in 4:27.02. Jackson Carlile placed second in 4:28.30, both swimmers were well under the state cut time. Ponsler won the IM and joined Jackson Carlile, Conor Carlile and Tyler Schwertfeger for a victory in the 400 free relay.
Fishers had eight swims qualify for state. In addition to the above-mentioned swims, Jackson Carlile qualified in the 200 free and Conor Carlile qualified in the IM. The Tigers also made state cuts in the medley relay (Logan Ayres, Reed Beaumont, Daniel Bennett and Connor Carlile) and the 200 free relay (Conor Carlile, Beaumont, Keaton Chop and Jackson Carlile).
Southeastern won six events, including three victories for Keegan Streett. The senior won the 200 and 100 freestyles, then joined Zack Bostock, Thomas Reising and Logan Hess to place first in the 200 free relay.
Reising was also victorious in the butterfly, while Justin Voelker won the breaststroke. Both Royals were also part of the winning medley relay team, along with Charles Rogers and Bostock. Southeastern’s 400 free relay team of Streett, Bostock, Reising and Hess also qualified for state by time.
Hamilton Heights finished seventh with 164 points. The Huskies had a diver advance to the regional: Nathan Cox placed fourth.
TWO MEDALS FOR KUMLER
Over at Lawrence North, University freshman Neiman Kumler earned medals in two events.
Kumler finished sixth in the IM with a time of 2:03.66, then later placed eighth in the breaststroke, clocking in at 1:03.78. Quinn Sweeney placed fifth for the Golden Eagles in the IM, while Dane Leonard was fifth in diving.
AT NOBLESVILLE
Team scores: Carmel 543, Noblesville 353, Westfield 285, Tipton 237, Northwestern 159, Western 154, Maconaquah 131, Guerin Catholic 128, Kokomo 114, Eastern 72.
200 medley relay (State cut 1:36.77)
“A” Final: 1. Carmel (Carter Lancaster, Ryan Malicki, Christopher Holmes, William Kok) 1:32.14, 2. Noblesville (Jeremiah Ledwith, Aidan Biddle, Luke Whitlock, Cameron Cavan) 1:38.38, 6. Westfield (Gavin Yoakum, Nathaniel Hand, Cooper Tinsley, Will Kreag) 1:47.25.
“B” Final: 10. Guerin Catholic (Riley Madden, Trent Turner, Aaron Cradick, Jose Quintero) 2:04.64.
200 freestyle (State cut 1:43.09)
“A” Final: 1. Griffin Hadley (C) 1:37.93, 2. Kayden Lancaster (C) 1:39.63, 3. Aaron Shackell (C) 1:42.52, 4. Whitlock (N) 1:45.93, 5. Evan Lake (W) 1:46.10, 6. Aiden Yonkus (W) 1:48.43.
“B” Final: 9. Justin DuBois (N) 1:52.26, 10. Liam Westlund (N) 1:54.98, 13. Yoakum (W) 1:59.56.
200 individual medley (State cut 1:54.12)
“A” Final: 1. Augustus Rothrock (C) 1:48.24, new sectional record, 2. R. Malicki (C) 1:49.39, 3. C. Lancaster (C) 1:50.89, 4. Noah Brauer (W) 1:55.57, 5. Quinn Sweeney (GC) 2:00.00, 6. Tinsley (W) 2:02.15.
“B” Final: 9. Biddle (N) 1:59.04, 11. Wyatt Wade (N) 2:07.02, 13. Ledwith (N) 2:13.39, 16. Luca Barbosa (W) 2:15.94.
50 freestyle (State cut 21.21)
“A” Final: 2. Holmes (C) 21.29, 3. Kok (C) 21.53, 4. Cavan (N) 22.37, 7. Bennett Morse (W) 22.94, 8. Johannes Hoffmann (GC) 22.98.
“B” Final: 9. Andrew Robertson (C) 21.37, 10. Tyler Cox (N) 23.62, 11. Caleb Mathis (N) 23.81, 13. Kreag (W) 24.29.
One-meter diving (Top four advance to regional)
Finals: 3. Parker Mutter (N) 321.21, 4. Evan Stingley (N) 318.00, 5. Dane Leonard (GC) 297.72, 6. Noah Flynn (W) 279.90, 11. Zachary Zimmerman (C) 251.91, 13. Walker Murdza (C) 240.69, 15. William Hirschfield (W) 169.29.
100 butterfly (State cut 51.24)
“A” Final: 1. Rothrock (C) 49.29, 2. Kellen Reese (C) 49.95, 3. Holmes (C) 50.01, 5. Brauer (W) 52.78, 6. Cavan (N) 53.34, 7. Sweeney (GC) 53.39.
“B” Final: 9. Hand (W) 57.96, 10. Andrew Wilhite (N) 58.22, 12. DuBois (N) 1:00.18.
100 freestyle (State cut 46.92)
“A” Final: 1. Hadley (C) 45.35, 2. Sean Sullivan (C) 46.67, 3. Robertson (C) 46.87, 5. Morse (W) 49.58, 7. Yonkus (W) 50.08.
“B” Final: 9. Cox (N) 51.01, 10. Wade (N) 51.27.
500 freestyle (State cut 4:41.41)
“A” Final: 1. K. Lancaster (C) 4:33.10, 2. Gregg Enoch (C) 4:35.92, 3. Shackell (C) 4:40.55, 4. Whitlock (N) 4:42.35, 5. Lake (W) 4:53.92, 6. Tinsley (W) 5:05.67, 7. Mason Snyder (N) 5:06.40, 8. Wilhite (N) 5:10.57.
“B” Final: 11. Barbosa (W) 5:19.21, 16. Grant Bricking (GC) 5:46.48.
200 freestyle relay (State cut 1:27.80)
“A” Final: 1. Carmel (R. Malicki, Rothrock, Robertson, K. Lancaster) 1:24.24, 2. Westfield (Brauer, Yonkus, Morse, Hand) 1:29.95, 4. Noblesville (Cox, DuBois, Wade, Snyder) 1:33.66, 6. Guerin Catholic (Hoffmann, Leonard, Bricking, Sweeney) 1:35.23.
100 backstroke (State cut 51.43)
“A” Final: 1. C. Lancaster (C) 49.75, 2. Sullivan (C) 49.96, 3. Connor Lathrop (C) 51.80, 4. Ledwith (N) 56.90, 5. Mathis (N) 56.94, 7. Sherpard Huff (N) 58.13.
“B” Final: 9. Kreag (W) 59.86, 10. Yoakum (W) 1:02.84, 15. Jack Ellis (W) 1:07.07.
100 breaststroke (State cut 58.17)
“A” Final: 1. R. Malicki (C) 55.04, 2. Brandon Malicki (C) 57.22, 3. Reese (C) 58.57, 4. Biddle (N) 58.58, 8. Hoffmann (GC) 1:04.45.
“B” Final: 9. Hand (W) 1:03.98, 10. Ben Ice (W) 1:06.37, 11. Snyder (N) 1:06.85, 12. Jonah Setmeyer (N) 1:08.60, 16. Leonard (GC) 1:13.20.
400 freestyle relay (State cut 3:12.98)
“A” Final: 1. Carmel (Ethan Johns, Hadley, Sullivan, Enoch) 3:08.47, 2. Noblesville (Whitlock, DuBois, Cavan, Biddle) 3:18.13, 7. Guerin Catholic (Sweeney, Bricking, Leonard, Hoffmann) 3:34.77.
“B” Final: 9. Westfield (Brauer, Yonkus, Morse, Lake) 3:16.82.
AT HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN
Team scores: Fishers 511, Hamilton Southeastern 492, Yorktown 239, Pendleton Heights 213, Oak Hill 192, Anderson 182, Hamilton Heights 164, Marion 80, Liberty Christian 42.
200 medley relay (State cut 1:36.77)
“A” Final: 1. Southeastern (Charles Rogers, Justin Voelker, Thomas Reising, Zack Bostock) 1:33.32, 2. Fishers (Logan Ayres, Reed Beaumont, Daniel Bennett, Connor Carlile) 1:33.78, 6. Heights (Eli VanHaaren, Josh Snay, Grant Forrer, Owen VanHaaren) 1:49.94.
200 freestyle (State cut 1:43.09)
“A” Final: 1. Keegan Streett (HSE) 1:39.36, 2. Jackson Carlile (F) 1:39.58, 3. Tyler Schwertfeger (F) 1:44.16, 5. Noah Haines (HSE) 1:47.65, 6. Clayton Juffer (HSE) 1:50.06, 7. Jude Bragdon (F) 1:50.27.
“B” Final: 9. Snay (HH) 1:56.13, 10. Cameron Wheat (HH) 1:57.87.
200 individual medley (State cut 1:54.12)
“A” Final: 1. Kyle Ponsler (F) 1:48.62, C. Carlile (F) 1:54.31, 3. Voelker (HSE) 1:58.48, 4. Matthew Truxall (HSE) 2:01.45, 5. Nicholas Viola (F) 2:01.62, 7. Jack Waren (HSE) 2:06.20.
50 freestyle (State cut 21.21)
“A” Final: 3. Bostock (HSE) 21.64, 4. Beaumont (F) 22.01, 5. Logan Hess (HSE) 22.08, 8. Keaton Chop (F) 22.79.
“B” Final: 10. Skyler Listenfelt (HSE) 23.17, 11. Taichi Kataoka (F) 23.61, 14. E. VanHaaren (HH) 23.88, 16. Blake Blackhurst (HH) 25.70.
One-meter diving (Top four advance to regional)
Finals: 1. Sebastian Otero (F) 507.90, 2. William Jansen (F) 502.05, 3. Jack Roby (F) 408.40, 4. Nathan Cox (HH) 375.50, 5. Jackson Bisesi (HSE) 334.95, 7. Ethan Swart (HH) 309.40, 9. Noah Ebeyer (HSE) 297.45, 11. Troy Borrero (HSE) 254.50.
100 butterfly (State cut 51.24)
“A” Final: 1. Reising (HSE) 50.75, 2. Bennett (F) 53.08, 4. Hess (HSE) 53.85, 5. Bragdon (F) 54.77, 6. Waren (HSE) 56.61, 7. Kataoka (F) 56.87.
“B” Final: 12. Wheat (HH) 1:01.31.
100 freestyle (State cut 46.92)
“A” Final: 1. Streett (HSE) 45.40, 4. Rogers (HSE) 48.77, 5. Ayres (F) 49.31, 6. Chop (F) 49.39.
“B” Final: 9. Sean Deimling (F) 50.94, 10. Chouchi Ding (HSE) 51.30, 12. E. VanHaaren (HH) 52.50, 15. O. VanHaaren (HH) 55.84.
500 freestyle (State cut 4:41.41)
“A” Final: 1. Ponsler (F) 4:27.02, 2. J. Carlile (F) 4:28.30, 3. Schwertfeger (F) 4:46.54, 4. Haines (HSE) 4:54.31, 5. Juffer (HSE) 5:04.76, 7. Drew Hershman (HSE) 5:11.41.
“B” Final: 10. Blake Blackhurst (HH) 5:28.01, 12. Forrer (HH) 5:32.95.
200 freestyle relay (State cut 1:27.80)
“A” Final: 1. Southeastern (Streett, Bostock, Reising, Hess) 1:24.08, 2. Fishers (C. Carlile, Beaumont, Chop, J. Carlile) 1:24.92, 7. Heights (Aiden Helm, Alex Knepper, Blackhurst, Wheat) 1:42.70.
100 backstroke (State cut 51.43)
“A” Final: 2. Ayres (F) 51.67, 3. Ryan Harrison (HSE) 52.81, 4. Rogers (HSE) 54.70, 5. Viola (F) 55.02, 6. Deimling (F) 56.01, 7. Hershman (HSE) 58.10.
“B” Final: 13. Forrer (HH) 1:06.13, 15. Helm (HH) 1:08.41.
100 breaststroke (State cut 58.17)
“A” Final: 1. Voelker (HSE) 56.82, 2. Beaumont (F) 58.36, 3. Truxall (HSE) 59.75, 4. Bennett (F) 1:00.39, 5. Alejandro Garcia (F) 1:00.42, 7. Jason Hua (HSE) 1:03.86.
“B” Final: 9. Snay (HH) 1:05.07, 15. Knepper (HH) 1:11.47.
400 freestyle relay (State cut 3:12.98)
“A” Final: 1. Fishers (J. Carlile, C. Carlile, Schwertfeger, Ponsler) 3:05.98, 2. Southeastern (Bostock, Streett, Hess, Reising) 3:07.57, 6. Heights (E. VanHaaren, Wheat, O. VanHaaren, Snay) 3:35.34.