The REPORTER
This year’s IHSAA boys state swimming finals will see many new champions, and Carmel is expected to be in the mix when the prelims begin Friday at the IU Natatorium.
Six of the eight individual swimming events had senior champions last year, with the Greyhounds’ Aaron Shackell (200 and 500 freestyles) and Sean Sullivan (100 free) among them. This gives several of last year’s top swimmers a chance to swim their way on to the top spot of the podium in 2024.
One of the names to watch is Carmel’s Gregg Enoch. As a junior, Enoch placed second in the 500 free (behind Shackell) and the individual medley (behind Zionsville’s Will Modglin). Enoch is now a senior and is top-seeded in both events for this year’s state competition. His seed time in the IM is 1 minute, 47.51 seconds and 4:26.13 in the 500 free. In addition, Enoch was part of state champion relay teams last year in the medley and 400 free relays.
The Greyhounds could get quite a few points out of all those events. Michael Gorey is seeded second in the IM, while Brian Qian is rated fourth. In the 500 free, Lewis Zhang is the third seed and Anderson Kopp is rated fourth. Lewis Zhang holds the second seed in the 200 free, while Ethan Zhang is the third seed. As for the relays, Carmel is top-seeded in the 200 and 400 free relays and the No. 2 seed in the medley relay.
The ’Hounds have won the last nine team state championships and are in very good position to extend that streak to 10. Carmel qualified 24 out of 27 swims to Friday’s state preliminaries by wins and/or state cut times, with the Greyhounds’ other three swims receiving callbacks. Those three callback times have the potential to score points: William Lathrop is seeded 16th in the 200 free, Qian is rated 17th in the butterfly and Landon Holmes is seeded 12th in the breaststroke.
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Fishers will have 12 swims at the state preliminaries. Eleven of them qualified by win and/or time, with one earning a callback. That was Thomas Johanneman in the backstroke.
The highest seed for the Tigers is Jonathan Hines. He is rated second in the 500 free and sixth in the 200 free. Fishers is also seeded fourth in the 400 free relay.
Meanwhile, Hamilton Southeastern has eight swims at the state prelims. The Royals had three qualify by sectional win, another make it with a state cut time, and four more swims got callbacks. Those were Jack Waren in the 200 and 500 freestyles, Derek Robison in the butterfly, and the 400 free relay.
Collin Huston will be one to watch at the prelims, as he is seeded third in the breaststroke. Jihoon Jung holds the fifth seed in the IM and his time of 50.19 seconds rates him ninth in the butterfly, so he could move into the top eight and make the podium there. The top eight swimmers at the prelims qualify for the “A” Final, or championship heat, where they are guaranteed a medal and spot on the podium.
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Noblesville’s Anthony Mathis is seeded 14th in the breaststroke. (Julie Brown)
Noblesville advanced six swims to the state prelims. The Millers had two state cut times at the sectional from the medley relay and Graham Kulp in the IM. Kulp is seeded eighth in that event.
Kulp also got a callback in the backstroke, while Anthony Mathis received a callback in the breaststroke, where he is seeded 14th. Noblesville’s 200 and 400 freestyle relays also earned callbacks as well.
Westfield’s 400 free relay qualified for prelims with a cut time. The Shamrocks got three callbacks, giving them a total of four swims at state. Bennett Morse advanced in the 100 free, followed by freshman Zach Welch in the 500 free. Westfield’s medley relay team also got a callback.
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Hamilton Heights finished 1-2 in diving at the state meet last year, and the Huskies senior duo of Ethan Swart and Nathan Cox could do it again.
Swart, the defending state champion, won the Homestead regional on Tuesday with a score of 527.50 points. That’s the highest score out of the four regionals from across the state, just beating out Oak Hill’s Grant Cates (525.90). Cox totaled 517.30, the third best score; he was the runner-up last year. The two other Hamilton County qualifiers also are among the top eight: Fishers’ Jacob Schade has the fifth-highest regional mark (491.35) and Noblesville’s Aiden Kless is seventh (465.95).
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Guerin Catholic and University each will have one swimmer at the state prelims. The Trailblazers’ Neiman Kumler qualified by winning the 50 free at the Lawrence North sectional and finishing second in the 100 free in a cut time; he is seeded ninth in that event. The Golden Eagles’ Drew Wilhite received a callback in the backstroke.
Here is a list of Hamilton County qualifiers and their seeded positions, according to the IHSAA psych sheet.
200 medley relay: 2. Carmel 1:31.96, 7. Hamilton Southeastern 1:33.86, 13. Fishers 1:35.54, 14. Noblesville 1:36.76, 19. Westfield 1:37.39.
200 freestyle: 2. Lewis Zhang (C) 1:39.59, 3. Ethan Zhang (C) 1:40.10, 6. Jonathan Hines (F) 1:41.14, 16. William Lathrop (C) 1:43.10, 20. Jack Waren (HSE) 1:43.63.
200 individual medley: 1. Gregg Enoch (C) 1:47.51, 2. Michael Gorey (C) 1:49.14, 4. Brian Qian (C) 1:50.92, 5. Jihoon Jung (HSE) 1:51.56, 6. Luis Sanchez (F) 1:52.54, 8. Graham Kulp (N) 1:53.17, 16. Anthony Adams Jr. (F) 1:54.35.
50 freestyle: 4. Andrew Shackell (C) 20.87, 11. Neiman Kumler (University) 21.24, 12. Brandon Malicki (C) 21.26, 15. Alex Koo (F) 21.32, 16. William Allen (C) 21.36.
One-meter diving: 1. Ethan Swart (Hamilton Heights) 527.50, 3. Nathan Cox (HH) 517.30, 5. Jacob Schade (F) 491.35, 7. Aiden Kless (N) 465.95.
100 butterfly: 3. Shackell (C) 48.94, 7. Emile Haig (C) 50.03, 9. Jung (HSE) 50.19, 17. Qian (C) 51.11, 22. Derek Robison (HSE) 51.54.
100 freestyle: 6. Allen (C) 46.28, 9. Kumler (U) 46.45, 11. Carter Hadley (C) 46.64, 12. E. Zhang (C) 46.67, 18. Bennett Morse (W) 47.07, 22. Koo (F) 47.49.
500 freestyle: 1. Enoch (C) 4:26.13, 2. Hines (F) 4:30.53, 3. L. Zhang (C) 4:30.91, 4. Anderson Kopp (C) 4:33.29, 6. Adams Jr. (F) 4:36.14, 7. Sanchez (F) 4:39.11, 14. Waren (HSE) 4:42.72, 22. Zach Welch (W) 4:47.02.
200 freestyle relay: 1. Carmel 1:24.54, 12. Fishers 1:27.83, 25. Noblesville 1:29.84.
100 backstroke: 3. Kopp (C) 49.76, 6. Carson Szotek (C) 51.11, 13. Hadley (C) 51.48, 20. Kulp (N) 52.18, 21. Drew Wilhite (Guerin Catholic) 52.26, 24. Thomas Johanneman (F) 52.49.
100 breaststroke: 2. Gorey (C) 55.80, 3. Collin Huston (HSE) 55.84, 6. Malicki (C) 56.31, 12. Landon Holmes (C) 58.47, 14. Anthony Mathis (N) 58.74.
400 freestyle relay: 1. Carmel 3:07.42, 4. Fishers 3:09.42, 13. Westfield 3:13.75, 16. Hamilton Southeastern 3:14.31, 20. Noblesville 3:15.00.