Wawasee Second In NLC Meet; Warsaw Fourth
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
All day long, Northridge had its supremacy challenged, as the Lady Raiders, Wawasee Lady Warriors and Concord Lady Minutemen were separated by just three points following the 10th of 12 events.
In that 10th event, which was the 200 free relay won by Wawasee’s foursome of senior Brittany Robinson, junior Sarah Rozow, senior Sarah Steele and freshman Breanna Robinson in 1:37.95, Northridge held an overall lead of 299, followed by Wawasee’s 297 and Concord’s 296.
Brittany Robinson won the 100 back in 57.28 seconds, and accompanied with a third place finish by senior Karla Allen and a seventh by freshman Kira Bailey, Wawasee increased its point total to 345, while Concord sat with 326 and Northridge had 324.
But just when things were looking good for the Lady Warriors, their weakest event came up, and Northridge took advantage.
That event was the 100 breast, where the Lady Raiders tallied 50 points, while Wawasee generated just 12, making their first-place time of 3:38.72 in the 400 free relay, the last race of the day, inconsequential to the overall outcome.
When the final points were tallied, Northridge won the NLC championship with 406 points, followed by Wawasee’s 397, Concord’s 389 and Warsaw’s 242.5, to round out the top four.
“I am so proud of my girls,” Wawasee coach Julie Robinson said. “They stepped up to the plate and swam so well, which is shown by the records set. They were moving up places and no one gave up.”
In all the Lady Warriors won six events, placing second in two other events and finished third in three.
Brittany Robinson’s win in the 100 back made her a perfect 8 of 8 in individual races at the NLC Championships during her high school career.
However, the individual accolades did little to console her afterwards, as she was visibly affected by her team coming up short.
“It really was (all about the team),” she said while unsuccessfully trying to hold back tears. “We came into this meet really wanting to win. We trained so hard all season long. It’s just frustrating to see it happen again.”
For her part, the University of Louisville-bound Brittany Robinson won the 100 back as well as the 100 fly (56.06), while also being a part of the winning 200 free relay and victorious 400 free relay (3:38.72) with freshman Kendra Miller, Steele and Breanna Robinson.
Brittany’s younger sister, Breanna Robinson, also had a strong day, adding a first-place finish in the 100 free to her two relay victories.
Breanna won the 100 free with a time of 51.25 seconds and looked very motivated after placing second to Northridge’s Brittney Walters in the 200 free, the second race of the day.
“I don’t think she was really ready for (the 200 free),” Julie Robinson said of her younger daughter. “You had Walters swimming beside her in an elite (suit) on, and we didn’t have a fast race suit on. When the 100 (free) came, she wanted to leave no doubt.”
Breanna’s loss in the 200 free was the first individual loss for either Robinson sister this season, so their good days were expected, but another win may not have been come so routinely.
In the 50 free, Steele held off the competition to take first place, winning in 25.33 seconds, followed by Northridge senior Hannah Deak in second (25.43) and Concord sophomore Kenzie Wright in third (25.53).
“She was just amazing,” Julie Robinson said about Steele. “She came to me as a freshman, having never swam. We taught her all the strokes. We laughed because he dive was a belly-flop her freshman year, but look where she is - first in the 50 where it’s all about the start, the turn and the finish.”
While Northridge, Wawasee and Concord were battling it out, the rest of the field was back a bit, with Warsaw being the best of the rest.
“I kind of figured we’d get fourth,” first-year Warsaw coach Nathan Long said. “We actually got more points than I thought we would, but we also got unlucky in one relay. That happens.”
Warsaw’s top finishes of the day were fourth places, which were achieved by senior Claire Wack in the 50 free, sophomore Ashley VanWormer in the 100 breast and the 400 free relay of Wack, sophomore Cynthia Juarez, junior Jessica Sweatland and junior Erica Gauger.
Of the three fourth-place finishes, the tightest was in the 100 breast, where VanWormer was just 1/43 of a second away from first place.
In the tight race, Northridge sophomore Brooke Gardner won in 1:10.51, followed by Concord freshman Ashley Schrock (1:10.81), Northridge junior Ashley Owens (1:11.00) and VanWormer (1:11.08).
“She dropped half-a-second in her breast stroke, and I think I had all but one swim today that wasn’t a personal best,” Long said. “I can’t complain.”
The Lady Tigers will have a couple of meets before hosting a sectional on Feb. 2, and with none of the top NLC teams taking part in that sectional, Long is feeling good about it.
“I told them, ‘If we swim like this, it’s going to be hard to beat us.,” Long said. “We can’t let our guard down though. We have to stay focused and keep working for it.”
For Wawasee, the road is a little tougher, as it returns to Concord for the sectional, where Northridge will also be competing.
“We have areas we need to work on,” Julie Robinson said. “I’m looking at this as, we did great at conference. We’re not tapering. We know how fast we’ve gone. We’re going to come into sectionals and go after them again.”
And Brittany Robinson is just as fired up to get another shot at the Lady Raiders.
“I think we’re going to go out there more hungry, just because we’re going to want to change this around so we’re on top instead of second,” she said.
Until then, the Wawasee coach wants her team to see what they achieved Saturday instead of what they did not.
“There were so many girls that swam well and swam up, that yeah it was hard,” she said. “They came in here wanting to get first, but when you look at how they did overall and how many of them achieved lifetime bests. What can you ask of your kids when they’re going lifetime bests? You can’t ask anymore than that.”
NLC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Team Scores - Northridge 406, Wawasee 397, Concord 389, Warsaw 242.5, Goshen 221, NorthWood 175, Elkhart Memorial 146, Plymouth 103.5
(Winners, Local Results)
200 Medley Relay - 1. Northridge (Hannah Deak, Brooke Gardner, Brittney Walters, Ashley Owens) 1:50.90, 3. Wawasee (Karla Allen, Hannah Winters, Sarah Rozow, Kendra Miller) 1:57.67, DQ. Warsaw (Erica Gauger, Ashley VanWormer, Cynthia Juarez, Claire Wack); 200 Free - 1. Walters (Nr) 1:51.39, 2. Breanna Robinson (Waw) 1:52.33, 7. Miller (Waw) 2:10.44, 10. Jessica Haines (War) 2:12.83, 13. Meghan Boston (War) 2:15.02, 14. Megan Rhodes (Waw) 2:15.40; 200 IM - 1. Owens (Nr) 2:15.39, 3. S. Rozow (Waw) 2:17.48, 6. Sarah Jones (Waw) 2:25.80, 7. Rachel Rozow (Waw) 2:29.64, 8. VanWormer (War) 2:31.52, 9. Juarez (War) 2:30.11; 50 Free - 1. Sarah Steele (Waw) 25.33, 4. Wack (War) 26.11, 5. Miller (Waw) 26.97, 11. Jessica Sweatland (War) 28.10, 13. Winters (Waw) 28.68, 14. Mckenzie Haines (War) 28.85; Diving - 1. Melissa Berger (NW) 426.15, 8. Savannah Guimond (War) 321.10, 11. Ariel Werensly (War) 250.50, 14. Amber Mock (Waw) 203.70, 15. Brittney Rhodes (War) 172.45; 100 Fly - 1. Brittany Robinson (Waw) 56.06, 2. Allen (Waw) 1:00.11, 8. Juarez (War) 1:08.58, 10. Kira Bailey (Waw) 1:10.26, 11. Margot Rheinhardt (War) 1:11.42, 14. Sweatland (War) 1:13.63.
100 Free - 1. Bre. Robinson (Waw) 51.25, 5. Steele (Waw) 57.13, 7. S. Rozow (Waw) 57.48, 8. Wack (War) 57.64, 9. Gauger (War) 57.99, 16. M. Haines (War) 1:03.39; 500 Free - 1. Audra Burtch (C) 5:02.80, 6. J. Haines (War) 5:52.50, 8. Boston (War) 6:09.62, 10. Jones (Waw) 5:59.70, 14. R. Rozow (Waw) 6:10.75; 200 Free Relay - 1. Wawasee (Brit. Robinson, S. Rozow, Steele, Bre. Robinson) 1:37.95, 6. Warsaw (VanWormer, Mar. Rheinhardt, Boston, Sweatland) 1:51.31; 100 Back - 1. Brit. Robinson (Waw) 57.28, 3. Allen (Waw) 1:02.05, 5. Gauger (War) 1:05.41, 6. Malorie Rheinhardt (War) 1:06.47, 7. Bailey (Waw) 1:08.96; 100 Breast - 1. Gardner (Nr) 1:10.51, 4. VanWormer (War) 1:11.08, 7. Winters (Waw) 1:18.49, 8. Mar. Rheinhardt (War) 1:20.77, 11. Rachel Beery (War) 1:22.25; 400 Free Relay - 1. Wawasee (Miller, Steele, Bre. Robinson, Brit. Robinson) 3:38.72, 4. Warsaw (Wack, Juarez, Sweatland, Gauger) 3:59.31.[[In-content Ad]]
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All day long, Northridge had its supremacy challenged, as the Lady Raiders, Wawasee Lady Warriors and Concord Lady Minutemen were separated by just three points following the 10th of 12 events.
In that 10th event, which was the 200 free relay won by Wawasee’s foursome of senior Brittany Robinson, junior Sarah Rozow, senior Sarah Steele and freshman Breanna Robinson in 1:37.95, Northridge held an overall lead of 299, followed by Wawasee’s 297 and Concord’s 296.
Brittany Robinson won the 100 back in 57.28 seconds, and accompanied with a third place finish by senior Karla Allen and a seventh by freshman Kira Bailey, Wawasee increased its point total to 345, while Concord sat with 326 and Northridge had 324.
But just when things were looking good for the Lady Warriors, their weakest event came up, and Northridge took advantage.
That event was the 100 breast, where the Lady Raiders tallied 50 points, while Wawasee generated just 12, making their first-place time of 3:38.72 in the 400 free relay, the last race of the day, inconsequential to the overall outcome.
When the final points were tallied, Northridge won the NLC championship with 406 points, followed by Wawasee’s 397, Concord’s 389 and Warsaw’s 242.5, to round out the top four.
“I am so proud of my girls,” Wawasee coach Julie Robinson said. “They stepped up to the plate and swam so well, which is shown by the records set. They were moving up places and no one gave up.”
In all the Lady Warriors won six events, placing second in two other events and finished third in three.
Brittany Robinson’s win in the 100 back made her a perfect 8 of 8 in individual races at the NLC Championships during her high school career.
However, the individual accolades did little to console her afterwards, as she was visibly affected by her team coming up short.
“It really was (all about the team),” she said while unsuccessfully trying to hold back tears. “We came into this meet really wanting to win. We trained so hard all season long. It’s just frustrating to see it happen again.”
For her part, the University of Louisville-bound Brittany Robinson won the 100 back as well as the 100 fly (56.06), while also being a part of the winning 200 free relay and victorious 400 free relay (3:38.72) with freshman Kendra Miller, Steele and Breanna Robinson.
Brittany’s younger sister, Breanna Robinson, also had a strong day, adding a first-place finish in the 100 free to her two relay victories.
Breanna won the 100 free with a time of 51.25 seconds and looked very motivated after placing second to Northridge’s Brittney Walters in the 200 free, the second race of the day.
“I don’t think she was really ready for (the 200 free),” Julie Robinson said of her younger daughter. “You had Walters swimming beside her in an elite (suit) on, and we didn’t have a fast race suit on. When the 100 (free) came, she wanted to leave no doubt.”
Breanna’s loss in the 200 free was the first individual loss for either Robinson sister this season, so their good days were expected, but another win may not have been come so routinely.
In the 50 free, Steele held off the competition to take first place, winning in 25.33 seconds, followed by Northridge senior Hannah Deak in second (25.43) and Concord sophomore Kenzie Wright in third (25.53).
“She was just amazing,” Julie Robinson said about Steele. “She came to me as a freshman, having never swam. We taught her all the strokes. We laughed because he dive was a belly-flop her freshman year, but look where she is - first in the 50 where it’s all about the start, the turn and the finish.”
While Northridge, Wawasee and Concord were battling it out, the rest of the field was back a bit, with Warsaw being the best of the rest.
“I kind of figured we’d get fourth,” first-year Warsaw coach Nathan Long said. “We actually got more points than I thought we would, but we also got unlucky in one relay. That happens.”
Warsaw’s top finishes of the day were fourth places, which were achieved by senior Claire Wack in the 50 free, sophomore Ashley VanWormer in the 100 breast and the 400 free relay of Wack, sophomore Cynthia Juarez, junior Jessica Sweatland and junior Erica Gauger.
Of the three fourth-place finishes, the tightest was in the 100 breast, where VanWormer was just 1/43 of a second away from first place.
In the tight race, Northridge sophomore Brooke Gardner won in 1:10.51, followed by Concord freshman Ashley Schrock (1:10.81), Northridge junior Ashley Owens (1:11.00) and VanWormer (1:11.08).
“She dropped half-a-second in her breast stroke, and I think I had all but one swim today that wasn’t a personal best,” Long said. “I can’t complain.”
The Lady Tigers will have a couple of meets before hosting a sectional on Feb. 2, and with none of the top NLC teams taking part in that sectional, Long is feeling good about it.
“I told them, ‘If we swim like this, it’s going to be hard to beat us.,” Long said. “We can’t let our guard down though. We have to stay focused and keep working for it.”
For Wawasee, the road is a little tougher, as it returns to Concord for the sectional, where Northridge will also be competing.
“We have areas we need to work on,” Julie Robinson said. “I’m looking at this as, we did great at conference. We’re not tapering. We know how fast we’ve gone. We’re going to come into sectionals and go after them again.”
And Brittany Robinson is just as fired up to get another shot at the Lady Raiders.
“I think we’re going to go out there more hungry, just because we’re going to want to change this around so we’re on top instead of second,” she said.
Until then, the Wawasee coach wants her team to see what they achieved Saturday instead of what they did not.
“There were so many girls that swam well and swam up, that yeah it was hard,” she said. “They came in here wanting to get first, but when you look at how they did overall and how many of them achieved lifetime bests. What can you ask of your kids when they’re going lifetime bests? You can’t ask anymore than that.”
NLC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Team Scores - Northridge 406, Wawasee 397, Concord 389, Warsaw 242.5, Goshen 221, NorthWood 175, Elkhart Memorial 146, Plymouth 103.5
(Winners, Local Results)
200 Medley Relay - 1. Northridge (Hannah Deak, Brooke Gardner, Brittney Walters, Ashley Owens) 1:50.90, 3. Wawasee (Karla Allen, Hannah Winters, Sarah Rozow, Kendra Miller) 1:57.67, DQ. Warsaw (Erica Gauger, Ashley VanWormer, Cynthia Juarez, Claire Wack); 200 Free - 1. Walters (Nr) 1:51.39, 2. Breanna Robinson (Waw) 1:52.33, 7. Miller (Waw) 2:10.44, 10. Jessica Haines (War) 2:12.83, 13. Meghan Boston (War) 2:15.02, 14. Megan Rhodes (Waw) 2:15.40; 200 IM - 1. Owens (Nr) 2:15.39, 3. S. Rozow (Waw) 2:17.48, 6. Sarah Jones (Waw) 2:25.80, 7. Rachel Rozow (Waw) 2:29.64, 8. VanWormer (War) 2:31.52, 9. Juarez (War) 2:30.11; 50 Free - 1. Sarah Steele (Waw) 25.33, 4. Wack (War) 26.11, 5. Miller (Waw) 26.97, 11. Jessica Sweatland (War) 28.10, 13. Winters (Waw) 28.68, 14. Mckenzie Haines (War) 28.85; Diving - 1. Melissa Berger (NW) 426.15, 8. Savannah Guimond (War) 321.10, 11. Ariel Werensly (War) 250.50, 14. Amber Mock (Waw) 203.70, 15. Brittney Rhodes (War) 172.45; 100 Fly - 1. Brittany Robinson (Waw) 56.06, 2. Allen (Waw) 1:00.11, 8. Juarez (War) 1:08.58, 10. Kira Bailey (Waw) 1:10.26, 11. Margot Rheinhardt (War) 1:11.42, 14. Sweatland (War) 1:13.63.
100 Free - 1. Bre. Robinson (Waw) 51.25, 5. Steele (Waw) 57.13, 7. S. Rozow (Waw) 57.48, 8. Wack (War) 57.64, 9. Gauger (War) 57.99, 16. M. Haines (War) 1:03.39; 500 Free - 1. Audra Burtch (C) 5:02.80, 6. J. Haines (War) 5:52.50, 8. Boston (War) 6:09.62, 10. Jones (Waw) 5:59.70, 14. R. Rozow (Waw) 6:10.75; 200 Free Relay - 1. Wawasee (Brit. Robinson, S. Rozow, Steele, Bre. Robinson) 1:37.95, 6. Warsaw (VanWormer, Mar. Rheinhardt, Boston, Sweatland) 1:51.31; 100 Back - 1. Brit. Robinson (Waw) 57.28, 3. Allen (Waw) 1:02.05, 5. Gauger (War) 1:05.41, 6. Malorie Rheinhardt (War) 1:06.47, 7. Bailey (Waw) 1:08.96; 100 Breast - 1. Gardner (Nr) 1:10.51, 4. VanWormer (War) 1:11.08, 7. Winters (Waw) 1:18.49, 8. Mar. Rheinhardt (War) 1:20.77, 11. Rachel Beery (War) 1:22.25; 400 Free Relay - 1. Wawasee (Miller, Steele, Bre. Robinson, Brit. Robinson) 3:38.72, 4. Warsaw (Wack, Juarez, Sweatland, Gauger) 3:59.31.[[In-content Ad]]
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