Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
NORTH WEBSTER - Warsaw coach Chris LaLonde paced the edge of the pool, stuck two fingers in her mouth and whistled, all the while waving her orange clipboard as if she were pushing her swimmers onward.
But Warsaw didn't need LaLonde's help, as the Tigers managed just fine on their own in Thursday's Northern Lakes Conference preliminaries. So fine, in fact, that every Tiger swimmer placed in the top 12. That means every Warsaw swimmer advanced to the Saturday finals.
And yes, Warsaw was the only team to do that. Several swimmers from every other NLC team failed to make the cut.
The top six compete in the championship round. The bottom six compete in the consolation round. Getting swimmers to the consolation round is just as important, because they too score points.
"Our guys," LaLonde said, "are on a mission."
Never mind that no Warsaw swimmer placed first. Like LaLonde said later, it didn't matter. What mattered was the number 28. That's how many swimmers Warsaw has listed on its roster, which is eight more than any other NLC team has.
LaLonde knows that depth is what enabled her team to go 6-0 in NLC dual meets. It's also what will probably fuel Warsaw to first place in Saturday's finals.
"(Warsaw's swimmers) were looking through the heat sheet before prelims, and they were like, 'Wow, Goshen or Northridge is ranked first in every event,'" LaLonde said. "I said, 'You guys, it takes a team effort here. You don't worry about getting first.'
"I've been fortunate with a big team. That's what carries you. Plus, my big team is a solid team right now."
Nowhere are the Tigers more solid than in the 200 individual medley, where they took three of the top six places. Mike McCammon placed second with a time of 2:11.09. Evan Mock was fifth with a time of 2:14.80, while Justin VanLaeken was sixth with a time of 2:15.00.
Others that LaLonde highlighted? Second-year swimmer Justin Lowrance, who placed second in the 50 freestyle with a time of 22.87 seconds. The 400 free relay team of Nick Leininger, McCammon, Lowrance and VanLaeken, which finished second with a time of 3:33.21.
McCammon and Leininger, who placed second and fourth respectively in the 100 butterfly. Adam Helfrich, who recorded his best time yet in the 100 backstroke, 58.98 seconds, good for second place.
Then there were Jed Wandland and Mock, who placed second and third respectively in the 500 freestyle.
The Tigers did their part in the preliminaries. Now they have to follow through in the finals.
"In 1994-95, we were 6-0 going in and sort of choked," LaLonde said. "I thought that was a good team, but the quality of swimmers in the conference was a lot stronger that year. The quality of swimmers has been down the last couple of years, but I don't want to put my swimmers' quality down. They've worked hard to get where they've been and where they're going to."
If the Tigers capture the championship title, they will have dethroned Wawasee. The Warriors had been the team to beat the last couple of years, but not this year.
Adam Brown and Bruno Amaral turned in the top performances by Wawasee swimmers. Brown took second in the 100 breaststroke and fourth in the 200 individual medley. Amaral finished fourth in the 50 freestyle and fifth in the 100 freestyle.
Wawasee relay teams also performed well, taking third in the 200 medley and third in the 400 freestyle.
Diving starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, while the swimming finals begin at 2 p.m.
