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The girls swimming sectional at Warsaw looks to be one of local domination. Wawasee, Warsaw, Manchester and Valley combine for 44 percent of the teams at the event but they take 82 percent of the No. 1 seeds. In two events, the top five seeds belong to those teams.
That becomes important because of the difficulty in getting out of the sectional. There is no regional or semi-state competition, so the qualifiers head straight to the state meet.
However, qualifying is no easy matter. The first-place finisher at each sectional will move on to the state event. That will fill 20 spots at the state meet. Then, all swimmers reaching the very difficult state qualifying time will move on. To show how difficult it is to reach that time, only one swimmer at the Warsaw Sectional, Wawasee's Jenny Marty in the 100 buttefly, has surpassed it during the regular season. If that does not fill 32 spots, then the open spots will be filled by the swimmers with the best times at the sectionals up to that 32-person limit.
Wawasee, at 8-4 on the season, holds the most No. 1 seeds with six out of the 11 events that are seeded. The one that isn't seeded, diving, the Warriors have one of the top competitors in Jaime Conn. In diving, the top four finishers will advance to a regional event on Feb. 10.
"That's why they hold the swim meets," Wawasee head coach Roger Karns said. "I'm never comfortable in the favorite role. Certainly nothing is accomplished through seeding. My girls are swimming well, and they just have to go out and put it all on the line."
Marty's 100 butterfly time of 1:00.24 is better than five seconds ahead of anyone else in the field. All she needs to do is swim that time again to qualify for the state competition for the fourth time.
Wawasee also holds the No. 1 seed in the 200 medley relay, the 50 freestyle (Laura Karns), the 100 freestyle (Laura Lundin), the 500 freestyle (Marty) and the 200 freestyle relay.
For some of the top swimmers in each event there may be a tendency to not go all out in the prelims on Thursday. But, according to Karns, the sectional prelims sets up how well an individual can do at the state meet.
"If you want to go to state and be seeded well when you get there, you need to swim fast (in the finals) on Saturday," Karns said. "To do that, you better swim fast on Thursday to get yourself in the right spot. That's what we're telling our kids."
Manchester's Heidi Yoder holds the No. 1 seed in two events. She will swim as the favorite in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke. The Squires are 10-5-1 on the season, but probably won't challenge for the team title.
"I want to see them get their best times and reach their goals," Manchester head coach Abby Zerkel said. "Heidi Yoder wants to make it to state and that's kind of the goal of the whole team, to push her for it."
Warsaw does not have any No. 1 seeds, but will tote two No. 2 seeds and two No. 3 seeds into the meet. Sophomore Katie Beehler may have the best shot in 100 backstroke as her time is only .08 seconds behind Yoder.
"It's nice to have a No. 1 seed if you're three seconds ahead of everybody," Warsaw coach Eric Mohler said. "But if your a No. 1 and you're a few hundreths ahead of everybody, everyone's gunning for you and there's a lot more pressure on you. I think the position we're in is great. It's all a mind game at that point."
Valley has just one No. 1 seed, but the Vikings also have a No. 2 seed and three No. 3 seeds. The 400 freestyle relay team has a time more than a full second ahead of the second best time.
Finally, NorthWood will compete at the Penn Sectional. Jessica Warnken is one of the top swimmers in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke. Also, the Panthers' Sarah Eaton could do well in the 100 breaststroke.
Those athletes that finish in the top 12 in the prelims tonight will move on to the finals on Saturday and the top six will have the chance to compete for the event championship. However, the next six is still important for team points.
The sectionals will begin at 5:30 p.m. today. The sectional finals will take place on Saturday at 2 p.m. Diving will start at 9 a.m. on Saturday.
Warsaw Sectional
State cut time and seeding
200 medley relay (1:55.61) - 1. Wawasee, 2. Warsaw, 3. Manchester, 4. Plymouth, 5. Huntington North, 6. Culver Girls Academy
200 freestyle (1:58.00) - 1. Schramm (Bremen), 2. Boggs (Valley), 3. Redden (Plymouth), 4. Sturtevant (Plymouth), 5. Brissette (Wawasee), 6. Berry (Manchester)
200 individual medley (2:12.55) - 1. Yoder (Manchester), 2. Martha (CGA), 3. Vanlaningham (Valley), 4. Beehler (Warsaw), 5. Gilbert (Manchester), 6. Root (Bremen)
50 freestyle (:25.17) - 1. Karns (Wawasee), 2. Lundin (Wawasee), 3. Jones (Warsaw), 4. Wilcockson (Plymouth), 5. Martin (Wawasee), 6. Drudge (Valley)
diving area competitors - Cooper (Wawasee), Shipley (Wawasee), Spann (Manchester), Keirn (Warsaw), Moore (Warsaw), Vogt (Warsaw), Conn (Wawasee)
100 butterfly (1:00.46) - 1. Marty (Wawasee), 2. Cassel (Manchester), 3. Drudge (Valley), 4. Spangle (Manchester), 5. Barlow (Warsaw)
100 freestyle (:54.80) - 1. Lundin (Wawasee), 2. Karns (Wawasee), 3. Wilcockson (Plymouth), 4. Jones (Warsaw), 5. Vanlaningham (Valley), 6. Grothaus (Wawasee)
500 freestyle (5:17.66) - 1. Marty (Wawasee), 2. Schramm (Bremen), 3. Boggs (Valley), 4. Thallemer (Warsaw), 5. Sturtevant (Plymouth), 6. McKenzie (Manchester)
200 freestyle relay (1:42.99) - 1. Wawasee, 2. Plymouth, 3. Warsaw, 4. Culver Girls Academy, 5. Valley, 6. Bremen
100 backstroke (1:01.59) - 1. Yoder (Manchester), 2. Beehler (Warsaw), 3. Grothaus (Wawasee), 4. Miller (Wawasee), 5. Smith (Warsaw), 6. Knox (Plymouth)
100 breaststroke (1:08.98) - 1. Molitor (Huntington North) 1:12.22, 2. Martha (CGA), 3. Davis (Plymouth), 4. Wamsley (Wawasee), 5. Gilbert (Manchester), 6. Shivers (Wawasee)
400 freestyle relay (3:45.31) - 1. Valley, 2. Plymouth, 3. Wawasee, 4. Bremen, 5. Manchester, 6. Culver Girls Academy
Penn Sectional
NorthWood top six seeds
200 medley relay - 6. NorthWood
200 individual medley - 3. Warnken
diving - 5. Ramer
100 backstroke - 4. Warnken
100 breaststroke - 5. Eaton
400 freestyle relay - 6. NorthWood
