Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
INDIANAPOLIS - History was made Saturday at the Indiana Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI.
The Warsaw Tigers boys swim team rode several school-record performances and the state-winning 100 yard breastroke time of junior Nate Taylor to finish in an eighth-place tie with Homestead with a score of 116.
Warsaw's 200 medley relay team of Thad Wallin, Kyle Marose, Steven Lowrance and Taylor got the day started off right for the Tigers with a fourth-place finish and a time of 1:35.95. It was the fourth time this season the relay team set a school record.
In the day's third event, Taylor placed third in the 200 IM with a time of 1:52.53, nearly a full second faster than his Friday prelim time.
A fellow Northern Lakes Conference swimmer, Northridge's Arthur Miller, won the event with a time of 1:48.76.
Warsaw's Lowrance continued the Tigers' incredible run with a time of 21.76 in the 50 freestyle, good for seventh place. Lowrance also set the school record in the event.
Through the first four events, Warsaw was in fourth place with a score of 58.
Lowrance finished 12th in the 100 freestyle with a time of 48.04.
Wallin garnered 11 team points for Warsaw with an eighth-place finish in the 100 backstroke with a school-record breaking time of 53.71
In the day's 11th event, history was made.
Taylor qualified first in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 56.71 and won the event with a time of 56.80 en route to Warsaw's first state swimming title in school history.
Taylor was nearly a half second faster than Delta's Sam Pelkey. Wawasee's Jordan Rantz finished 11th in the event with a time of 59.61.
"Nate's performance was incredible," said Warsaw head swim coach Terry Aukeman. "He's just a great swimmer with a great mental attitude."
That mental attitude was on full display a day earlier during the prelims of the 200 IM.
"He said he didn't feel fantastic after swimming in the IM, Friday," said Aukeman. "When he got out of the pool he was surprised at the time."
His time was good enough for a third-place finish.
Taylor's performance was the culmination of a dream season for the Warsaw's swim program.
"I felt pretty confident heading in," said Aukeman. "Our goal all year was to finish in the top 10 in the state and to be able to do that is great."
The top 10 finish, along with sectional crowns in both the boys and girls swim seasons, has left Aukeman and his team feeling euphoric.
"This is just icing on the cake. We made all our goals with both teams. It's been an amazing ride," said Aukeman.
Saturday's excitement was also the perfect way to send off nine senior swimmers. Chris Hanson, Nate Long, Lowrance, Chris Martz, Jason McClintock, Kyle Munsch, Jake Revere, Chris Schenkel and Wallin all graduate this spring.
"We do lose nine seniors that helped build this program and have been great. Their going to be hard to replace," said Aukeman.
Check out Tuesday's edition of the Times-Union for more coverage of Warsaw's Nate Taylor and the Warsaw boys swimming state performance.
Top 10 Team Scores -ÊNorth Central (Indianapolis) 221, Penn 187, Northridge 165, Munster 151.5, Center Grove 141, Hamilton Southeastern 132, SB Riley 130, Homestead 116, Warsaw 116, FW Concordia 103
(Listed are top three in each event as well as local finishers)
200 medley relay -Ê1. Arthur Miller, Spenser Hanson, Bill Griffin, Kevin Troyer (Northridge) 1:34.93, 2. Munster 1:35.30, 3. FW Concordia 1:35.90, 4. Thad Wallin, Nate Taylor, Kyle Marose, Steven Lowrance (Warsaw) 1:35.95
200 freestyle - 1. John Scmitt (Ev. Reitz) 1:39.25, 2. Drew Sease (North Central) 1:39.41, 3. Peter Jameson (North Central) 1:39.49
200 IM -Ê1. Miller (Northridge) 1:48.76, 2. Michael Christy (North Central) 1:50.30, 3. Taylor (Warsaw) 1:52.53
50 freestyle - 1. David Cavadini (SB Riley) 21.24, 2. Jordan Walters (Vincennes) 21.29, 4. Bryan Chovanec (Munster) 21.45, 7. Lowrance (Warsaw) 21.76
50 freestyle - 1. David Cavadini (SB Riley) :21.24, 2. Jordan Walters (Vincennes) :21.29, 3. Bryan Chovanec (Munster) :21.45, 7. Steven Lowrance (Warsaw) :21.76
Diving - 1. David Boudia (Noblesville) 465.60, 2. Justin Smith (Munster) 458.00, 3. Caleb Dunnichoy (Elwood) 441.00
100 butterfly -Ê1. Christopher Etheringt (Kokomo) 49.78, 2. Joseph Retrum (Hamilton Southeastern) 50.47, 3. Patrick Augustyn (Highland) 51.35
100 freestyle - 1. Scmitt (Ev. Reitz) 45.75, 2. Jameson (North Central) 46.04, 3. Cavadini (SB Riley) 46.46, 12. Lowrance (Warsaw) 48.04
500 freestyle - 1. Chris Oleksiak (Center Grove) 4:31.69, 2. Sease (North Central) 4:35.56, 3. Sebastian Cousins (Carmel) 4:38.84
200 freestyle -Ê1. Timothy Glassley, Tyler Lemert, Michael Hartman, Daniel Hartman (FW Concordia), 2. SB Riley 1:26.21, Penn 1:26.21 (tie)
100 breaststroke - 1. Miller (Northridge) 50.79, 2. Retrum (Hamilton Southeastern) 51.35, 3. Christy (North Central) 51.38, 8. Wallin (Warsaw) 53.71
100 breaststroke - 1. Taylor (Warsaw) 56.80, 2. Sam Pelkey (Delta) 57.23, 3. Lemert (FW Concordia) 57.28, 11. Jordan Rantz (Wawasee) 59.61
400 freestyle relay - 1. Sease, Jameson, Ken Minturn, Christy (North Central) 3:06.18, 2. Penn 3:09.04, 3. SB Riley 3:09.29, 8. Lowrance, Jason McClintock, Nate Long, Taylor) 3:12.43
