Sectional final set

Coaches like to use phrases like “every point counts.”
They tell their athletes every battle, whether it is for first place or 15th, could make the difference.
In the case of the Jay County girls swim sectional, those things happen to be true.
The host Patriots picked up seven No. 1 seeds during Thursday’s preliminary competition, including two each for Anne Vormohr and Katy Smeltzer. But the competition for the team title still looks as if it will come down to the final race.
Based on Thursday’s results, the top two teams would be separated by just one point: Muncie Central 379, Jay County 378.
The sectional meet continues with diving preliminaries at 9 a.m. Saturday followed by swimming and diving finals at 1 p.m.
“Muncie Central had a great meet tonight,” said JCHS coach Matt Slavik. “It’s going to be an extremely tight meet.
“It’ll be a good meet on Saturday.”
The three-time defending champion Bearcats followed Jay County with two top seeds, both from senior Emmy Rawson. Delta and Bellmont project as the third- and fourth-place teams, well ahead of the rest of the 10-team field.
Cady Farlow led South Adams, which is in position to battle with Muncie Southside for seventh place, as she broke school and sectional records.
“She was unbelievably awesome,” said SAHS coach Janelle Gresla, adding that she was happy with the effort from every swimmer on her five-member team. “I knew that her IM could go for the record tonight. ... Her breaststroke looked relaxed, looked ready to go.”
While almost every event has a heavy favorite, Smeltzer established herself as the swimmer to beat in what is expected to be the tightest race Saturday.
The junior won her heat of the 50-yard freestyle and earned the No. 1 seed by one tenth of a second over Bellmont senior Rachel Klingensmith in 25.98. Muncie Central’s Courtney Coffman was less than two tenths of a second off the pace.
Smeltzer, a sprinter by trade, stepped out of her comfort zone to compete in the 500 freestyle and took the No. 1 seed by nearly 10 seconds in 5:49.74.
Vormohr, who was fifth in the state in the 100 backstroke last season, is the favorite to win the sectional title again this year as she finished more than 10 seconds ahead of the field Thursday in 57.78. Her swim to the top spot in the 100 freestyle set new sectional and pool records of 53.12 seconds, breaking the previous marks set by Norwell’s Kym Cossairt in 2002.
Sophie Bader earned the other individual No. 1 seed for the Patriots, swimming five seconds faster than the field in the 200 freestyle in 1:59.06.
Vormohr, Smeltzer and Bader teamed with Jamie Valentine to post the top time in the 200 medley relay in 1:53.12, and joined Sydney Mathias to cruise to the No. 1 seed in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:47.23. The teams are favored by five and 11 seconds respectively.
“All three of them went out and swam relaxed races,” said Slavik of his trio of top-seeded individuals. “They went out and swam good races. Our medley relay ... went faster than we’ve gone all season.”
Bader added a No. 2 seed in the 100 butterfly behind Rawson, who is also favored to win the 200 IM.
Farlow dominated the 100 breaststroke, finishing eight seconds faster than Valentine to break her own sectional record (1:07.07) in 1:06.73. She was 11th in the state in the event last season.
Her time of 2:17.59 in the IM seeded her second behind Rawson and broke a 20-year-old school record.
“I’m really happy with it,” said Farlow. “I just wanted to come in and get two good prelim times, get good seeds.”
Ashley Mark and Taylor Campbell joined Valentine to give Jay County three of the top eight seeds in the 100 breaststroke as they placed fifth and sixth respectively. Alyson Lucas got the No. 5 seed in the 500 freestyle, and Sydney Mathias is seeded fifth in the 50 freestyle. Ashley Mark is also seeded seventh in the 200 IM, and Carli Ostrowski picked up the No. 8 seed in the 100 butterfly.
Emi Minnich, Mathias, Ashley Mark and Caitlin Mark teamed to earn the No. 4 seed in the 200 freestyle relay.
“I think we did really well,” said Vormohr. “A lot of girls came out here and they stepped up to the plate. There’s a lot of pressure obviously going into sectionals. We work all year for this. ...
“I don’t know who’s going to win, but I’m hoping, and I think all of our girls hope, that we have the potential to go out and win.”
Qualifying for consolation events for the Patriots were Mathias (ninth – 100 freestyle), Lucas (ninth – 200 freestyle), Minnich (10th – 50 freestyle), Campbell (11th – 200 IM), Caitlin Mark (12th – 100 freestyle, 12th – 100 backstroke), Ostrowski (12th – 200 IM), Valentine (13th – 100 butterfly), Laurann Schoenlein (14th – 100 backstroke), Hannah Lykins (15th – 200 freestyle) and Rylee Clemmons (16th – 500 freestyle).
Victoria Richardson (11th - 100 breaststroke, 15th - 500 freestyle), Audrey Burson (12th - 100 breaststroke, 16th - 200 IM) and Riley Thompson (12th - 500 freestyle) will swim in consolation events for South Adams. The Starfires are seeded seventh in both the 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays.[[In-content Ad]]