Vormohr places 5th

INDIANAPOLIS — Thirty-eight years is a long time.
It’s more than twice as long as Anne Vormohr has been alive.
Until she climbed the podium Saturday, no girls swimmer in Patriot history had never earned a state medal.
Vormohr finished off her record-breaking freshman season for Jay County with a fifth-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke Saturday at the IHSAA Girls Swimming and Diving State Finals at IU Natatorium.
“It’s awesome,” said Vormohr of the experience. “It’s just really cool to even come here to compete. And then to get up there on the podium is an accomplishment. I’m glad I could do it.
“I owe it to my coaches. I owe it to my parents. … And my sister training me. And all my cousins. I owe it all to them. It’s really cool to be the first person to do it. And I hope I can do it next year.”
Vormohr also finished 13th in the state in the 100 freestyle after entering the weekend as the No. 23 seed in the event.
Her two top-16 finishes scored 18 points for JCHS, placing it 28th at the state finals.
Carmel won its 27th straight state championship with 397 points, and Penn was the runner-up with 189.
“Anne finishing fifth and 13th is just an outstanding feat,” said Jay County coach Matt Slavik, noting that prior to Saturday no Patriot girl had ever advanced through the preliminaries. “I know everybody on our team … is proud of her. I’m super proud of her. It was just a great all-around weekend.
“It’s a big deal for our school. … I’m just so proud of Anne.”
Vormohr, who was seventh in the 100 backstroke in Friday’s preliminaries, got off to a solid start and was in sixth place after the first lap of the pool. But her target was to finish at least in the top five after entering the weekend as the No. 5 seed, and she made sure she would reach that goal.
She turned in the fourth-fastest second 50 yards in the race, passing Homestead’s Bailey Pressey in the final 25 yards to take fifth place in 56.12 seconds.
“I did not want to get any lower than fifth,” said Vormohr. “I wanted to get higher, but to be seeded fifth and then to finish fifth was awesome.
“I was really happy with it. I wanted to go a 55, but I guess I can save that for next year, I hope.”
Despite not quite breaking the 56-second barrier, Vormohr’s time in the state championship race was still a school record. She broke the mark of 56.29 she had set less than 24 hours earlier during the preliminary round.
The record prior to this season was 1 minute, 2.38 seconds, set by 2002 JCHS graduate Abby Arnold.
Vormohr was surprised to even be swimming Saturday in the 100 freestyle after coming in as the No. 23 seed. But once she qualified for the consolation finals Friday night, she made the most of the opportunity.
She was sixth at the midpoint of the consolation race, but climbed one spot in the second 50 to take fifth in 53.06 seconds. That effort was good for 13th place overall.
“That was a real surprise to me,” said Vormohr. “I wasn’t even thinking of coming in and getting in the (consolation finals), but that was awesome. To move up 10 spots at the state meet is really cool.”
Vormohr’s time was the second-best of her career, trailing only her school record of 52.76 seconds set during the state preliminaries on Friday.
“That was just pure determination,” said Slavik. “After she knew what she had to swim she focused in on it and accomplished her goal. That’s just the type of kid that she is. If you set a goal in front of her, she’s going to reach it.
“She’s just a pleasure to work with. She works hard and she earns everything she gets. She’s one of those special kids. … She’s just a great all-around athlete, a great all around person. You couldn’t ask for any better.”
Vormohr’s state medal put an exclamation point on the best season in the history of Jay County High School swimming.
The Patriots broke the school record for wins for the third straight year as they posted a 15-1 record. They rewrote the record book, setting new standards in all three relays and six individual events, including five school records on Friday during the preliminary round of the state finals.[[In-content Ad]]