Three make finals

Patriot coach Matt Slavik put his boys up to task.

They met his expectations.

Three members of the Jay County High School boys swim team qualified for the championship heat and helped two relays earn top-eight seeds from the IHSAA Boys Swimming and Diving Sectional preliminaries Thursday.

“We fell short in a couple areas but I can’t complain,” Slavik said. “When I gave them a challenge … for the most part they stepped up to the plate.

“I think the boys were hyped up and were swimming well today and I look forward, definitely, I think we’re going to have some big things on Saturday.”

The top eight seeds advance to the championship final while nine through 16 compete in the consolation final as the meet resumes Saturday. Diving preliminaries are set for 10 a.m., with the championship, consolation and diving finals to begin at 1 p.m.

Delta, which is looking for its sixth consecutive sectional championship and seventh in the last eight years, leads the way with five No. 1 seeds. Bluffton is second with three, Norwell has two and Blackford owns one.

Jay County junior Griffin Mann sports the best seed for the host Patriots as he will be third in the 100-yard breaststroke. He won his heat with a time of 1 minute, 6.39 seconds, and trails top-seeded Jack Ringger (1:02.86) of Bluffton and Kellen Zimmer (1:03.7) of Norwell.

“I really just went out there and focused on really what I’ve been working on lately in practice,” said Mann, noting he’s concentrated on lengthening his stroke for a better second half of his race. “The goal is to go out there and swim even better on Saturday, obviously. I need to break it out harder. I was just stretching it out and seeing what I can do.”

Mann is also seeded seventh in the 50 freestyle in 24.26 seconds, 0.28 seconds and one spot behind teammate Kyle Sanders who has the same seed in the 100 butterfly (1:00.07).

Delta’s Braden Samuels is the No. 1 seed in the 50 freestyle at 21.22 seconds, which surpassed the state standard of 22.27, but he must reach that time during the final for an automatic qualifying spot.

Broderick Page of Norwell holds the top seed in the 100 butterfly with his time of 53.68 seconds.

JCHS senior Chase McFarland will be seeded fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 200 freestyle (1:59.61) and 100 backstroke (59.09 seconds), setting career-best times in both races.

“He’s got a little bit that he can shave off on Saturday,” Slavik said. “It’s pretty exciting to have all three of those guys in the finals heat.”

Mann, Sanders and McFarland make up three-fourths of the 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays which also made the championship heat Saturday.

Together with Reid Claycomb in both races, the foursome is seeded third in the 200 medley relay as they had a time of 1:47.2. Bluffton holds the top seed in 1:42.99. Jay County’s quartet has the No. 5 seed in the 200 freestyle relay at 1:37.4 seconds. Delta’s time of 1:32.23 was the fastest.

“The boys both had best times for the relays,” Slavik said. “With a little bit more work on our interchanges and our walls I think they’re going to be on fire in both relays too.”

Josh Monroe is seeded 14th in both the 200 individual medley and 500 freestyle. Konner Sommers will compete in the consolation finals of the 200 IM and 100 butterfly as the 15th seed in both races.

Ralph Link (13th – 100 breaststroke) and Nico Minnich (16th – 100 butterfly) as well as the 400 freestyle relay (10th) will be in the consolation finals on Saturday.

Wyatt Kunkler was 17th in the 500 freestyle and will be the first alternate, and Ben Strausburg will be the second alternate in the 100 breaststroke as he was 18th.