Eagles swim to 5 1st-place finishes

By Dan Larson, Sauk Prairie Eagle

They are the two-time defending WIAA Division 2 state champions and four-time defending Badger North conference-meet champions

So Sauk Prairie girls' swim coach Melanie Guentherman fully expected DeForest to present a considerable challenge Sept. 23.

But while she figured the Eagles probably wouldn't win the dual-meet, she did have other goals in mind.

"We were really looking for effort and trying to score as many points as we could," Guentherman said in an interview two days after the Norskies handed Sauk Prairie a 105-66 defeat at DeForest High School. "We were basically looking to have good races."

And although the score was indicative of a disparity in depth between the two teams, Sauk Prairie did have good races.

Abby Diehl and Alison Meng each won two individuals events, Sauk Prairie won the 200-yard medley relay, Kelsey Kohlbeck finished second in two events, Jenna Lovell finished second in another and the 400 freestyle relay team finished second as the Eagles captured first place in five of 11 events and second in four others.

Guentherman said Diehl had a particularly impressive meet. The senior and defending conference runner-up in the 200 freestyle won the event in one minute, 57.74 seconds — a personal season-best and just :00.55 off her time at the state meet a year ago, where she finished fifth. Casey Wolter, who finished seventh at state last year, took second in 2:00.76 — :02.85 slower than her state-time.

"She had a really nice race," Guentherman said of Diehl. "She rises to the occasion, so if we have strong competition she rises up to the competition. That's what we saw there."

Diehl also won the 50 freestyle in :25.47 and, along with Alison Meng, Jenna Lovell and Kelsey Kohlbeck, was on the 200 medley relay that won in 1:58.01 — :06.16 ahead of DeForest. Freshman Carly Reinke, who is in on-going competition with Lovell for the breaststroke-leg of the relay, wasn't able to participate in the meet because of a medical issue.

Meng won the 100 butterfly in 1:01.84 — just :00.10 ahead of Leah Winckler — and the 100 backstroke in 1:03.23.

Kelsey Kohlbeck finished second in the 100 freestyle in :57.75 — just :00.23 behind Lindsey Verhulst — and the 200 individual medley in 2:22.46, and Jenna Lovell finished second in the 100 breaststroke in 1:18.95.

Winckler, Karmyn Vandewettering, Verhulst and Wolter won the 400 freestyle relay in 3:47.28, just :00.04 ahead of the Sauk Prairie team of Meng, Megan Cahill, Kohlbeck and Diehl. Vandewettering and Wolter were on the team that finished second at state last year.

Despite finishing 39 points DeForest, Guentherman said she's happy with where the Eagles are at.

"I'm really pleased.," she said. "We're just working on keeping the intensity there and still having fun. ... We're keeping our eyes on the end of the season, because we're in good shape."

Sept. 23
DEFOREST 105, SAUK PRAIRIE 66

(top Sauk Prairie team listed in relays, top two SP individuals listed in all others)

200-yard medley relay — 1, Sauk Prairie (Alison Meng, Jenna Lovell, Kelsey Kohlbeck, Abby Diehl), 1:58.01. 200 freestyle — 1, Diehl, SP, 1:57.74; 5, Lauren Ballweg, SP, 2:14.02. 200  individual medley — 1, Winckler, D, 2:19.65; 2, Kohlbeck, SP, 2:22.46; 5, Molly McGuine, SP, 2:46.77. 50 freestyle — 1, Diehl, SP, :25.47; 5, Chantel McConville, SP, :28.20. 100 butterfly  — 1, Meng, SP, 1:01.84; 4, Shelby Cramer, SP, 1:09.05. 100 freestyle — 1, Verhulst, D, :57.32; 2, Kohlbeck,  SP, :57.75; 4, Megan Cahill, SP, 1:00.76. 500 freestyle — 1, Vanderwettering, D, 5:28.96; 3, Cramer, SP, 5:55.00; 5, Taylor Wixom, SP, 6:21.18. 200 freestyle relay - 1, DeForest (Statz, Vandewettering, Enge, Fritz), 1:50.59; 3, Sauk Prairie (Lovell, McConville, Ballweg, Cahill), 1:50.70. 100 backstroke — 1, Meng, SP, 1:03.23; 5, Cahill, SP, 1:13.52. 100 breaststroke — 1, Wolter, D, 1:14.96; 2, Lovell, 1:18.95; 3, McConville, SP, 1:19.71. 400 freestyle relay — 1, DeForest (Winckler, Vandewettering, Verhulst, Wolter), 3:47.28; 2, Sauk Prairie (Meng, Cahill, Kohlbeck, Diehl).