2022 Minnesota Excessive Faculty Boys’ Swimming & Diving State Championship Meet – Class AA
The Edina boys gained 4 occasions, all in All-America trend, en path to a fourth-straight Minnesota Excessive Faculty State Championship. That provides this system 14 all-time state titles courting again to their first in 1965. That ties them with Hibbing Excessive Faculty (which gained its most up-to-date title in 1952) because the 2nd-most titles throughout all courses in Minnesota historical past.
Winningest Boys Swimming & Diving Packages in Minnesota Excessive Faculty Historical past:
- 15 – St. Thomas Academy, Mendota Heights, 1995-2016
- 14 – Edina, 1965-2022
- 14 – Hibbing, 1934-1952
- 11 – Minnetonka, 1978-2018
- 10 – Rochester, 1954-1964
The run to glory for Edina included a sweep of the meet’s relay occasions.
They opened the meet with a 1:31.91 within the 200 medley relay, successful by greater than a second-and-a-half. The workforce of Patrick Horton (23.64), Rohan D’Souza Larson (25.33), Kai Taft (22.57), and Michael Thurk (20.37) mixed for a successful time of 1:31.91. Thurk had the quickest closing 50 break up of the sphere.
Different notable splits in that relay included a 22.62 fly leg from Eden Prairie freshman Drew Ploof and a 22.78 backstroke leg from junior Luke Logue as a part of their Third-place effort. Whereas Edina graduates three of its 4 medley relay legs, the runners-up from Minnetonka (1:33.50) graduate just one, and third-place Eden Prairie doesn’t graduate anybody.
Logue backed up his best-in-field backstroke break up with a 48.09 to win the person occasion later within the meet by over a second-and-a-half. His time clears the All-America Computerized qualifying time. Logue’s earlier private greatest was a 48.80 at Winter Juniors – West that completed nineteenth.
Taft, the butterflier on the successful Edina relay, additionally picked up Edina’s lone particular person win of the meet, topping the 200 IM in 1:48.85. He was half-a-second behind Logue going into the breaststroke leg, however made up a full second on the breaststroke leg to construct a lead that might maintain up on freestyle. Logue was 2nd in 1:49.87.
That swim was Taft’s first state title; final season, he positioned 2nd on this race.
Whereas he swam the fly leg on the medley relay, Taft’s 2nd occasion was the 100 breast, the place he touched in 2nd place in 56.80. That put him behind solely Minnetonka’s Carson Witte (54.31). Witte, who break up 24.41 on Minnetonka’s runner-up medley relay, is dedicated to SMU: a program that has an NCAA qualifier this season within the breaststrokes.
His earlier greatest time was 55.12 at Winter Juniors West in December, and this time was a 1.7 second enchancment over his third-place end from final season.
Edina gained once more within the 200 free relay in 1:23.76. This time the group was Nico Leibert (21.58), Larson (20.90), Taft (20.75), and senior Max Dow on the anchor (20.53) with the quickest break up of the sphere.
Minnetonka’s relay, together with a 20.63 break up from Witte, was 2nd in 1:24.60, which can be underneath the All-America Auto customary.
Edina closed off the relay sweep with a dominant 3:03.87 within the 400 free relay to shut the meet. That relay included Thurk (56.11), Matthew Walker (46.40), Patrick Horton (45.87), and Dow (45.49).
Eden Prairie was once more 2nd in 3:06.33; Logue anchored their relay 45.34, which was the quickest break up of the sphere.
Except for Edina, the massive winner on the day was Grant Wodny from Duluth Excessive Faculty. One in every of simply two particular person scorers from his college, Wodny picked up victories in each the 200 free (1:38.73) and 500 free (4:29.19).
In complete, Wodny dropped virtually two seconds off his greatest time within the 200 all through the 2022 highschool championship season (1:0.63 from final yr’s meet) and virtually 5 off his greatest time within the 500 (4:33.76).
Wodny, who will stay in state on the College of Minnesota starting fall 2023, seems to be the primary Minnesota particular person boys state swimming champion from a Duluth Program since Denfeld’s Ronald Onsgard gained the 50 free in 1962.
Different Class AA Champions:
- Rosemount freshman Lucas Gerten gained the 1-meter diving occasion with a rating of 419.40. He’s second-ever diver to win a state champion after Daniel Monaghan gained in 2013 and 2014 – Monaghan was the varsity’s final state champion in any occasion.
- Eagan highschool senior Jackson Kehler gained the 100 fly in 49.11, simply beating-out Eden Prairie’s Yash Salunke and Minnetonka’s Carson Witte. Kehler sat out final yr’s state meet, however was the AA champion within the 200 free and 500 free in 2020 as a sophomore. He’s dedicated to swim at Utah within the fall.
- Lakesville South’s Max Kasal gained the 100 free in 45.38, ending half-a-second forward of Anoka’s Nathan Anderson (45.88). That’s an enormous leap for Kasal, who completed simply 14th eventually yr’s state meet in 47.52 (which on the time was a private greatest by a second-and-a-half. The late-blooming senior is dedicated to swim for Inexperienced Bay subsequent season. He’s simply the varsity’s third state champion all-time in boys swimming and diving.
- The ultimate order of the lads’s 50 free was reversed, with Anoka’s Anderson successful in 20.97 and Kasal ending 2nd in 21.01. Edina (Michael Thurk, Third/Rohan D’Souza Larson, sixth) and Brainerd (Cade Rosenwald, 4th/Thomas Ruhl, seventh) every put two swimmers in that A ultimate.
Closing Crew Standings – High 10
- Edina – 355
- Eden Prairie – 200
- Minnetonka – 170
- Lakeville South – 151
- Wayzata – 120
- Brainerd – 118
- Chanhassen-Chaska – 107
- Woodbury – East Ridge – 85
- Spring Lake Park – 77
- Eagan – 71
