A learning experience, a good test, it doesn’t matter in
this league, a character building opportunity; there are a lot of things they
say about experiencing a tough loss. Bottom line is it still leaves a bad taste
in your mouth when it happens.
The Winona Winhawks (4-4, 3-4) hosted the Albert Lea Tigers
(5-4, 4-4) Thursday night in Big 9 competition. Everyone, the coaches, the
officials, parents, all greeted each other the same, “hi, nice to see you,
gonna be a close one tonight”. Most everyone knew the two teams were evenly
skilled and the outcome was unpredictable.
Swimming is unlike the more popular high school sports. Football,
basketball, baseball, volleyball; they all do hard conditioning early in the
season and then spend the majority of their time practicing or honing skills
required to compete in the sport. Swimming performs heavy conditioning through the
entire season. The first part of the season is focused on building up the anaerobic
(ability to extract oxygen from the blood) followed by a strength conditioning
period meant to build up muscles and increase endurance. Both are exhausting and physically taxing to
the swimmers bodies. While all this is going on, the team has swimming meets
where the athletes try to go as fast as they can, tempered by the toll taken on
their body by training (practice). It is very common for swimmers to swim
faster earlier in the season and then get slower as they compete while doing
their anaerobic and condition phases.
So as I have typed before, dual meet results in the Big 9
mean little to nothing. The two reasons being times in mid-season have little
bearing on what times are achievable at end of season. And second, the dual
meet record has no bearing on conference, sections or even the state meet.
This Winhawks / Tigers dual meet was one of the best I
have watched in a long time. The score stayed close throughout, the individual
races were hotly contested; there was great drama as the meet built up to the
inevitable final event.
The 200 Medley Relay got the meet off on the right foot for
the Winhawks as was expected. Winona was
favored in this event but they left nothing to chance. The team of Cotter
Senior MacKenzie Brosnahan, Cotter Junior Alexandra Zuelke, and Winhawk
Sophomores Reese Galewski and Haley O’Neill set a new season low time as well
as moved themselves up one more notch on the all-time Winhawk top 12 list into
5th fastest ever.
Winona 8 Albert Lea 6
The 200 Freestyle ended up the predicted Winhawk O’Neill vs
Tiger Anderson match-up. Winhawk Sophomore Haley O’Neill took command right off
the blocks, establishing a half second lead and then adding fractions to it
until she finished in a new season low time. Following behind her ranking in 3rd
place was Cotter Sophomore McKenna Marg swimming her fastest time in a month
and just a half second of her personal best. The two Winhawks yield a 9-7 edge
in points.
Winona 17 Albert Lea 13
The 200 IM was the first installment of the Horejsi (AL) and
Zuelke (W) battle. Their race was a dead heat after the butterfly and within 2
tenths after the backstroke but even though they both excel at the
breaststroke, the Tiger swimmer opened it up at that point and went on for the
win. Alex placed second and Winhawk Sophomore Reese Galewski swam well to place
4th. The point totals bring the
meet into an even tie.
Winona 23 Albert Lea 23
The 50 Freestyle was the first place for Winhawk Coach Steve
Burt to interject his Cotter Senior MacKenzie Brosnahan. She wins with margin,
(some spare room not usually seen in the sprints). Cotter Sophomore Emily
Thurow swims a personal best time in bringing home 3rd place and
Cotter 8th grader Alexandra Arnold although not scoring also swims a
personal best time. The Winhawks go ahead by two points.
Winona 32 Albert Lea 30
Diving took place at the Middle School which was as shame
because the swim crowd was denied one heck of a show. Winhawk Sophomore Janelle
Mueller set a new personal high score in securing 3rd place points,
Winhawk Crystal Franzwa took 2nd and Albert Lea diver Kari Kriewall dove
a personal record high and shattered a Winona Pool record that had stood for 27
years. The results bring the meet score back into a tie!
Winona 39 Albert Lea 39
The 100 Butterfly went both as expected and as had been
hoped. Winhawk Sophomore Flyer Reese Galewski dominated the field winning by
over 4 body lengths. Right behind her was not any of the Tigers but her
teammate Bluffview 8th Grader Hanna O’Neill setting a new personal
best time by over a half a second. The 1-2 finish provides the Winhawks a 10-6
advantage and regains the lead in the meet!
Winona 49 Albert Lea 45
The 100 Freestyle exhibited some additional coaching
strategy as Winona went with Cotter Senior MacKenzie Brosnahan to both assure
the win and save O’Neill for the 500 Freestyle. Brosnahan wins the 100 easily with
Cotter Sophomore Emily Thurow in 5th. The Tigers taking 2-3-4 gives
them the points edge and they close the gap.
Winona 56 Albert Lea 54
The 500 Freestyle was a masterful move by Winhawk coach
Steve Burt. Assessing the Tigers’ capabilities, he decides to enter
Sprint/mid-distance star Haley O’Neill to push the field and challenge for
first. Haley does just that taking the lead during the 4th length of
the pool and slowly opens up the lead to win by almost 10 seconds. The Tigers
were shifted down to 2nd & 3rd with Haley’s
participation but the real entertainment was behind the three of them. Winhawk
Sophomore Razil Campbell was locked in a stroke for stroke death match with the
Tiger Sara Rasmussen. They were
side-by-side within tenths of a second of each other the first 200 yards. Razil
took a slight 8 tenths of a second lead by half way point and extended it to a
full 1.2 seconds by 400 yards. Then Rasmussen kicked it in gear making up the
gap and closing to within 15 hundredths of a second by 450 yards. The last 50
yards saw the two of them side-by side putting out everything they could in a
negative split duel to the finish. At the 500 touch Razil holds off the
charging Tiger and touches her out by a mere 4 one hundredths of a second to
claim 4th overall and set herself a new personal best time by nearly
5 seconds! Even more important, Razil’s finish makes the event an even 8-8
point spread.
Winona 64 Albert Lea 62
The 200 Freestyle Relay looked to favor the Winhawks, but
the Tigers were inspired. They swim a
season best 1:43.48. The Winhawk relay of Zuelke, Thurow, O’Neill and Brosnahan
were in the lead throughout. Brosnahan anchors swimming her 2nd
fastest split of the season BUT AL Star Lindsey Horejsi splits an unbelievable 23.64
and secures the comeback win for AL. Mitigating the effects are the Winhawk “B”
relay of Marg, Quandahl, Arnold and O’Neill securing 3rd place and
only allowing AL a 2 point margin and the teams are once again tied.
Winona 70 Albert Lea 70
The 100 Backstroke is where the coaches and swimmers can
start to see the end of the meet coming. Typically relief or despair starts to
set in depending on which end of the score you are on, in a dead tie it is more
like panic. Cotter Sophomore McKenna Marg grasps the meet with both hands and
motors her way to an impressive win setting a new personal best time by a
second and a half! Following her lead, Cotter 8th grader Morgan
Whyte rises to the challenge to place 3rd and Winhawk Sophomore
Abbey Quandahl swimming the back for the first time in weeks sets a new personal
best scoring in 5th. The Winhawks use the 10-6 point differential to
go back into the lead.
Winona 80 Albert Lea 76
The 100 Breaststroke was one of the anticipated races of the
evening. AL star 8th grader Lindsey Horejsi has been setting records
around the Big 9 this season and there was no reason to think that she would stop
at this point. As expected Horejsi took command early with Cotter Junior
Alexandra Zuelke behind her and Tiger Morgan Field right on her shoulder. In
the final 50 Morgan turns it on and overtakes Zuelke in the final 5 yards.
LIndsey Horejsi sets a new Winona pool record cracking the previous mark that stood for 22 years by just under a second. Albert Lea takes 1-2-4 and the points prove devastating to the Winhawks
surrendering the lead for the first time in the meet.
Winona 84 Albert Lea 88
The 400 Freestyle Relay would be the determining event. The
Winhawks needed more than the win. A win and 3rd place would give
them the meet. Anything else and Albert Lea is celebrating. In the end it was
not to be, Albert Lea had a little bit deeper squad. The fastest foursome
Winona had eligible dug deep and swam the 2nd fastest 400 Freestyle
relay of the year but it was not enough. They finish 2nd and the
result was a very tough loss.
Final Score
Varsity
Winona 88 Albert Lea 98
Junior Varsity
Winona 98 Albert Lea 59
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