Coach Called It: Jesuit's Intangibles Lead to Speed, Program's 1st Finals Win
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 15, 2025
ROCHESTER — When practice started back in November, Detroit U-D Jesuit head boys swimming & diving coach Drew Edson looked at his team and knew it could be a special season.
But his forecast actually had little to do with the talent that was evident in the pool.
“It was because of the way they carried themselves,” Edson said. “It wasn’t the swimming or how many great swimmers we had in the pool. It was the attitude and the work ethic. It was the day in and day out effort they showed every day. It was amazing.”
Amazing to finish this season as well was the fact the Cubs achieved something Saturday they had never accomplished before – win an MHSAA Finals championship.
U-D Jesuit won its first by topping the rest of the Lower Peninsula Division 2 challengers at Oakland University, scoring 305 points. Byron Center was second with 256.5 points, and Birmingham Seaholm was third with 207. Farmington (149) and Rochester Hills Stoney Creek (122) rounded out the top five.
Jesuit had three individual winners: seniors Evan Tack and Patrick Mackillop, and sophomore Charlie McCuiston.
Tack won the 200-yard individual medley in a meet-record time of 1:46.28, McCuiston won the 100 freestyle in 45.45 seconds and Mackillop captured the 100 breaststroke in a time of 54.88.
“It just means the world,” Mackillop said. “It’s such a good culture. It’s the greatest feeling ever, and I wouldn’t want to do it with another group of guys.”
U-D Jesuit also won the 400 free relay in a meet-record time of 3:03.68 with the team of Tack, freshman Jack McCuiston, senior Matt Garza and Charlie McCuiston.
“It’s hard to put it into words,” said Edson, who completed his ninth year as head coach. “It was the culture. It was the way they treated each other and the way they’ve built this team off of the things that really mattered. The fast swimming has come after that.”
Stoney Creek senior Will Cicco and Seaholm junior Elliot Rijnovean won multiple individual events. Headed to swim next for Brown University, Cicco won the 200 free in a time of 1:37.36 and the 500 free in a time of 4:28.36.
Committed to Indiana, Rijnovean won the 100 butterfly in a time of 47.85 and the 100 backstroke in a time of 47.10 that set an all-class/division Finals record.
“I just locked in,” Rijnovean said. “Everything was on the line, and I managed to pull through. That was my thought process throughout the whole thing.”
Rijnovean also swam leadoff for Seaholm’s 200 medley relay that won in a time of 1:30.09. He was joined by junior Finn Murray, senior Emmett Knudsen and sophomore Quinn O’Neill.
Utica Ford senior Maximus Dexter won the 50 free in a time of 20.75, and Portage Northern junior William Blind won diving with 508.90 points.
Farmington’s team of senior Luke Morden, junior Josh Luo, senior Paul DeMartini and senior Jack Tomlinson won the 200 free relay in a time of 1:24.04.
PHOTOS (Top) U-D Jesuit's Patrick Mackillop swims to a championship in the 100 breaststroke Saturday at Oakland University. (Middle) Birmingham Seaholm's Elliot Rijnovean swims to an all-Finals record in the 100 backstroke. (Below) Mackillop and teammate Charlie Michael swim side by side in the breaststroke; Michael finished third. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)
Performance: Dexter's Rob Zofchak
January 13, 2016
Rob Zofchak
Dexter senior – Swimming
Zofchak entered this season poised for a strong finish to his high school career coming off his first MHSAA championship and a Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals record in the 100-yard backstroke (49.72 seconds) last winter. He’s on pace to equal that success – and accomplish much more. Zofchak was one of two multiple winners at Saturday’s Spartan Invitational at Battle Creek Lakeview, besting a field that included most of the top-ranked teams in Lower Peninsula Division 2 to earn this week’s Michigan National Guard “Performance of the Week.”
Zofchak won the 200-yard freestyle in 1:42.07, more than five seconds faster than the runner-up, and his winning backstroke time of 51.44 was more than a second faster than the rest. He also swam on the winning 400 freestyle relay (3:13.36) and fifth-place 200 medley relay (1:40.39). Top-ranked Dexter as a team finished first overall, in front of No. 4 Warren DeLaSalle and also ahead of No. 5 Lakeview, reigning champion and No. 2 Birmingham Seaholm, No. 3 Birmingham Groves, No. 8 Grosse Pointe South, No. 10 Portage Northern and Division 1 No. 2 Ann Arbor Skyline.
The two-time team Most Valuable Performer holds three individual and a relay school record, and last season was part of 17 pool record swims at pools throughout Michigan. He’s also earned All-America honors five times from the national coaches association and has signed to continue his swimming career on scholarship at the University of Michigan. Zofchak is a member of the National Honor Society, and last summer he qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100 and 200 backstrokes with times of 56.94 and 2:02.56, respectively.
Coach Michael McHugh said: “Rob is a gifted swimmer, but without the hard work and dedication he has shown throughout his career none of the accomplishments would have been possible. He puts himself in a position to succeed each day and motivates his teammates to raise their effort level to match. He is such a versatile swimmer that I can put in almost anywhere in the lineup and know he will come through for the team. As a captain for us this year he has shown great leadership and a willingness to go the extra distance for his teammates. His teammates look to him in big moments, and he is always ready to give it everything he has in order to get the job done.”
Performance Point: “I think (Spartan) went pretty well. Obviously, there’s a lot that I still need to improve – and there always will be. But it really sets us up with most of the other teams. The meet had most of the top five or six teams in Division 2 there. … We’d never actually gotten a trophy at that meet.”
Title time: Dexter won its last MHSAA team championship in boys swimming & diving in 2012; the Dreadnaughts finished fourth, second and third at the LP Division 2 Finals over Zofchak’s first three seasons. The Dexter girls, including his sophomore sister Sarah, won the LPD2 title this fall. “I know a lot of the guys are really looking at trying to get that title, especially with the girls winning it. It would be a great way to end my high school career, for sure. It would be a really great way to end it after all we’ve been through.”
Family ties: In addition to Zofchak’s younger sister, his older brother Jonathan was a Dexter standout and swims at Michigan State. “I try to teach my sister as much as I can, which is not much. I like to help her as much as I can. With Jonathan, I always try to go after him. I always want to beat my big brother.”
Chasing Clay: “Certainly, there are times and names out there that you always want to measure yourself up to, come close to those times. Clay Youngquist’s times (for Battle Creek Lakeview) in everything; I look at those and aspire for those. His 200 free (1:34.28 in 2011) in pretty absurd, probably untouchable. But I’d like to swim at the end of the year and at least be close.”
Hailing U-M: “I really admire the program there. I really admire the coaches, and I like what they have going on. On top of being one of the best swim schools in the nation, it’s a top academic school as well. Especially with it being 15 minutes from my house, it was one of my greatest choices. I’ll try for med(ical) school. My uncle is a doctor, and I want to help solve issues with people, help make people better.”
– Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2015-16 school year, Second Half and the Michigan National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and respond as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our Nation's freedom, or protecting lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2015-16 honorees
Jan. 6: Tyler Deming, Caro wrestling – Read
Dec. 15: Jordan Weber, East Jordan boys basketball – Read
Dec. 8: Kaitlyn Geers, Kent City girls basketball – Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Rob Zofchak was a two-time champion at the Spartan Invitational, winning the 200 freestyle and 100 backstroke. (Middle) The backstroke is Zofchak's favorite stroke, and he is the reigning Lower Peninsula Division 2 champion in the event. (Action photos by Doni Houghtaling; head shot by Tammy Lynne Photography.)