Pioneer Rebounds from Runner-Up Finish to Regain Division 1 Championship
By
Tim Robinson
Special for MHSAA.com
March 14, 2026
ROCHESTER — What a difference a year made for the Ann Arbor Pioneer boys swimming & diving team.
Last year, the Pioneers saw their string of Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals titles snapped at four, finishing second to Southeastern Conference Red foe Saline.
This year, the Pioneers made it back to the summit, scoring 283 points to best second-place Northville (254). Saline, with 226 points, finished third.
“From the first day of the season, this was our goal, to get back on top," Pioneer coach Stefanie Kerska said. “Northville gave us the biggest run in a long time. It was a great weekend of competition. I’m so proud of these boys. I’m so proud of these seniors."
Among the seniors was Edward Zhang, who won the individual medley and was on all three Pioneer relays.
“We were all looking to leave with a bang,”’ he said. “It feels so good. Last year, after that loss, we were all so disappointed, and we were all looking forward to this year.”
"The key was just being consistent and trying to be predictably excellent,” Kerska said, "We wanted to maintain a steady level of emotional discipline throughout the whole meet, and the guys just showed up like professionals.”
They weren’t the only seniors who did so.
Jenison’s Caleb Storey won the 100 freestyle and 50 free titles, while Northville's Brady Stenson defended his title in the 200 free. Junior Isaac Adanin of Saline repeated in the breaststroke.
Another junior, Pioneer's Charles Knoepp, won the 500 free and was on the winning Pioneer 400 free relay with seniors Zhang, Henry Baumhover and Cameron Kline.
“We were just hungry for this,” Baumhover said. “We got second last year, and it feels amazing to complete our goal.”
As for reaching the goal, Baumhover said there were no shortcuts.
"The key is just every single day in practice," he said. “It’s not one singular meet day. It’s just every single stroke, every single 50 in practice, We all work so hard, every single day.”
Northville posted its best finish since a second-place result in 2022.
“We just have a great group of seniors that came together," coach Rich Bennett said. ”They’ve been training for this since they were freshmen, and it was awesome to have them finish this way. We fell a little short. But we did really well. I’m proud of the boys.”
The Mustangs got off to a strong start, winning the first two events, before a deeper Pioneer squad began collecting the points it needed to win its fifth title in six years.
“They’re always the measuring stick,” Bennett said of Pioneer. “They’ve got a fantastic coaching staff. They have super-talented kids. They’ve been the measuring stick for a long time, and we threw everything we had at them. They have a great team, but I'm really proud of my guys as well.”
And in the end, it was Kerska who made the happy celebratory dive into the pool after the championship trophy had been awarded.
“I couldn't have wished for a better outcome," Kline said. “We swam our hearts out, and we did what we needed to do.”
While the Pioneer swimmers were fixated on Saturday's meet, Kerska admitted to looking ahead to next year before the 2026 meet was over.
“My assistant was talking to me about it during the breaststroke,” she said, smiling.
Holland West Ottawa senior Isaac Kamara-Hagemeyer won the diving competition. Grandville senior Oliver Ottenwess won the butterfly, and Milford senior Samuel Campbell finished first in the backstroke after placing second a year ago. Bloomfield Hills won the 200 freestyle relay.
PHOTOS (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer celebrates its Finals championship during the traditional post-victory dip in the pool at Oakland University. (Middle) Northville’s Benjamin Hu swims to a fourth-place finish in the individual medley. (Below) Swimmers launch during the start of the 200 freestyle relay. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)
Houghton Repeats to End Perfect Season
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
February 17, 2019
MARQUETTE — The Houghton boys completed a perfect swimming & diving season Saturday while retaining their Upper Peninsula title with 313 points.
The Gremlins earned their second straight U.P. Finals title after finishing runners-up in both 2016 and 2017.
“They all came together today,” Houghton coach Erik Johnson said shortly after taking a dip in the Marquette High School pool. “My favorite bath is something special.
“Our depth is what helped us today. We were pretty senior-oriented this year, and we’ll let them soak it in and enjoy it. Kevin Beagham had a great day. Being a senior and team captain, this is special for him. As for the perfect season, it’s something I really don’t keep track of. Our kids are pretty loud about getting their friends fired up. The seniors left their mark on this program.”
Beagham won the 100-yard breaststroke in 61.18 seconds, 200 individual medley (2:15.67) and helped the Gremlins take the 200 medley relay (1:52.61) with classmates Cameron Jackson and Colton Haataja and freshman Davin Evans also part of that relay.
“This feels amazing,” said Beagham, who plans to attend Iowa State University this fall. "We’ve been working for this all year. There was a lot of pressure this year. We definitely had a target on our back.
“The 100 breaststroke was a little rough, but I think all the other events went pretty well. I’ll remember this forever. I’m real proud of all our guys and girls. I couldn’t have done any of this without them.”
Marquette and Gladstone shared runner-up honors at 203 points apiece.
Senior Josh Nykanen led Marquette with victories in the 50 freestyle in 23.08 seconds and 100 breaststroke (1:07.79), and as part of the 400 freestyle relay (3:46.41).
“That relay is a challenging race, especially with it being at the end of the meet,” said Johnson, whose future plans include serving an electrical apprenticeship in Minneapolis. “You’re using all your muscles and you get a little sore, but it’s all worth it. All my friends are on the 400 freestyle relay, and this gave us one last chance to swim together. I’m just happy the meet went the way it did. We’re pleased to come out as runners-up.”
Also part of the winning relay were senior Robert Bell, junior Wyatt Clement and freshman Bob Caron.
Marquette coach Nathan McFerrin said he was pleased with the team’s effort.
“At the beginning of the year, if you told me we’d tie for second, I wouldn’t have believed you,” he added. “Our boys numbers were a little down this year, but we have 10 incoming freshmen and four of the eighth-graders could have won the 200 medley and freestyle relays. We have a lot to be excited about.”
Gladstone took a relay title for the first time, covering the 200 medley event in 1:41.48.
“It’s awesome to tie for runner-up as a team and be the first team from Gladstone to win a relay,” said senior Tyler Barteld. “I’m proud of all our guys. Having low numbers makes it feel more like a family than a team.”
Also helping the Braves win that relay were junior Nick LeClaire and sophomores Peter Noblet and Isaac Berthaume.
Sault Ste. Marie junior Andrew Innerebner set U.P. Finals records in 100 freestyle (48.27) and 200 freestyle (1:44.02).
Marquette’s Sam Williams is now the former 100 record holder with a 48.39 from three years ago, and Innerebner topped his previous best in the 200 (1:46.36) from 2017.
It’s fun to compete against the best in the U.P.,” said Innerebner. “I basically took into account that I was in the first (individual) race. I wanted to set the pace and get everybody excited.
“I remember Coach Steve (Hubuata) telling us we’re here to shock the world. We did great today. We had a lot of personal bests.”
PHOTOS: (Top) A Houghton swimmer helps his team toward the championship in the butterfly Saturday. (Middle) Swimmers launch during one of the day’s early races at the Upper Peninsula Finals. (Click for more from Jarvinen Photos.)