For Emerging Cranbrook, Time is Now
November 18, 2017
By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
YPSILANTI – A young team with a promising future became an MHSAA champion Saturday at the Michael H. Jones Natatorium at Eastern Michigan University.
The Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood girls swimming & diving team, led by four freshmen, a sophomore and three juniors, stormed to the Lower Peninsula Division 3 championship with 292 points while Bloomfield Hills Marian was second with 207 and Grand Rapids Catholic Central was third with 199.
Although Cranbrook Kingswood was ranked No. 2 coming into the meet, winning the title might have seemed a little out of reach.
“That’s what makes this even more special, because I don’t think they were expecting it,” said Cranes coach Chris Bagley, who was named the Coach of the Year by the state coaches association. “They didn’t know it was possible until we got here.”
Bagley conceded he wasn’t planning on winning the title this year, either.
“I knew these girls were coming, but I didn’t know this was coming,” he said. “We knew we had a fast group, and we knew we were going to be competitive, but to swim the way we did was just a genuine shock.
“We sort of had it played out in our head that we could get close to some team records and maybe win a relay if we were lucky, but to swim the way we did was a blessing.”
A turning point came early. After finishing second in the meet-opening 200-yard medley relay, freshman Gwen Woodbury edged senior Lauren Biglin of Bloomfield Hills Marian in the 200 freestyle in 1 minute, 51.77 seconds. Biglin was the defending champion in the event, and Marian came into the meet ranked No. 1 in Division 3.
“It was a big one and set the tone and said we can swim with anybody,” Bagley said. “It was her best time by over a second, too. We were really excited.”
Woodbury had a hand in all four of the Cranes’ race championships. In addition to two individual events, Woodbury swam the anchor leg on two relays and twice came from behind to win the event.
But it all started in the 200 freestyle.
“I didn’t think I was going to pull it out in the 200 free,” Woodbury said. “I was behind in the first 50, and we were head to head in the second 50. She began to come on in the third 50, and that last turn I had this energy inside of me. It wasn’t even like it was happening, it was like a dream, and I just put my head down and raced and I beat her.
“It boosted my confidence so much, and the team hugged me after, and I just started crying. It made me so happy and so confident.”
Her win gave the Cranes a shot of confidence as well.
“It was the momentum of the meet and the attitude,” said freshman Justine Murdock, who took second in the 200 individual medley and the 100 backstroke and also swam on the 200 medley relay that placed second. “When Jordan (Murrell) won the consolation final in the 200 free, then Gwen out-touched the Marian girl in the final, it gave the vibe for all of us to put in the work and get the outcome that we wanted.”
Woodbury added a first in the 100 freestyle (51.53 seconds). In the 200 freestyle relay, Woodbury was third when she hit the water, and she swam the last 50 in 23.46 seconds – the best leg of any swimmer in that relay and better than the time that won the individual 50 championship.
Woodbury then finished the meet in style. This time, in the 400 freestyle relay, she hit the water in second place, and her time of 51.36 seconds edged her winning time in the 100.
Clearly, she was on a mission in those relays.
“When we talk about swimming for the team, she’s the best at that,” Bagley said. “It is very easy to tell how much she loves this team. When she was on the middle school team, she did great on the end of the relays and she translated it to here and she’s doing great on the relays.
“She just loves swimming for Cranbrook and these girls.”
Although just a freshman, Woodbury has earned the respect of the more experienced swimmers on the team.
“I am amazingly proud of this girl,” said junior Camille Misra, who swam the third leg on the winning 400 freestyle relay team and the first leg on the second-place 200 medley relay, She also was fifth in the 100 backstroke and seventh in the 200 IM.
“I’ve been swimming with her for years and to see the results that she gets is because she is one of the most hard-working people I’ve ever seen,” Misra said. “To see what she accomplished as a freshman is unbelievable. She has the greatest future.”
Woodbury’s performance was impressive, but a team can’t win an MHSAA Finals title with just one swimmer. Murrell, a junior, won the consolation races in both the 100 and 200 freestyle to take ninth in each event, and she swam the first leg on both winning relay teams.
“I am very amazed at the outcome of everyone’s hard work and the ability to swim so fast and come together like this,” she said. “I honestly did not think it would happen, and to have it happen like this and be just such a power grab, I love it.”
Charlotte Trunsky, another freshman, swam the second leg on both winning relays and was 12th in the 200 freestyle and 15th in the 100 freestyle. Junior Sydney Allison swam the third leg on the winning 200 freestyle relay and was the anchor on the second-place 200 medley relay team. She also was 12th in the 50 freestyle and 13th in the 100 butterfly.
Another freshman who scored for the Cranes was Hale Oal, who swam the second leg on the second-place 200 medley relay and was sixth in both the 200 IM and the 100 breaststroke. Junior Cate Hofley won a pair of consolation races as she was ninth in the 200 IM and ninth in the 500 freestyle.
While Cranbrook Kingswood dominated, there were other great efforts. Grand Rapids Catholic senior Susan LaGrand was named Swimmer of the Year in the division by the coaches association after she swam the first leg of the winning 200 medley relay and won the 100 backstroke. The victory in the 100 backstroke was her third career individual Finals title over three different events. She also won two years ago in the 200 IM and 100 butterfly.
“I’ve gone through so many events trying to find what’s my thing, so I think it’s just kind of coming around and figuring out what I should have been doing all along,” said LaGrand, who is headed to Oakland University to swim. “Now, my favorite is the backstroke. I used to hate backstroke, but once I learned how to swim it this summer in my club season I came to love it.”
Freshman Lauren Ryle and seniors Hannah DeBoer and Nicole Rotelle joined LaGrand on the winning relay team.
Pontiac Notre Dame Prep sophomore Rhianna Hensler was a two-time champion and defended her title in the 100 butterfly and set a Division 3 meet record in 55.67 seconds, narrowly edging Milan senior Madelyn Cislo, who also broke the existing Division 3 record in 55.90. Hensler also won the 50 freestyle in 23.78.
“It feels so good because of all the training that’s gone into these two races and have it pay off like that,” Hensler said. “In the butterfly, it was pretty close. I just looked at the scoreboard at the end.”
While Cislo did not get the title in the butterfly, she did repeat as champion in the 200 IM as her time of 2:05.01 was more than four seconds faster than that of the runner-up Murdock.
“It is hard not having someone pushing you right next to you, but you just have to dig inside to find that power to keep you going,” said Cislo, who also finished second in the 100 butterfly and will go to Oakland and become teammates with LaGrand.
Biglin, whose bid to repeat in the 200 freestyle was foiled by Woodbury, did repeat as champion in the 500 freestyle as she won in 5:04.69.
“I felt like I let down my team in the 200, so I wanted to come back and show my team that we’re still in this to win,” Biglin said. “It’s great to know that all the hard work has paid off. I was just swimming out there for my team.”
St. Clair senior Molly Likins was the other individual winner in swimming, taking the 100 breaststroke in 1:02.88.
Milan junior Mackenzie Crawford repeated in diving with 463.75 points to outdistance runner-up Allyson Schafer of Wayland (418.79). With the title practically secured going into the final dive, Crawford nailed a forward 2½ somersault that had a 2.6 degree of difficulty. She scored 58.50 on the dive as one judge gave her an 8.0, another a 7.0 and the other five all were at 7.5.
“I always put that dive last because it needs a lot of adrenalin for me to hit, so when it’s last it really pumps me up,” said Crawford, whose coach Chelsea Laginess was named Diving Coach of the Year while Crawford was named Diver of the Year in the division. “I went in the water and had a huge relief. It’s so peaceful and quiet in the water, and it’s so loud in here. It’s stressful until I hit the water, and then it’s all quiet.
“Winning is way better this year. Last year, I was kind of young, but it feels like such a long time ago, and this year I’ve learned a lot of new dives, and I got to show them all off. This year it really felt like it paid off.”
Just like it all paid off for the young Cranbrook Kingswood team – a team that did not want to wait for its future promise to be fulfilled.
“There’s no time like the present,” said Cranes sophomore Murrell.
And no better place than Eastern Michigan University. Five years ago, Cranbrook Kingswood won the MHSAA title at the Michael J. Jones Natatorium, a place where the Cranes are making some fantastic memories.
“I don’t know if I ever thought I’d have a better team than that team, but this one outdid them,” Bagley said. “They broke all the records that were broke at that meet. Now we just have to stay the course.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Cranbrook Kingswood swimmer Gwen Woodbury high-fives an opponent after a race Saturday. (Middle) A Grand Rapids Catholic Central athlete swims the breaststroke. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Preview: Anticipating a Few New Orders
November 16, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A change in division by one state power could change things up significantly at two of this weekend’s Lower Peninsula Girls Swimming & Diving Finals.
Regular favorites are expected to contend again in Division 1 after Rockford emerged to claim its first title last year. But Division 2 will welcome East Grand Rapids after the Pioneers posted one of the all-time impressive wins in Division 3 last fall. And a number of contenders are looking to return to the podium in Division 3 after EGR won three of the last four titles.
Prelims are Friday, and championship competition is Saturday. Below is a look at team contenders and top individuals to watch at all three Finals. All three will be broadcast live on MHSAA.tv and covered with stories posted to Second Half later Saturday evening. Click for full meet information including times and event orders.
LP Division 1 at Oakland University
Reigning champion: Rockford
2016 runner-up: Farmington Hills Mercy
2017 top-ranked: 1. Saline, 2. Farmington Hills Mercy, 3. Rockford.
Saline and Mercy are expected to push each other for the top spot – Saline is going for its first title since 2014 and Mercy for its first since 2013, although the Marlins have finished among the top two five of the last six seasons. Saline has 14 swimmers/relays seeded among the top 16 plus two divers competing – and among those 14 on the swim side are six top seeds, including two in the relays. Mercy doesn’t have a top seed, but does have 14 swimmers seeded to score plus three competing divers. Rockford has only 16 athletes/relays total, but 12 are seeded to score swim points and its diver was third at her Regional.
Casey Chung, Ann Arbor Skyline sophomore – Chung is top-seeded in the backstroke (54.69) and also will swim the 50 and on the 400 freestyle and top-seeded 200 medley relays. She finished 11th in the individual medley and fourth in the backstroke last season.
Johanna Jorgenson, Saline sophomore – After taking fifth in both the 50 and 100 freestyles last season, Jorgenson is seeded first in both at 23.05 and 50.30 seconds, respectively. She also could swim on the top-seeded 200 and 400 freestyle relays.
Morgan Kraus, Rockford junior – Kraus was second in the butterfly and third in the backstroke in 2016, and enters this weekend with the third seed in the 50 (23.38) to go with her top seed in the butterfly (54.63).
Maddie Luther, Saline junior – The reigning champion in the 200 and runner-up in the 500 freestyles is top-seeded in the 200 (1:48.11) by three seconds and second-seeded in the 500 (5:04.11), while also possibly swimming on the two top-seeded freestyle relays.
Katie Minnich, Farmington Hills Mercy senior – Minnich is looking to cap her career with a fourth straight backstroke championship; she is seeded second to Chung in that race at 55:04 and also third in the IM at 2:05.02
Georgia Mosher, Ann Arbor Skyline senior – Mosher has won two straight 500 freestyle championships and enters seeded eighth (5:06.08) in that race but fourth in the breaststroke (1:04.62). She also could swim on the top-seeded medley relay.
Lola Mull, Grand Ledge sophomore – Mull has the top seed in the 500 at 4:48.66, more than five seconds faster than the field, and is seeded second in the 200 freestyle (1:51.10). She finished sixth in the 200 and third in the 500 last season.
Lizzy Spears, Saline senior – After finishing third in the IM and eighth in the breaststroke last fall, Spears has the top seed in the IM (2:01.37) and third in the butterfly (55.41). She also is an option to swim on both top-seeded freestyle relays.
Ashley Turak, Farmington/Harrison junior – After entering last season’s Final with top-two seeds in both freestyle sprints, Turak finished second in the 50 and fourth in the 100. She enters this weekend in a similar spot – second-seeded in the 50 (23.15) and the 100 (50.52).
Claire Tuttle, Hudsonville sophomore – Tuttle finished third in the breaststroke as a freshman and carries the top seed in that race this time at 1:02.49. She’ll also swim the 100 freestyle.
Saline 200 freestyle relay – The Hornets are seeded first with a time of 1:35.19, identical to the time they swam last season that ranks fourth in LPD1 Finals history and is eight tenths of a second off the meet record.
Zain Smith, Ann Arbor Skyline junior – Smith won her Diving Regional last week with a score of 436.95, the third-highest Regional score in Division 1, and is the top returning finisher from last year’s Final after coming in second to graduated champion Camryn McPherson of Saline.
LP Division 2 at Holland Aquatic Center
Reigning champion: Birmingham Seaholm
2016 runner-up: Dexter
2017 top-ranked: 1. East Grand Rapids, 2. Dexter, 3. Birmingham Seaholm.
Last season’s LP Division 3 champion East Grand Rapids is back in Division 2, where it finished runner-up to Dexter in 2015. The Pioneers’ return didn’t affect their ability to qualify – EGR has all three relays and 16 individuals seeded among the top 16 of their events, with two top seeds, plus four divers competing. Without EGR in the mix last year, Seaholm finished 37.5 points ahead of the Dreadnaughts. Dexter has 12 individuals and all three relays seeded to score, plus two divers, while Seaholm has 11 individuals and three relays seeded to score and two divers as well.
Royal Oak senior Julia Boswell – Boswell is seeded to finish her career with a second championship but in a different race, carrying the top seed in the 200 freestyle (2:05.24) by more than two seconds after winning the 500 a year ago. She is seeded second in the 500 (4:58.91), only 42 hundredths of a second from topping that list too. She also took a 10th in the IM last year.
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central senior Felicity Buchmaier – The reigning champion in the backstroke and butterfly has won three individual titles total over the last two seasons. This weekend, she’s seeded second in the butterfly (56.79) and third in the backstroke (57.75).
East Grand Rapids senior Ileah Doctor – The reigning Division 3 champion in the 50 and breaststroke also is seeded first at this meet in the 50 (23.12) and second in the 100 freestyle (51.87). She also could swim on the top-seeded 200 freestyle relay and second-seeded medley relay.
Birmingham Seaholm senior Haley Dolan – Dolan won the 50 in 2016 and also swam on two championship relays. She’s seeded fourth in the 50 (24.05), 15th in the 100 and is an option on all three relays including the top-seeded medley.
Grosse Pointe South junior Clarice Fisher – She enters with the top seed in the butterfly (56.13) ahead of reigning champion Buchmaier, plus has the sixth seed in the breaststroke (1:07.13). Fisher was second in the butterfly and eighth in the IM last year.
East Grand Rapids junior Sydney Higgins – Last season’s backstroke champion in Division 3 brings more EGR star power back to Division 2; she’s seeded seventh in the backstroke (59.71) and will swim the IM and possibly two relays including the medley.
Rochester Adams junior Lisa Lohner – She finished ninth in the 500 and qualified in the 200 free in Division 1 last season, but is lined up for a big meet with the top seed in the 500 (4:58.49) and second seed in the 200 (1:52.80). She also could swim on the top-seeded 400 freestyle and second-seeded 200 freestyle relays.
Midland Dow sophomore Claire Newman – After finishing second in both the 50 and 100 freestyles as a freshman, Newman is expected to break through with at least one title. She’s seeded second in the 50 (23.69) behind Doctor and first in the 100 (51.44) ahead of her, plus could swim on the second-seeded 400 freestyle relay.
Dexter senior Annette Schultz – With a combined four individual and two relay championships over the last two seasons, Schultz enters as one of the anticipated stars again this weekend. She’s fourth-seeded in the 100 (52.49) and top-seeded in the 200 (1:52.73) freestyles as she attempts to win both for the third straight season.
Allison Steffin, Temperance Bedford senior – Steffin took sixth in the breaststroke and was part of a runner-up relay a year ago. She’s top-seeded in the breaststroke (1:05.09) and also will swim the IM.
Grosse Pointe North senior Sam Villani – After finishing third in the backstroke and sixth in the 100 freestyle in 2016, Villani has the sixth seed in the 100 (53.10) but the top seed in the backstroke (56.52).
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central junior Anna Hansen – The reigning Finals diving champion’s Regional score last week of 454.45 was more than 28 points higher than anyone else’s in Division 2. She won last year’s title by just more than six points over Fenton’s Taylor Shegos, a senior who also was a Regional champ last week.
LP Division 3 at Eastern Michigan University
Reigning champion: East Grand Rapids
2016 runner-up: Bloomfield Hills Marian
2017 top-ranked: 1. Bloomfield Hills Marian, 2. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 3. Holland Christian.
East Grand Rapids put up an incredible 512 points to win Division 3 a year ago, but is in Division 2 this weekend. But Marian put up a similarly impressive 364 points to finish second last year, 189 points ahead of the rest of the field. The Mustangs enter this weekend with four top seeds among their three relays and 13 individuals seeded to score. Cranbrook Kingswood, seventh last season, has three relays and nine individual swimmers seeded to score, and Holland Christian will attempt to move up from third last year with three relays and 11 swimmers seeded to score plus two divers competing.
Bloomfield Hills Marian senior Lauren Biglin – The reigning champion in both races is seeded first in the 200 (1:51.67) and 500 (5:04.80), the latter by nearly nine seconds. She also could swim on top-seeded 200 and 400 freestyle relays.
Milan senior Madelyn Cislo – She’s seeded to repeat as the champion in the IM, entering with a time of 2:05.95 that’s more than five seconds better than anyone else’s in Division 3. Cislo also is seeded second in the butterfly after finishing third last season.
South Haven freshman Ellie Frost – Arguably the fastest of a standout group of freshmen as this meet, Frost is seeded first in the 100 freestyle (53.21) and second in the 50 (24.21).
Pontiac Notre Dame Prep sophomore Rhianna Hensler – She had quite a debut last season, setting a meet record in the butterfly (56.21) and finishing 11th in the IM. Hensler is top-seeded in the butterfly (55.13) with a time that would break her record, and she’s also top-seeded in the 50 (23.76).
Grand Rapids Catholic Central senior Susan LaGrand – LaGrand finished second in both the butterfly and IM last season after winning both as a sophomore. LaGrand and Hensler both broke LaGrand’s meet record in the butterfly last year; LaGrand will try to finish back on top in that race and enters with the third seed (58.18) and the top seed in the backstroke (57.55).
St. Clair senior Molly Likins – After finishing second in the breaststroke and qualifying in the 50 last year, Likins will swim both races again and is seeded first in the breaststroke (1:05.26) by nearly three seconds. She also could swim on the second-seeded medley relay.
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood freshman Gwen Woodbury – Another standout freshman, Woodbury is seeded third in the 200 freestyle (1:54.85) and second in the 100 (53.31) only a tenth of a second behind Frost. She also could swim on any of relays including two seeded second.
Milan junior Mackenzie Crawford – The reigning diving champion won last year’s Final by more than 62 points, and her 431.25 at last week’s Regional was 64.5 points ahead of her field and the second highest in the division.
Wayland senior Allyson Schafer – She finished second in diving last season to Crawford, but posted the highest Regional score in the division last week at 449.15.
PHOTO: Swimmers launch during a race at last season's Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)