Performance: Sault Ste Marie's Aliah Robertson
February 23, 2018
Aliah Robertson
Sault Ste. Marie freshman – Swimming
At her first Upper Peninsula Finals on Saturday, Robertson didn’t just break two records – she “obliterated” them, quoting Sault Ste. Marie coach Steve Habusta’s description of the performance. Robertson swam the 100-yard butterfly in 59.27 seconds and the 100 breaststroke in 1:06.31, knocking more than two seconds off both previous meet records to earn the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week.”
The breaststroke record Robertson broke had stood since 1994, while the previous best in butterfly was posted in 2006. Robertson also contributed to her team’s 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays, with her 50 to start the latter faster than the championship time in that sprint earlier in the meet. Both of her individual event times were Sault Ste. Marie program records as well, and Robertson also has the school’s fastest 200 individual medley in 2:16.28 – which, if swam Saturday, would have won another U.P. Finals title. She also has broken pool records all over the Upper Peninsula during her first high school season.
Robertson plays volleyball during the fall and this spring will join the track & field team and compete in pole vault. She also carries a 4.0 grade-point average. She said she enjoys a good challenge – and should be fun to follow the next three seasons as her times continue to pace the Upper Peninsula and approach the fastest in the Lower Peninsula as well.
Coach Steve Habusta said: “What makes Ali so special as a swimmer isn't her accomplishments. What makes her special is her drive and her character. Ali works as hard as any swimmer I have ever coached. She never complains, misses a set or even an interval. She works through pain, disappointment and fatigue and presses on to accomplish her goals. Her character is second to none; she always has a smile on her face, supports and leads her teammates and is a wonderful all-around kid. What Ali accomplished in the water this year is absolutely remarkable, but pales in comparison to who she is outside of the pool. … Ali's performance at U.P. Finals may be the best individual swimming performance in the history of the U.P., cementing her place as not just one of the best swimmers in the U.P. but one of the best female high school swimmers in all of Michigan.”
Performance Point: “I was pretty confident in what I could do, but I wasn't expecting to do as well as I did,” Robertson said. “I knew I was seeded first in everything, but I wasn't expecting to get the times that I did. I was really shocked. I've never swam that fast.”
Reaching expectations … and then some: “I was kinda just expecting to come in and swim, and next year or the years after that do a little bit better. … It just feels good to be the first one to do something like (breaking those records) in a long time. I'm really excited for the next couple years because there are a lot more freshmen coming up, so I think our relays are going to be pretty good.”
Thank you seniors: “The seniors on our team, they're really fun to be around. They’re really encouraging, so they're my role models on the team.”
Bright future: “Most of the time, the people from downstate are faster than the U.P., so it's good to be that close to the other times. My 100 breast, I really want to improve on that one. I'll probably stay with those two (events), but I want to try to do the 500 free. (My first 500 try) was an interesting race. I'm not really a distance swimmer. I'd like to try it again and see how much better I can do with it.”
Fearless in the pool or pole vault pit: “It's nice to be able to think that you can do things that not many other people can do. It just gives you a rush when you can complete something like that.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2017-18 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army 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 responds 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 protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2017-18 honorees:
February 16: Austin O'Hearon, Eaton Rapids wrestling - Read
February 9: Sophia Wiard, Muskegon Oakridge basketball - Read
February 2: Brenden Tulpa, Hartland hockey - Read
January 25: Brandon Whitman, Dundee wrestling - Read
January 18: Derek Maas, Holland West Ottawa swimming - Read
January 11: Lexi Niepoth, Bellaire basketball - Read
November 30: La'Darius Jefferson, Muskegon football - Read
November 23: Ashley Turak, Farmington Hills Harrison swimming - Read
November 16: Bryce Veasley, West Bloomfield football - Read
November 9: Jose Penaloza, Holland soccer - Read
November 2: Karenna Duffey, Macomb L'Anse Creuse North cross country - Read
October 26: Anika Dy, Traverse City Central golf - Read
October 19: Andrew Zhang, Bloomfield Hills tennis - Read
October 12: Nolan Fugate, Grand Rapids Catholic Central football - Read
October 5: Marissa Ackerman, Munising tennis - Read
September 28: Minh Le, Portage Central soccer - Read
September 21: Olivia Theis, Lansing Catholic cross country - Read
September 14: Maddy Chinn, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep volleyball - Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Sault Ste. Marie’s Aliah Robertson swims a record-setting butterfly during Saturday’s Upper Peninsula Finals. (Middle) Robertson also set a meet record in the breaststroke. (Photos by Shari Robertson.)
Dunfield Climbing Fenton's Record Board, Rankings of State's Distance Elite
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
October 1, 2025
Breaking the record of a program legend was an emotional moment for Katie Dunfield.
The Fenton junior had long looked up to Gracie Olsen, a six-time MHSAA Finals champion, so knocking her name off the school record board for the 500-yard freestyle was something she did not take for granted.
At the same time, it served as further motivation.
“I guess it just put into perspective that I know I can do it now,” Dunfield said. “Not that I’m going to settle. Now that I see my name on the board, I have to do whatever I can to post faster times so my name can be up there for longer. I’m less than a second off the pool record (in the 200 freestyle), so that’s my next goal – to get up there for that pool record.”
Dunfield has swum some of the fastest times in the state this year in the 200 and 500 as she moves toward becoming the next Fenton swimming superstar.
Her time of 4 minutes, 58.41 seconds at the Genesee County Invitational broke Olsen’s pool and program records. She also swam 1:51.22 in the 200, which broke Olsen’s meet record.
Both of those times are the fastest in Division 2 this year, and only West Bloomfield’s Elizabeth Eichbrecht – who has won Division 1 titles in those events each of the past three years – is ahead of her statewide.
“I completely and utterly surprised myself,” Dunfield said. “I don’t know what happened, actually. We didn’t taper at all. I remember going into that meet, I just wanted to win. When I look at that board and see what I posted, that’s not just me, that’s my team giving me the energy and confidence that I could do it.”
While the quickness with which she hit the marks may have been a surprise, the fact Dunfield is putting herself among the state’s best is not.
She placed eighth in the 200 freestyle at the Division 2 Finals as a freshman, and has won multiple state titles as a club swimmer, including a Michigan Age Group Championships championship when she was 14.
“Having coached Katie and been involved with Katie since she was 8 years old, I’ve always kind of known or suspected what Katie is capable of,” Fenton coach Brad Jones said. “She’s training right now to pretty much surpass all the things we thought were possible. Katie is just, physically, incredibly strong. She has the mentality that we had with Grace, that we had with Tess (Heavner), where Katie doesn’t like to lose. Whether it’s practice, a meet – big meet, little meet, best event, worst event – she’s a competitor. Those are the kids that usually end up setting themselves apart.”
Dunfield came into the season with the goal of swimming 4:58 in the 500 and 1:51 in the 200. She’s adjusted those now, in light of her recent performance, but it’s hard to tell how low to go.
“That’s the scary question,” Jones said. “We are training really hard right now. We didn’t rest for the county meet, so for here to get in on one day rest and hit times like that, we’re very excited. I hate to put limits on anybody, and the way she’s training right now, she definitely can end up near the top of the state in the (200 and 500 freestyle). There’s a really talented junior class right now across the state. It’s going to be fun to watch her at the end of the season when she has to race.”
For now, Dunfield is racing herself in those events, with which she’s OK.
“I’m very good at racing myself,” she said. “I can tell how fast I am based on the strokes I’m taking. I’ve been swimming for 11 years, so it’s kind of something that I’ve adapted to. Me and Jones have really been working this year on stroke counting. He’s started doing a thing where he won’t tell me what my time is, but he asks me what I think it was. I used to be way off, but I’ve gotten pretty good at it.”
That’s just a piece of the mental training Dunfield is incorporating into her physical training this fall.
“I know that I’m so close to staying at the top, so every single practice when I talk to my coach he explains why I’m doing this to get better, and that it doesn’t matter if it hurts, it doesn’t matter if I fail, because if I fail, I get better,” Dunfield said. “That’s made it easier on me, mentally, because I’m not feeling the pressure that I need to do everything perfect.”
As she works toward those new time goals, Dunfield is also taking her time working through the college recruiting process. She said she’s not in a hurry to make a commitment, but schools have been in contact, and she’s contacted some others.
She’s also preparing for the Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals on Nov. 21 and 22 at Eastern Michigan University. While she’s currently the division’s fastest swimmer in the 200 and 500 freestyle, in her way are Ann Arbor Skyline’s Adrienne Schadler and Farmington Hills Mercy’s Ella Hafner, who finished first and second, respectively, in both events last year.
“I want to get top three,” Dunfield said. “I want to be more successful than I was freshman year. I got eighth, which is good for a freshman, but I want to be able to get higher. I want either second or third in the 500 or 200. First place would be amazing, but I like to be realistic with myself. I know I can finish in the top three.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Fenton’s Katie Dunfield takes a photo with her addition to her school’s swim record board. (Middle) Dunfield holds up her medal after being announced as winner of the 200 freestyle at the Genesee County Invitational. (Photos courtesy of Katie Dunfield.)