Preview: Welcome, Next Wave of Champs
November 19, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A lot has changed in MHSAA girls swimming and diving since Lower Peninsula Finals weekend a year ago.
A top Division 2 team is now the favorite in Division 1. The reigning champion in Division 3 is now in Division 2. A group of swimmers who combined to set six MHSAA Finals records graduated this spring.
But changes bring opportunities, and there are plenty of candidates hoping to become the next wave of champions at three meets that begin Friday and conclude Saturday afternoon.
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.
LP DIVISION 1 at Holland Aquatic Center
Team contenders: Last season’s LP Division 2 runner-up, Ann Arbor Skyline, is in Division 1 this fall and moved up to the top spot in the final coaches association poll. Skyline has 14 swim entries seeded to score, with senior Katie Portz the top-seeded racer in the 100 and 200 freestyles and part of the top-seeded 400 freestyle relay, and sophomore Georgia Mosher top-seeded in the breaststroke. Farmington Hills Mercy is seeking its third title in five seasons and finished runner-up last fall and in 2012 as well. The Marlins also have 14 top-16 seeds and a few more on the edge of contention, with senior Elyse Conn helping lead the way after posting two top-five finishes in 2014. Saline is the reigning champion and has finished among the top two three of the last four seasons, and was ranked No. 1 most of the season. The Hornets have 12 seeded to score plus the top returning diver from last season’s Final.
Morgan Bullock, Zeeland senior – The runner-up in both the butterfly and individual medley last season is the likely favorite with the champions/record holders in both races now graduated. Bullock has the fastest IM seed time of 2:03.45 and second-fastest in the butterfly of 55.75.
Emma Curtis, Grand Blanc junior – The reigning champion in the 50 freestyle has a top-seeded time (23.24) that’s faster than her championship time of a year ago by 36 hundredths of a second. She’s also seeded third in the 100 freestyle at 51.35.
Sarah Hennings, Lake Orion junior – After finishing eighth in the butterfly and missing the final in the backstroke last season, Hennings is top-seeded in the butterfly (55.38) and up to 14th in the backstroke.
Katie Minnich, Farmington Hills Mercy sophomore – The reigning champion in the backstroke has the top seed time of 55.60 and is seeded sixth in the IM after finishing 12th as a freshman.
Georgia Mosher, Ann Arbor Skyline sophomore – After finishing ninth in the breaststroke and 10th in the IM in LP Division 2 last season, she’s tops on the LP Division 1 seed list in the breaststroke at 1:04.34 and third in the 500 (4:57.80).
Katie Portz, Ann Arbor Skyline senior – She finished second in both the 100 and 200 freestyles in LP Division 2 last season but set the LP Division 1 meet record in the 100 of 50.23 in winning the race in 2013. She’s top-seeded in that race at 49.71 and also in the 200 at 1:46.47 – only 22 hundredths of a second off the all-Finals record.
Taylor Seaman, Brighton junior – She won the 100 freestyle and was second in the 200 last season, and enters seeded behind Portz in both the 100 (50.87) and 200 (1:52.55).
Laura Westphal, Northville junior – The reigning champion in the 500 freestyle will look to add a third title after also winning the race as a freshman. She’s got the top seed time at 4:56.23 and also will swim the 200 freestyle after finishing third in that race a year ago.
Ann Arbor Skyline 400 freestyle relay – Junior Emma Cleason, Portz and Mosher were part of the relay that missed a Division 2 title last fall by seven hundredths of a second; they are joined this time by sophomore Emily Lock and have posted a seed time of 3:24.57 that is five seconds faster than the field and nearly two faster than the LPD1 meet record.
Camryn McPherson, Saline junior – Last season’s diving runner-up has won two straight Regional titles and could make a run at the meet record set by teammate Amy Stevens last year.
LP DIVISION 2 at Oakland University
Team contenders: After two straight LP Division 3 championships, the most successful program in MHSAA history – East Grand Rapids – brings the top-ranked team in Division 2 heading into this weekend. The Pioneers have 12 top-16 seeds plus three divers competing; senior Emily Converse and junior Gabby Higgins have combined for five individual Finals championships over the last two seasons. Reigning champion Bloomfield Hills Marian enters ranked No. 2 and with 14 seeded to score, including two top-seeded relays. Rochester Adams moved up five spots to No. 3 in the final poll and has 16 flights seeded to score plus two divers after finishing eighth a year ago.
Emily Converse, East Grand Rapids senior – The Pioneers’ standout has won three individual titles and been part of four winning relays over the last two seasons, and now in LPD2 she has the fourth-seeded 200 freestyle time of 1:53.54 and the second-seeded 500 time of 5:02.38 – plus will swim on two second-seeded relays.
Gabby Higgins, East Grand Rapids junior – She won the 100 and 50 freestyles last season in LPD3 and also swam on winning 200 and 400 freestyle relays. Her 50 seed time this weekend is second-fastest at 23.80 and her 100 time is third at 52.12, and she also swims on those relays with Converse.
Claire McGinnis, Rochester Adams senior – The University of Miami (Fla.) recruit has the fastest seed time in the 500 (4:58.54) and the second-seeded time in the 200 freestyle (1:52.24).
Nicole Pape, Rochester Adams junior – After winning the IM and finishing second in the breaststroke last season, Pape enters with the third-fastest time in the IM (2:09.96) and fastest in the butterfly (56.06) by more than a second.
Allie Russell, Birmingham Seaholm junior – She earned an MHSAA championship last year as part of the 200 medley relay winner and also took fourth in the breaststroke and ninth in the IM; she has the ninth-fastest IM seed time of 2:11.80 and the fastest in the breaststroke in 1:05.75.
Sophia Schott, Bloomfield Hills Marian junior – She has the fastest seed time in the 50 by nearly half a second at 23.32 after winning that race last season, and also has the fastest in the 100 at 51.08 after coming in sixth in that race a year ago.
Annette Schultz, Dexter sophomore – She posted two top-five finishes last year, going third in the 200 freestyle and fourth in the 100, and she enters this weekend with the fastest 200 time of 1:50.41 and second-fastest in the 100 of 51.85. She also will swim on the top-seeded 200 medley relay.
Claire Young, Grosse Pointe South senior – After taking second in the backstroke a year ago and sixth in the IM, she’s top-seeded in both races: her 2:07.27 in the IM has nearly a second on the field, and her 55.30 backstroke time has 1.55 seconds on the rest.
Erin Neely, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central junior – After winning last season’s diving championship by 23.5 points ahead of two seniors, she’s the favorite coming off posting the highest Regional score, 462.00, of any LPD2 meet.
LP DIVISION 3 at Eastern Michigan University
Team contenders: Grand Rapids Catholic Central was runner-up last season to now-LPD2 East Grand Rapids and could be in line for its first MHSAA team championship with 17 swim flights seeded to score including six seeded either first or second. St. Clair was sixth last season and also hasn’t won a Finals meet, but surged to the No. 2 ranking heading into the weekend and has 12 top-16 seeds including five seeded first or second. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood finished fourth in 2014, its first time below the top two since 2008, but could make a move back into contention with 14 flights seeded among the top 16. The Cranes are led by junior Anuschka Sambel, who posted two fourth-place finishes in 2014.
Milan sophomore Madelyn Cislo – After finishing fourth in the 200 freestyle and fifth in the butterfly as a freshman, Cislo is a second faster than the field with the top 200 IM time of 2:08.68 and sits third in the butterfly at 59.21.
Hamilton senior Rileigh Eding – The reigning champion in the backstroke also took eighth in the 100 freestyle in 2014; this time she’s seeded second in the 50 at 24.66 and fifth in the backstroke at 59.46.
Grand Rapids Catholic Central junior Riley Kishman – She owns two championships in the IM and one in the breaststroke from her first two seasons (winning both events last year), and could push the total to five entering with the top 200 freestyle seed time of 1:52.23 and the fastest in the breaststroke of 1:05.52.
Manistee senior Anna Kutschke – She's the favorite in the 50 with a time of 24 seconds flat after finishing fourth a year ago in her only individual event; she’s also seeded second this time in the 100 freestyle at 53.18.
Grand Rapids Catholic Central sophomore Susan LaGrand – Although she is seeded second in both of her individual events – the IM (2:09.80) and butterfly (58.53) – she’s the reigning champion in the butterfly and also took third in the backstroke last year.
Tecumseh junior Karlee Marsh – She finished third in the 100 and fifth in the 200 freestyles in 2014, but could be in line to contend for a couple of championships entering with the top time in the 100 (52.61) and second-fastest in the 200 (1:53.81).
St. Clair senior Grace Shinske – She made a run at a pair of titles last fall finishing second in the backstroke and third in the butterfly, and should be in the mix again entering top-seeded in the butterfly (57.97) and backstroke (56.82) and swimming on two top-seeded relays.
Alma sophomore Evelyn VanDeMark – She’s expected to make a big jump in her second Finals after taking sixth in the 500 and 10th in the butterfly as a freshman. She’ll swim both again and is top-seeded in the 500 at 5:25.01.
Milan senior Taylor Hosein – The two-time reigning champion in diving in LP Division 3 finished only second at her Regional but hardly can be counted out in going for the three-peat.
Allegan senior Erin Isola – She finished third last season as a junior and sixth as a sophomore, but posted the top score at Regionals of any division, 478.95.
PHOTO: An East Grand Rapids swimmer begins her leg of a relay during last season's Lower Peninsula Division 3 Finals; the Pioneers are the top-ranked team in LP Division 2 this season. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Stevenson's Siroky Surges Amid Challenges, Skates & Swims to Stardom
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
January 13, 2022
McKenzie Siroky isn't the first female athlete to compete on a boys hockey team in Michigan, but she might well be the best.
Siroky's decision to try out, and be selected, for the Livonia Stevenson boys hockey team this season required a firm commitment and a hefty dose of courage. Siroky easily could have remained on the elite HoneyBaked AAA team she had been a member of for four years but she saw this, competing with and against the boys, as an opportunity.
And Siroky has never been one to back down from a new challenge. Besides, competing against the boys is nothing new for her – she has three older brothers who came through Stevenson coach David Mitchell's program – and she's confident it will eventually lead her to becoming a better player as she prepares to compete at the next level.
Siroky, 16, is a junior forward and arguably one of the top all-around female athletes in Michigan, perhaps the Midwest, over the last 10 years. She recently committed to play hockey at Minnesota-Duluth, one of the country's top programs, and two months ago she set the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Girls Swimming & Diving Finals record in the 100-yard breaststroke.
As a sophomore in 2020, Siroky won the Division 1 title in the breaststroke with a time of 1:01.45. At the Holland Aquatic Center this past November, Siroky won the event with a time of 1:00.85. Her 1:00.48 in the prelim set the MHSAA Finals all-class, all-division record, besting the 1:00.56 swam by Miranda Tucker of Waterford in 2014.
Siroky also was a member of relay teams that finished fourth in both the 200 medley and 200 freestyle.
Although hockey has always been her main sport, Siroky said she intends to compete in swimming next fall.
“I want to be the first to break the 1-minute (mark),” she said.
Given Siroky's track record, it shouldn't surprise anyone if she did. It's that challenge thing.
Sure she's talented, but there's so much more to Siroky than pure ability. She's had to overcome obstacles and heartaches most only hear about – and her work ethic and willingness to sacrifice have Siroky on the road to success.
Siroky said she started skating when she was about 5 years old. A year later, as a first grader, she played on her first organized hockey team, the Livonia Sharks, and she could hardly contain her joy.
“I remember going to school wearing my jersey,” she said. “I was so proud. I wore it all day.”
Siroky has been hooked ever since. But before hockey, there was swimming.
Her mother Michele Siroky also attended Stevenson and was a three-time Class A Finals champion, twice as part of relays and in 1987 in the 200 freestyle, before competing at Michigan State. Michele, who was a teammate of Olympic Gold medalist Sheila Taormina at Stevenson, introduced her eldest daughter to swimming and, although it was more of a summer activity at first, McKenzie’s love for the sport grew.
Michele's maiden name was McKenzie, hence her daughter's name. She coached at a handful of places including Stevenson and was an occupational therapist before working for Livonia Public Schools. In 2012, she was diagnosed with brain cancer. Three years later she developed breast cancer and beat that, but succumbed to the brain cancer and died on July 26, 2017.
“She got me in the pool,” Siroky said. “She coached me for five or six years until she couldn't anymore. She also swam the breaststroke. I got most of my training (in that event) from her.
“She gave me motivation. She gave back to the community by coaching at Burton Hollow (Swim Club) and other ways.”
Michele was an exceptional person. She devoted herself to the care of children and her family. She made a seamless transition from being a swim mom to a hockey mom, driving her children to practice, preparing meals and keeping a sharp eye on their schedules.
For Siroky, a day doesn't pass without thoughts of her mother, who was her mentor, teacher and friend. She continues to draw strength from her and remains a driving force in her life.
As much as Siroky enjoyed being in the pool, and having her mother as a coach, hockey has always been her favorite sport. Perhaps it was watching her bothers (Alex, Kyle and Jack) play and compete so well that made such an impact on her. Or perhaps the realization that she was good at it, and enjoyed every minute on the ice, playing or practicing.
As she advanced from the Sharks to the Livonia Knights, Siroky ran into disappointment – and it proved beneficial.
The girls program placed two age groups per level. When Siroky was 9, she tried out for the 10-and-under team and was cut as the coaches leaned toward keeping the older players, leaving fewer spots for the younger ones. Undeterred, Siroky went to nearby Farmington where there was a team for her age group.
“It worked out well,” she said. “I started playing at the Triple-A level there. In Livonia they only had Double-A. I feel eventually I would have gone over (to Farmington). Yeah, being cut, I always use that as motivation.”
Other than skating with her brothers, the first time Siroky competed against the boys took place at a developmental summer camp while attending Holmes Middle School in Livonia.
“I felt like I matched up well,” she said. “I was fine.”
This experience made the decision to switch from HoneyBaked to competing with Stevenson this season all the easier.
“It came down to where I was going to develop the most,” she said. “I was playing in an age group, and I had a discussion (with HoneyBaked coaches) to move up.
“Now that I'm on the team, I couldn't be more grateful. I'm trying to get better every day. That's what Coach Mitch says – work to get better every day. And the guys have been great, pushing me every day in practice.”
The more Siroky faces adversity, the more she's inspired to excel.
“Her whole motivation is to be challenged,” Mitchell said. “She's not one to back down. It comes down to how can she become better.”
In July, Siroky was one of 32 players, including five total from Michigan, invited to compete in the USA Hockey Girls U18 Select Player Development Camp in St. Cloud, Minn. This group represented the best of the best for the age group, and from them 23 were selected to the USA U18 women's national team that would compete in the 2022 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Women's World Championships.
Earlier this month, those 23 players were officially named as members of the 2022 Olympic team that will compete in China in February.
Siroky didn't make the final cut, thus adding motivation and another reason to compete with and against the boys.
“We look at this as an opportunity,” Mitchell said. “Everyone knows McKenzie and the positive energy she brings. She's infectious. It's been a win, win, win for everyone.”
When her mother passed, Siroky found it difficult, at times, to concentrate on her schoolwork. Yes, swimming and hockey provided an outlet, something she could sink her teeth into, but her attention toward school took time. And she received help.
Two years ago, Siroky moved in with her grandmother, Barbara McKenzie, and it was just what Siroky needed. Her grandmother and the guidance she provided filled a gap.
“She does so much for me,” Siroky said. “It gets so busy for me. She'll take things off my shoulders, like some days I'll see that all my laundry is done. That really helps. She knows I like to eat fruits and vegetables, so she'll buy them. And she lives right across from Stevenson, so that saves me time, too.”
Perhaps not so coincidentally, Siroky's grades improved the last two years. She's earned all As.
Her schedule, especially in the fall when she competes in swimming and has hockey practice, is mind-boggling. Three times a week she'll go to swim practice in the morning before school. Then there's practice five days a week after school as well as Saturdays. After swim practice she'll take care of her homework assignments, have dinner, then go to hockey practice. No swim practice on Sundays, so those days are devoted to hockey.
She can't remember the last time she watched television. Energy drinks are a no-no, and she doesn't drink coffee or eat anything that has processed sugar.
“I'm living in the moment,” Siroky said. “I repeat to myself, over and over, ‘How bad do you want it?’”
The results are in full view with hockey and her education taking center stage. She achieved one major goal, that being to play in college. Another would be to make the U.S. U18 national team.
More immediate is this hockey season, which could prove to be quite successful for the Spartans. They started 1-1 (Siroky missed both games due to the swim Finals) and have won 10 of 11 since, including the last five. Stevenson's two losses are to Grosse Pointe South (3-2) and Birmingham Brother Rice (3-1).
“We lost 18 seniors from last year,” Mitchell said. “This group is phenomenal. It's been a high-character group.”
Tom Markowski primarily covered high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. He also is a former correspondent and web content director for State Champs! Sports Network. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Livonia Stevenson’s McKenzie Siroky helps her team to an 8-0 win over Trenton on Jan. 5 (Middle) Siroky sets the all-class/division MHSAA Finals record in the 100 breaststroke during the LPD1 preliminaries in November. (Below) Siroky and her grandmother Barbara McKenzie. (Top photo by Douglas Bargerstock, middle photo by High School Sports Scene, below photo courtesy of McKenzie Siroky.)