Hoover, Jackson, Green swimmers make splash in B finals at OHSAA state swim meet
CANTON — Officially it is the "B finals." Some call it "consolation finals."
Call it what you will. Hoover's swim in Saturday's B finals of the 200-yard freestyle relay had the look and feel of a win.
Midway through the Division I portion of the 95th OHSAA state meet, Hoover's Ryan Ehlers climbed the starting block, with teammates Carter Black, Boston Sullivan and TJ Bragg lined up nearby.
They were in the B final, the race for the ninth- through 16th-place times from the previous day's preliminary heats. The A final, for the fastest eight times, is where they had hoped to be.
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But B final it was. And the Vikings flew like nobody's business. They won the race in 1:25.76, a time drop of nearly one second from prelims. Only six times from the subsequent A finals were faster.
The Vikings swam one race in the A finals, taking eighth place with the quartet of Ehlers, Sullivan, Peter Helmuth and Bragg. That group also cut a second off the prelims time.
"You work hard to try to swim your best time of the season in the last race," head coach Richard Vaughn has said throughout the tournament.
The team standings took an interesting turn. Cincinnati St. Xavier's run of 13 straight team boys championships was ended by Beavercreek, which outscored the runnerup Aqubombers 211.5-207.5. Federal League rivals Hoover and Jackson tied for 15th place with 46 points
Hoover's boys placed second in one of the great races of the 2021 state meet. The Vikings were edged 1:31.17-1:31.58 by Mason in the medley relay, with Kings Mills next in 1:31.59.
That relay graduated Karl Helmuth and Mack Lochridge, but the 2022 Vikings had high hopes for the event. Then came a painful disqualification in a sectional heat.
"That really brought the boys team together," Vaughn said. "They had a really strong focus going into the district meet."
This year's state championship medley relay race was another thriller, with Beavercreek nosing out Mason 1:30.81-1:30.87.
The B finals were not just for exercise. They counted for points in the team standings.
Here is a look at how area swimmers fared in Saturday's B finals.
GIRLS
Jackson senior Janine Murphy placed second in the 100 backstroke, in 57.10.
Green swam to second place in the girls medley relay, getting a 1:47.44 from Olivia Scheibelhoffer, Olivia Elgin, Sydney Peterson and Anne Shroyer.
Hoover's Annabelle Nixon, Kate Baxter, Amanda Fetsko and Raeli Blandine placed third in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:38.01. Blandine took fourth in the 50 freestyle with a 24.04.
Elgin (sixth, 52.46) and Perry freshman Sophie Baker (eighth, 52.77) both competed in the 100 freestyle.
Elgin finished seventh in the 100 breaststroke in 1:05.35.
Hoover's 400 freestyle relay (Amanda Fetsko, Jenna Fetsko, Annabelle Nixon, Raeli Blandine) oplaced eighth in 3:34.76.
Peterson took eighth in the 100 butterfly in 57.80.
BOYS
Jackson placed third in the medley relay with the foursome of Daniel Ham, Luke Vickers, Ezra Herring and Sam Thayer. Their time was 1:35.02.
Jackson placed fifth in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:10.98, with Nist, Herring, Vickers and Ham.
Hoover senior Ryan Ehlers placed sixth in the 50 freestyle in 21.37.
Hoover sophomore Peter Helmuth placed sixth in the 100 backstroke, in 51.63.
Jackson sophomore Ezra Herring placed seventh in the 100 butterfly in 50.69.
Jackson sophomore Holden Nist finished eighth in the 500 freestyle in 4:46.56.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Stark Division I swimmers at OHSAA state meet at Branin Natatorium
