DIVING
When: Preliminaries Thursday at 6 p.m., finals Saturday at 6 p.m.
Where: University of Minnesota Aquatic Center
Rochester qualifier: Megan Lawson, John Marshall.
Favorites: Stillwater Area junior Maggie Keefer was last year’s runner-up. Sophomore Natalia Merrifield of Bloomington Jefferson finished fifth last year, and senior Erin Eagen of Forest Lake also finished in the top 10, placing eighth.
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SWIMMING
PRELIMINARIES
Top 16 swimmers in each event qualify for state championship
When: 6 p.m. Friday
Where: University of Minnesota Aquatic Center
FINALS
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: U of M Aquatic Center
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EVENT-BY-EVENT OUTLOOK
200-YARD MEDLEY RELAY
Rochester qualifiers: Kathleen VanDeVoorde, Jennifer Strom, Claire Anderson and Gretchen Heidorn won the Section One, Class AA Championship in 1:48.64 setting a new meet record. Just one second behind the Mayo team of Kalene Wileman, Alyssa Kuffel, Katelyn Crowley and Erin Caflisch will also compete in this event with a qualifying time of 1:49.89. Not to be left out, John Marshall completed the trio taking third place with its team of Lauren Kalwasinski, Caitlin Fujan, Brianna Fujan and Allison Schumacher. They qualified with a time of 1:50.71.
Favorites: The Edina Hornets will return to defend their title, along with the other seven teams who rounded out the top eight in last years race: Maple Grove, was the runner-up; Eden Prairie took third; Burnsville, fourth; Woodbury, fifth; Lakeville North, sixth; and Minnetonka, seventh. Wayzata will also be making a return appearance after being disqualified in the 2007 finals. Eden Prairie has the best qualifying time of 1:46.60.
200-YARD FREESTYLE
Rochester qualifier: Claire Anderson broke her goal of 2:00 by nearly five seconds to advance to state for Century. Anderson won the Section One, Class AA Championship with a time of 1:55.80.
Favorites: Cretin-Derham Hall senior Lauren Weis will return to defend her title. Four additional medalists will also return: senior Melissa Killpatrick of Elk River Area/ACA who took third; senior Jordan Bowen of Stillwater Area, fourth; sophomore Sarah Deis of Wayzata, sixth; and sophomore Elizabeth Kleiner of Lakeville North, eighth. Sophomore Kiera Janzen of Cretin-Derham Hall owns the fastest qualifying time of 1:50.83.
200-YARD INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
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Rochester qualifiers: John Marshall’s Brianna Fujan was the Section One, Class AA champion with a time of 2:09.40. Century’s Jennifer Strom qualified with a time of 2:09.61, and JM’s Caitlin Fujan also qualified with a time of 2:11.21.
Favorites: Stillwater Area junior Kaela Anderson will return to defend her 2007 title along with four medalists: junior Rachel Stearns of Hopkins, runner-up; sophomore Kayla Hutsell of Eastview of Apple Valley, third; junior Catie Chang of Burnsville, fourth; and senior Heather Bodin of Maple Grove, seventh. The best qualifying time is 2:05.54 held by sophomore Abby Duncan of Champlin Park.
50-YARD FREESTYLE
Rochester qualifiers: Mayo’s Erin Caflisch will get another shot at Winona’s Abbey Staats who edged out Caflisch in the Section One, Class AA finals in both this event and the 100 freestyle. Caflisch swam a 24.04 heat to qualify. Century’s Gretchen Heidorn will also make an appearance after qualifying with a 24.71.
Favorites: Senior Staats is looking for her second consecutive title, and holds the fastest qualifying time with a 23.46. Two other medalists also return from the 2007 meet including Caflisch who placed fourth and senior Treasa Ring of Roseville Area who placed second.
100-YARD BUTTERFLY
Rochester qualifiers: Mayo junior Katelyn Crowley will make her second trip to the state championship after taking first place with a time of 57.73. Century’s Anderson and Gretchen Heidorn along with JM’s Brianna Fujan rounded out the top four to qualify for this event.
Favorites: Senior Annalise Colton of Edina is looking for her second consecutive title. Six other 2007 medalists are also returning: senior Treasa Ring of Roseville Area, runner-up; ninth-grader Rachel Bootsma of Eden Prairie, third; sophomore Kayla Hutsell of Eastview, fourth; senior Paige Bauernfeind of Minnetonka, sixth; senior Danielle Adank of Maple Grove, seventh; and sophomore Emma Lawrenz of Minnetonka, eighth. Bootsma recorded the best qualifying time with a 55.42.
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100-YARD FREESTYLE
Rochester qualifiers: Mayo junior Erin Caflisch will make her fifth trip to the state meet with a qualifying time of 51.71.
Favorites: Caflisch and Staats are the only two medalists to return this year. Staats recorded a third place finish and Caflisch a fourth last year. Staats has the best qualifying time with a 51.12.
500-YARD FREESTYLE
Rochester qualifiers: Junior Andrea Smith is the lone Rochester swimmer to qualify for this event with a time of 5:26.34.
Favorites: Five medalists return including defending champion Lauren Weis of Cretin-Derham Hall. Senior Melissa Killpatrick of Elk River Area/ACA, third; senior Jordan Bowen of Stillwater Area, fourth; junior Catie Chang of Burnsville, sixth; and sophomore Sarah Deis of Wayzata, seventh; complete last years medalists. Cretin-Derham Hall sophomore Kiera Janzen has the fastest qualifying time with a 4:56.86.
200-YARD FREESTYLE RELAY
Rochester qualifiers: The Century team of Kathleen VanDeVoorde, Jennifer Strom, Claire Anderson and Gretchen Heidorn placed second with a qualifying time of 1:39.91. John Marshall’s team of Claire Aksamit, Brianna Fujan, Allison Schumacher and Mary Wood and Mayo’s team of Eliza Lynch, Kaitlin Thatcher, Lauren Ulsh and Erin Caflisch also qualified.
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Favorites: Seven teams including the two-time defending champions from Wayzata, return. The others are: Cretin-Derham Hall, runners-up; Lakeville South, third; Burnsville, fourth; Maple Grove, fifth; Stillwater Area, sixth; and Minnetonka, seventh. Lakeville South had the best qualifying time of 1:36.73.
100-YARD BACKSTROKE
Rochester qualifiers: Century’s Joey Heidorn first in the Section One, Class AA finals. Heidorn won the event with a time of 1:00.22. Caitlin Fujan of John Marshall took second with a time of 1:00.60.
Favorites: Five medal-winners will return, led by defending champion Rachel Bootsma, a ninth-grader at Eden Prairie. Bootsma also has the fastest qualifying time with a 55.45. Other medalists are junior Tess Behrens of Maple Grove, runner-up; junior Rachel Stearns of Hopkins, fourth; senior Nicole Solberg of Edina, fifth; and sophomore Katie Bootsma of Eden Prairie, seventh.
100-YARD BREASTSTROKE
Rochester qualifiers: Jennifer Strom paced the competition in the Section One, Class AA finals, qualifying for the state meet with a time of 1:05.96. Mayo senior Alyssa Kuffel was the Section One, Class AA runner-up, clocking in at 1:08.47. Kuffel’s teammate Lauren Ulsh also qualified with a time of 1:08.90.
Favorites: Champlin Park sophomore Abby Dunch, who earned the title in 2007, is the highest returning qualifier. She also has the fastest qualifying time of 1:04.01. Five other medalists also return: junior Danielle James of Lakeville North, runner-up; junior Melissa McMahon of Lakeville South, third; junior Jess Padniewski of Eden Prairie, fourth; senior Brooke Robbins of Maple Grove, fifth; and senior Kelsey Moarn of Edina, seventh.
400-YARD FREESTYLE RELAY
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Rochester qualifiers: The John Marshall team of Risa Ricard, Kristi Taraba, Caitlin Fujan, and Mary Wood qualified with a time of 3:40.54.
Favorites: The defending champions of Cretin-Derham Hall return. Also returning are Maple Grove, runners-up; Stillwater Area, third; Burnsville, fourth; Wayzata, fifth; Minnetonka, sixth; Edina, seventh; and Eden Prairie, eighth. Stillwater Area has the best qualifying time of 3:30.10.
