The Girls Swimming State Final takes place at FMC Natatorium where New Trier wins the state title. This highlight is sponsored by BMO Harris Bank.
FMC Natatorium is the location for the 2021 girls state swimming final. We have swimmers from Naperville North, Naperville Central, and Neuqua Valley in attendance.
200-Yard Medley Relay Heat One
We start this meet off with heat one of the 200-yard medley relay. In this race, we have two teams in Naperville Central’s team of Morgan Sokol, Clare Shiffer, Grace Malinger, and Lauren Collins. Also in this race is Neuqua Valley’s team of Elizabeth Rosenburg, Sophie Meng, Ruhee Chetan, and Emily Wu, but it’s Deerfield finishing in first.
Heat Two
Next up is heat two of the 200-yard medley relay with state on the line. Huskies Claire Jansen, Cameryn Schmidt, Aimee Duhammel, and Cambria Swanson end up finishing this race in third place behind Hinsdale Central and New Trier.
200-Yard Freestyle
Onto the 200-yard freestyle race. None of our swimmers featured in this one, but Deerfield’s Annika Parkhe goes on to win the meet and she breaks Neuqua Valley’s Rachel Stege’s state time by over a second.
200-Yard Individual Medley
Moving on to the 200-yard individual medley. Kaneland’s Leah Hayes breaks her own state record that was set the day before the prelims as she comes out on top.
100-Yard Butterfly
Heat one of the 100-yard butterfly is next up and it’s a pretty close race throughout, but New Trier’s Alexis Wendel pulls away for first place and Duhammel from North finishes in second.
100-Yard Freestyle
Next up is the 100-yard freestyle and this is another race that comes down to the wire. Leah Hayes is outdoing herself as she sets another state record. What a day for the sophomore.
500-Yard Freestyle
Time for a longer meet in heat one of the 500-yard freestyle as the swimmers are neck and neck to start. At the halfway point, we have three swimmers fighting for first. In the end, Wheaton’s Jenna Hendrickson wins the race ahead of Neuqua’s Callie Tuma.
200-Yard Freestyle Heat One
Back to the relays for heat one of the 200-yard freestyle. Naperville North’s team of Amanda Ng, Claire Jansen, Klara Gilvydis, and Mia Sparacino are competing. Although the winner of this race is the relay team from Libertyville.
Heat Two
Heat two of the 200-yard freestyle relay with state implications. Naperville Central’s team of Grace Malinger, Eden Goettsch, Sophia Hayes, and Lauren Collins come in fourth place, finishing behind St. Ignatius, New Trier, and Oswego.
100-Yard Backstroke
Next up is the 100-yard backstroke. This entire race is a close one with all six swimmers finishing at the 56-second mark. Claire Jansen from North takes second and finishes the event in eighth overall.
100-Yard Breaststroke Heat One
Heat one of the 100-yard breaststroke. It’s a tight race that consists of Ruhee Chetan from Neuqua and Cameryn Schmidt from North. The top swimmer of this race, though, was Eleni Gewalt from Richmond-Burton.
400-Yard Freestyle Relay Heat One
Final heats of the night. We have heat one of the 400-yard freestyle relay as Naperville Central’s team of Malinger, Goettsch, Hayes, and Collins finish in second place and eighth overall. Not far behind them is the team of Huskies that includes Amanda Ng, Lizzie Patterson, Aimee Duhammel, and Claire Jansen in fourth and 10th overall.
Heat Two
Our final heat of the night is heat two of the 400-yard freestyle relay. It’s a competitive race that’s capped off by New Trier who ends the meet in first. They win the state title with 182 points followed by a tie for second place between Hinsdale Central and Barrington. Naperville North finishes in 11th place followed by Naperville Central in 12th.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page!
