Same as it ever was.
Once again the undefeated Kentridge boys swimming team is the South Puget Sound North Division champs, capturing its fourth straight team title with a 109-77 win over Auburn Riverside at the Lindbergh High pool last Thursday.
Auburn Riverside, which stepped up from Class 3A this year, also came into the meet undefeated and proved to be Kentridge’s staunchest challengers of the season.
“Usually it’s up between us and Kentwood, but this year it was all Riverside. We knew it would be against them,” said Kentridge senior Andrew Nelson. “It feels pretty good to win it. We worked really hard for it.”
Kentridge coach Ted Rychlik couldn’t help but see similarities between the two teams.
“Most of the events were really close. They have a couple of good sprinters like us,” Rychlik said. “Usually, the last several years, we’ve met our main rival in the first couple meets of the season. So this is unusual, but it’s kind of fun.”
Nelson helped lead the team with a first-place finish in the 50 free, touching out at 23.57 time. He also took third in the 100 free with a 52.60 and was a member of the 200 and 400 free relay teams, both of which captured first place.
“Andrew had a really good day and Cameron Whiting had a great day,” Rychlik said. “We also had Kyle Wilson doing an almost impossible task, swimming the 200 free relay, the 100 back and the 400 free relay, three of the last four events. He did really well having to do that.”
Wilson, a junior, finished second in the 100 back with a 1:05.36 and helped the 200 and 400 relay teams take first place with 1:37.40 and 3:48.48 times, respectively.
Whiting, a sophomore, was first in the 200 IM with a 2:13.33 and also competed on the 200 and 400 free relay teams.
“We thought we’d have a better season, but we had a lot of short practices because of the snow,” Nelson said. “I feel like when we came back, a lot of us were out of shape compared to where we were before. But we worked hard to get back in shape.”
Kentridge also was aided by the efforts of junior Bryan Lam, who snatched first in the 50 free with a 23.57 time and first in the 100 free with a 52.23.
Now the Chargers will prepare for the postseason, which begins with Saturday’s SPSL league meet at Curtis High School.
“We’ll probably have five or six guys, depending on our divers, qualify for district,” Rychlik said. “And hopefully we’ll move a couple of guys on to state. Right now, that’s going to be a difficult task.”
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