CANTON — The annual Ohio High School Athletic Association state swimming and diving meet featured plenty of changes in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
There were buckets at each of the eight starting platforms for masks and jackets, a plethora of disinfectant bottles used after each heat and the typical standing-room-only crowd had been dramatically reduced to just a handful of socially-distant spectators.
The conclusion of the tournament, though, was business as usual.
The St. Xavier AquaBombers continued to turn the annual event into the "St. Xavier Invitational," capturing their 13th consecutive OHSAA state team swimming championship.
"This season was filled with change and challenge. My heart and hat go out to them because they put in the work from Day 1 and knew it was an uphill struggle but they were ready to work and carry on the tradition that classes before them had passed on," St. Xavier head coach Tim Beerman said. "Without everyone's contributions to what this season became, it wouldn't be the celebration that it is right now."
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There were changes with how the AquaBombers climbed to the top of the team standings to win the program's 42nd career title.
According to Beerman, he had a slew of first-time state swimmers this season. St. Xavier encapsulated the essence of being a team on Saturday, stretching the gap between itself and state runner-up Upper Arlington by over 70 points (261.5-190) without the benefit of an individual state champion. Instead, the AquaBombers used their seemingly unending barrage of top-tier swimmers to capture the team trophy.
St. Xavier had at least one swimmer make the podium in 10 of the 11 events and had a top-5 medalist in nine. The turning point for the state team championship came in the 500 free, when St. Xavier pulled away with a mix of what has made them such a perennial power and what will keep them that way.
Going into the 500 free, St. Xavier was deadlocked for first place in the team standings with Mason. Freshmen Thackston McMullan and Alex Ingram came from the second heat to finish fourth and eighth, respectively, in the finals. In the third and final heat, senior Adam Lamping came in third and junior Nicholas Gockerman finished seventh.
Fielding half (4-of-8) of the podium visitors in the event gave St. Xavier a whopping 54 points, cushioning a lead that would only expand over the final four events.
"That's how it was all season," Beerman said. "The guys really stepped up and learned how to race and learned how to represent what St. X swimming and diving is about. That's what we relied on here at the state meet. There were a lot of guys who had to get their feet wet and they did. The results speak for themselves."
McMullan was also in the top-5 in 200 free (5th) and was on two state runner-up relays (200 FR, 400 FR). Junior Logan Tobery was on all three top-5 relays and brought in points with a 13th-place finish in the 100 free. Fellow junior Chase Guenther went third in the opening 5th-place 200 medley relay with seniors Nathan Wall and Tristan Menninger and was 10th in the 100 backstroke.
Individually, Wall was fifth in the 200 individual medley and third in the 100 breast. He was also on the runner-up 400 relay group and Menninger was seventh in the 100 back.
"It's awesome, especially with this group of guys. We're a very close team and I wouldn't want to accomplish this with anyone else," said senior Owen Taylor, who was on a pair of state runner-up relays and finished top-5 in the 50 and 100 free. "It's a team sport and everyone contributed for us to do this again. Winning individual (titles) is cool and all, but all that matters is the team."
Also bringing in points individually were seniors Lamping (12th in 200 free) and Will Morstadt (15th in 50 free). Junior William Froass was on the state runner-up 200 free relay group and Gockerman finished 10th in the 200 free.
"We have a lot of guys who stepped up for us tonight," Taylor said.
The only thing missing for the state-champion AquaBombers was the standard herd of the Long Blue Lane, which usually migrates to the stands just behind the podium and makes its presence felt throughout the meet.
That group was reduced to just one row of fans on Saturday, but Beerman knows that dedicated bunch was faithfully watching with glee back in Cincinnati.
"I know that the Long Blue Lane is well-represented here and at home," he said. "They are a part of this journey in every aspect and we missed having them here. We know that they're with us in spirit and this celebration and championship belongs to them just as much as any other part of the team."
Mason grabs Cincinnati's 2 individual titles
Mason found themselves in a tie with St. Xavier for first place in the team standings at Saturday's halfway point after Comet swimmers won the area's only Division I boys individual state championships.
Mason entered Saturday's first event — 200 medley relay — with just the fifth-best seeding time at 1:33.69. District-champion Kings had the best (1:32.42) and St. Xavier was less than two-tenths of a second behind.
But it was Mason's group of juniors Elijah Devyak and Carl Bloebaum and seniors Kevin Wu and Braden Osborn that registered an early upset. The Comets shaved off over 2.5 seconds from their seeding time and pulled away from runner-up Hoover for the state title.
"It's surreal," Devyak said. "We were fifth coming in and we just wanted to give it our all. When Braden (Osborn) finished, we just went crazy. There are really no words to describe it."
The 50 free was less dramatic. Osborn was the front-runner coming into the event and improved on his seeding time, winning a state championship game in 20:23.
"It's a good feeling," Osborn said. "Putting in the hard work this season and seeing the results is really the reason I swim. Looking up and seeing the time just means the world to me."
The same state-champion relay group finished third in the 200 free relay. Bloebaum was state runner-up in the 100 butterfly and Devyak came in fifth. Osborn was also fifth in the 100 free.
Mason girls were the state runner-ups in Division I girls on Friday. The Mason boys ended up fourth with 145 total points.
Local medalists
Kings: The Knights finished third in the 200 medley relay and fourth in the 200 free relay with Kevin Glennon, Jake Young, Kavin Lynch and Aiden Leamer.
Glennon, a junior, was also third in the 100 butterfly and sixth in the 100 backstroke. Young, a senior, was eighth in the 200 individual medley. Kings finished eighth overall in the team standings with 111 points.
Alex Craft, Walnut Hills: The senior was state runner-up in the 500 free and finished sixth in the 200 free.
Adam McDonald, Lakota East: The junior finished seventh in the 200 individual medley.
Jack Grandy, Moeller: The senior was sixth in the 500 free and fifth in the 100 breaststroke.
Avery Clapp, Sycamore: The junior finished fourth in the 100 backstroke and seventh in the 100 butterfly.
Evan Fentress, Milford: The junior was sixth in the 100 butterfly.
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