Wawasee’s Shelby Adams reacts after setting a school record in the breaststroke at the Northern Lakes Conference Girls Swimming Championships Saturday afternoon at Northridge. (Photos by Mike Deak)

MIDDLEBURY – It was Northridge’s day to celebrate yet another Northern Lakes Conference girls swimming team title, but the two teams from Kosciusko County had plenty to be excited about at the NLC Championships Saturday afternoon.

Between Wawasee and Warsaw, the two clubs claimed eight of the 12 event titles and did so in resounding fashion. Tiger sophomore Brenna Morgan repeated as champion of the 50 and 100 freestyles while Wawasee senior Bre Robinson and sophomore Paige Miller were part of six titles, each claiming a pair of individual crowns as well as two relay titles.

Northridge, using its superior depth and some surprise success stories, romped to a 461-424 team win against runner-up Wawasee. The Raiders only won three event titles, but stacked competitors into finals swims all afternoon and built enough top-fives to hold off Wawasee’s victory parade.

The race of the day easily was the 500 freestyle, to which a budding rivalry between Miller and Northridge’s Katie Hughes scripted another fantastic chapter. Hughes commanded the race for the first 18 of the 20 laps, and still held about a body length on Miller heading into the final 50 yards. Hughes, who doesn’t stand 5’5″ on a shoebox, still led coming off the final wall, but Miller, who is a modest 6’0″, made up serious ground in the final 25 yards.

As the two lunged to the wall, Miller’s reach at 5:07.09 left the Wawasee star in shocked elation while Hughes could only hold back bewildered tears on the podium with her 5:07.15.

“I’ve really worked hard at practice in finishing races hard, and knew I had to do that with Katie next to me,” Miller said. “I cannot believe I did that since I was behind the whole race. Unbelievable.”

Miller had a much easier time in winning the individual medley at 2:10.01, besting runner-up Ashley Schrock of Concord by more than two seconds.

Robinson concluded her NLC championship career with her sixth and seventh titles, taking the butterfly at 56.63 in a runaway and the backstroke at 57.05. Northridge’s Melissa Bailey (59.12) and Lauren Miller (58.52), respectively, were runners-up in the two events.

Wawasee’s 200 free relay team of Miller, Robinson, Kendra Miller and Mikala Mawhorter motored to a 1:39.22 championship while the 400 free relay team rewrote the meet and Northridge pool records with a 3:34.73 title. Standing tall on the podium were the quartet of Miller, Miller, Robinson and Kayla Hershberger.

“I told the girls just go out and have fun, enjoy the moment. Just see what you can do. And that’s what they did,” said Wawasee head coach Julie Robinson. “This is racing, it is supposed to be fun. You need to be behind those blocks having fun.”

Also posting a notable number for the Lady Warriors was Shelby Adams, who broke the school record in the breaststroke. Adams’ 1:10.48 was only fourth-best at the NLC, but lowered Adams’ own school standard of 1:11.27 set last season.

Morgan quietly went about her business Saturday among the electric atmosphere. The defending 50-yard freestyle champ smoked the loaded field with a 24.07, 1.1 seconds better than Northridge’s Sydney Boyer. Morgan kept her head down and went back to work in the 100, blowing everyone out with a 51.88, almost three full seconds better than Lauren Miller of Northridge.

“I was really impressed with how Brenna came out and swam today,” Warsaw head coach Tony DeBrota said. “There is a lot of top competition here and for what she was able to do, that’s a credit to how hard she has worked this year.”

Hughes was tops in the 200 freestyle (1:55.52) while Sydnee Emerson (1:08.56) and August Hartzell (1:09.48) of Northridge went one-two and shocked Schrock in the breaststroke final. The Ridge medley relay of Miller, Emerson, Melissa Bailey and Sydney Boyer opened the meet with a 1:50.78 title.

Concord diver Lauren Boone had a moment to remember, winning the 11-dive set with a record-score of 472.40, smashing the previous mark of current Wawasee diving coach Dawn (Firestone) Yoder’s 433.30. Boone was two points off the pool record set in 2013 by Melissa Berger.

Wawasee is now off until the Northridge Girls Swimming Sectional Feb. 5th and 7th while Warsaw has a big dual meet with Culver Academy Tuesday at Warsaw. Culver Academy has been an annual primary contender at the Warsaw Girls Swimming Sectional, and Tuesday’s meet should meter how the Warsaw Sectional could shake out.