Will Anyone Dethrone The Champs?
MIDDLEBURY – The rest of the NLC, it’s your move.
Northridge has firmly established itself as not only the cream of the Northern Lakes Conference boys swimming crop, but it has blown out everyone in the conference once again. The only question as the NLC Championships unfold will be, will anyone get in their way?
While a pair of regional teams have managed to clip the Raiders in head-to-head matters in Chesterton (by one point) and Fort Wayne Carroll (by three points), no one in the NLC has been even close. Warsaw was within 38 points but won just two events in the dual. The conference is stocked full of alpha fish, but Northridge’s school might just be too tough to break through.
Coach Joe Keller’s lineup likely won’t be settled until right up until the meet starts, per tradition. And his depth will allow the Raiders to be selective in how they want to attack the NLC. Look for Spencer Lehman to defend his 200 and 500 freestyle titles, Lehman a legit state contender in both. Seth Cripe is also a premier freestyler and Logan Elijah could be the fastest 50 freestyler in the conference.
Jesse Drake, Camden Koch, Matt VanCoppenolle and Jeremy Burbrink will also be heard from as the meet unfolds.
Concord will likely test Northridge, and expect the duo of Stephen Krecsmar and Nathan Rose to be the ones doing the pushing. Krecsmar will be in the mix in the 200 and has done a fine job in the butterfly while Rose is a speedster who could do very well in the 50 and 100 freestyles. Both give Concord a formidable 200 and 400 free relay outfit.
Warsaw has the muscle to push the contenders, but not the depth to push the team championship envelope.
Ethan Cook and Matt Wildman have been consistently at the top of the heap for the Tigers. Cook has bounced around a myriad of events looking for a fit, but has been swimming well in the 100 and 200 freestyles. Cook also has the ability to contend in the 500 or drop into a discipline swim if the matchups are right. Wildman has consistently given Warsaw a top 50 free swim, and has moved into the ace role in the breaststroke.
Zach Taylor, Hudson Snyder and Adam Doyle have all taken steps forward with added responsibilities. Doyle has shifted into a needed leg of the 200 and 400 free relays while Taylor has done a little of everything, likely being one of the contenders in the individual medley. Snyder gives Warsaw quality in the 500 and a speedy leg in relays.
Some of the rising ranks like Nick Zogbi and Alex Cook have given Warsaw additional quality, and could be sneaky point scorers at Northridge.
“I will like to see the boys come out and step up to the plate and perform how not only I expect, but what they expect to do,” said Warsaw head coach Tony DeBrota. “I know this is a Northridge-dominated NLC this year, and rightfully so, they are swimming amazing. But I think we have plenty of guys who can keep up with them. It should be a really fun meet to swim.”
Wawasee is an emerging program with a few established names.
Logan Brugh will be among the madness in the 500, where he broke his own school record last season along the way to a state finals appearance. Brugh’s freestyle events will be worth watching. Brady Robinson is one of the shining stars in the works, and will likely slot into a combination of the IM, breaststroke or backstroke.
Wawasee has several pieces to its puzzle that could at least make it interesting. Ethan Knepp in the 50, Jared Krugman in the same combination as Robinson, and however coach Julie Robinson wants to utilize Brett Willaman and Jake Cowan, both of which have made huge strides this season.
“As always, we are focused on times,” began Wawasee head coach Julie Robinson. “Some of the boys are looking at the state cut times and have a goal of where they would like to be at this meet. As a team, they are looking at team rankings and would like to see how high they can place. Our mindset is to come in and swim best times and see how that places us.”
Diving could be very interesting. Hudson Kay of Goshen and Dae’Quan Quinn of Concord likely will battle it out near the top, but keep an eye on Warsaw’s Tyler Paseka and Nick Bell as well as Wawasee’s Austin Dunithan.
Preliminaries for the NLC meet begin at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Northridge and pick up again at 1 p.m. Saturday at Northridge with consolation and championship finals in addition to diving finals.