Wash dips to fourth in state swim

MARSHALLTOWN - Cedar Rapids Washington could not have scripted a better beginning to the boys' state swimming championships Saturday.

 The ending, however, wasn't the storybook scenario the Warriors were hoping would play out.

Washington, the state's most decorated program and the defending state champion, fell short in its quest for a 28th state title, finishing fourth at the Community Y of Marshalltown. The Warriors, who geared up for a strong district meet, which they did in winning their 46th straight title, had 124 points - 28 behind champion Dubuque Senior, which was coming off a runner-up district finish to Washington.

Ames finished second at 147, followed by Cedar Falls at 133.

"We did what we had to do last week to get into this meet," Washington Coach Chris Cruise said. "There was a trade-off there. We needed to get kids to be here in the first place. The kids swam with toughness, but things didn't go our way in the individual events."

Washington got off to the start it needed by beating Ames in the 200 medley relay. The team of Ian Ford, Joseph Gallet, Will McCartan and John Sevier clocked 1:35.65, followed by the Little Cyclone foursome in 1:36.30.

"The medley relay had some great, great swims," Cruise said. "I'm proud of the kids' performance despite the adverse conditions."

The Warriors then took a step back in the team standings, not realizing projected finishes based on district seed times, in the 200 and 50 freestyles.

In the 200 freestyle, freshman Morgan Barnes, seeded fifth, finished out of the points in 15th place.

Washington then had a four-point drop in the 50 freestyle. Sevier qualified first but took second to Johnston's Mitch Taylor in 21.20. Gallet was seeded 12th but slipped to 18th.

After four events, the Warriors headed into the first break in fifth place with 45 points - 12 behind leader Dubuque Senior.

In the 100 butterfly, Warriors McCartan and Mo Green placed ninth and 10th, respectively, giving their team seven points instead of the projected 15 based on seed times.

"In the individual events, in general, we were always a place out," Cruise said. "The kids held their times, but other kids moved up."

Washington had its share of highlights, though, beyond the first-event victory.

Sevier, Gallet, McCartan and Banning Young won a title in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:25.90. Gallet wrapped up a three-peat by taking first in the 100 breaststroke in 59.05.

Iowa City High 500-freestyler Cameron Herting knew improving on his third-place finish from last year would take extra effort, and the Little Hawk sophomore was up to the challenge.

With last year's state champion Brian Verink of Cedar Falls and runner-up Scott Strehlow of Ames in the pool with him, Herting touched the wall first in 4:40.79.

"It was real great to beat both of those guys," Herting said. "I knew this would be a hard race to win."

Herting and Verink were side by side for the final 200 yards, but the City High standout had a little more left in the tank.

"I knew (Verink) starts off fast and if I could I stay with him for the first 200, I thought I would have a chance to win," said Herting, who took fifth in the 200 freestyle (1:44.42) to help the Little Hawks finish 10th in the team race with 51 points.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson took 15th place at 23 points, with Kean Drake placing fifth in the 100 breaststroke (59.49).

Decorah junior Nathan Maloney placed second in the 200 individual medley (1:54.97) and fourth in the 100 breaststroke (59.24).