The boys swim team had four swimmers and one diver compete in the Class 1 MSHSAA boys state this year at the St. Peters Rec Plex, which is a significant accomplishment for the program. They produced some impressive results and came home with two all-state honors.
The four swimmers that competed at state were: Ryan Lipski (11), Garret Allen (9), Henry Carlson (12), and Riley Lewis (11). The one diver who competed was Elijah Quest (10).
Lipski was All-State Honorable Mention in the 50 Free (9th place) and in the 100 Free (14th place). Elijah Quest was All-State in Diving (7th place). Overall, the team placed 25th out of 32 teams with 24 points in total.
“All the boys dropped time and I was very pleased with each of their swims,” Coach Stephanie Seidel said.
This is the third year going to state for both Ryan Lipski and Riley Lewis.
The boys competed in four events: the 50-yard freestyle, 100 freestyle, 200 freestyle relay, and the 400 freestyle relay. Lipski made it to finals in the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle which is top 16 swimmers out of 32 swimmers.
Quest was the only underclassman who got on the podium at state for diving, which he placed seventh overall in the 1 meter dive.
“Elijah dove beautifully,” Seidel said. “He was so focused and locked in on each dive, jumping two spots in the final round of dives to capture a seventh place finish.”
Only 32 people can compete for each event and only 16 go to finals with the top 8 getting medals.
Lipski made it to finals in both of his individual events. He swam the 50-yard freestyle and placed 9th place out of 32 swimmers with a final time of 22.28 seconds and swam the 100 freestyle and placed 12th out of 32 swimmers with a final time of 50.54.
Lewis, Allen, Carlson, and Lipski competed in the 200 freestyle relay and placed 22 out of 32 teams with a time of 1:35.09.
Lewis, Allen, Carlson, and Lipski also competed in the 400 freestyle relay, which placed 21st out of 32 teams with a time of 3:36.53.
“Making state is always an honor. It takes a lot of hard work, determination, and drive to improve,” Seidel said.
The swimmers had a lot to say about this year’s competition.
“I am extremely happy, especially with balancing another sport this year,” Carlson said.
Lipski enjoys competing against the top competition in the state.
“It felt amazing to go to state seeing people I haven’t seen in a long time and interacting with other teams and athletes that are at the top is another experience that makes me want to work harder to be at the top of the top,” Lipski said.
You could ask any swimmer and they would say it really does take a lot of dedication and hard work to get to get the opportunity to go to sate.
“You got to show up to practice and push yourself. It helps to have a great coach that can push you,” Lewis said.
It’s not easy to go there. There is a lot of hard work required to get to state for swimming.
“I have worked for a long time to get where I’m at,” Lipski said. “I started swimming around 4 years old for a summer team, and moved to a competition club team when I was around 6 that is year round. All of my experiences of waking up at 4 a.m. to get to swim practice and giving up on social experiences to go and get better everyday is what it takes to get to state.”
Quest’s practices were late at night so it took a lot of dedication and hard work to place at state.
“It feels like my hard work is paying off when I medal at the big meets,” Quest said.
The team exceeded their expectations and everyone dropped times in the relays where they placed higher than expected.
Going to state is a big accomplishment that takes a lot of hard work and dedication.
“The boys worked hard in our training throughout the season so I am thankful they got the opportunity to swim and dive at that level of competition,” Seidel said.
