Dublin Jerome girls swimmers begin quest for state championship repeat
There is at least one major difference in tone around the Dublin Jerome girls swimming and diving team this season, and it might be surprising.
The defending Division I state champion Celtics, who pulled off that feat with only seven qualifiers to the meet and one event win, aren’t discussing a repeat — at least not yet.
“I see more of a quiet confidence,” co-coach Morgan Quesnel said. “We talked about (winning state) a lot more last year. It was hard to picture winning when other teams had more depth and more numbers … but now they can take the bird’s eye view of seeing that every swimmer matters, those consolation points matter. They see how it played out.”
Five state qualifiers are back, including juniors Milly Leonard and Olivia Matson from the championship 400-yard freestyle relay. They comprise a third of Jerome’s 15-girl roster.
That relay win enabled the Celtics to hold off runner-up Upper Arlington by 10 points, and if Jerome is to repeat, the formula likely will be similar in terms of numbers and opponents. Five of the top six teams at state were from central Ohio, a group that included third-place Dublin Coffman, No. 4 New Albany and sixth-place Gahanna Lincoln.
“You never know what will happen,” said Jordan Gundlach, who shares Jerome coaching duties with Quesnel. “It will come down to the last race every year. We have to keep our foot on the gas and feel like we don’t have anything in the bag.”
2023-24 preview: 12 central Ohio girls swimmers and divers to watch
Nine state qualifiers return for UA, including defending 50 free champion and Georgia commit Hayden Hollingsworth. The junior also was on the winning 200 free and 200 medley relays and should help pace a loaded roster that includes college signees Addie Darden (Baldwin Wallace), McCall Freiburger (Kentucky) and Lizzie Oliphant (Boston College).
“We had a lot of young state qualifiers last year, which was really exciting, and I always talk to our swimmers about progression,” Golden Bears coach John Sands said. “Sometimes, it’s about going up and getting the experience at Canton. These girls have been up there and seen it, and they’re excited to go back up and do really well.”
Among the top individuals, Coffman senior and Tennessee signee Emily Brown will seek her fourth consecutive sweep of the 200 and 500 free championships. She set district and state records in both events a season ago.
Grandview Heights junior Carrie Furbee swept the 50 and 100 free titles in Division II. She committed to Ohio State in September.
The Bobcats’ Central Buckeye League rival, Bexley, returns virtually the entire roster from a team that finished first at district and fourth at state. Junior and Penn State commit Millie Evans was runner-up at state in the 100 butterfly, one of six top-eight finishes for the Lions.
“They let me know their goals, and I let them in on some ideas I have for them,” Bexley coach Sandy Sliwowski said. “It’s a different approach per swimmer. Some kids have times they want to achieve at this point so they know what they can achieve later. It’s about helping them hone in on that.”
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Jerome girls swimmers lead deep pool of talent in central Ohio
