RECORD-BREAKING EFFORT: Edison's Tom Shields breaks the Division I record in the 100 butterfly with a time of 48.00 on Wednesday at Belmont Plaza. CINDY YAMANAKA, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER |
Mission Viejo girls gain ground in prelims
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VIDEO: Edison's Shields breaks butterfly record; Krug and Hale match 50-yard records.
LONG BEACH They didn't astound the crowd the way Yucaipa's Karl Krug and Redlands' Joey Hale did in the 50-yard freestyle.
And they didn't put their name in the record book as Edison's Tom Shields did in the butterfly.
But quietly and efficiently, Mission Viejo's top-ranked girls swim team was productive in its own way Wednesday at the CIF-SS Division I swim prelims at Belmont Plaza.
And come the finals Friday, the payoff could be a third consecutive section title.
The Diablos improved their potential output by 43 points to surpass No. 2 Edison as the favorite going into finals.
Based on a scoring of the seeding, Mission Viejo's swimmers had 177 points. But thanks in large part to the improvement of their 200-yard freestyle relay, the Diablos pushed to 220 points.
Mission Viejo scored 24 points in diving Tuesday, so its total projection for finals is 244 points. “We're going to be in it,” Mission Viejo coach Jeff Boss said.
Mission Viejo was seeded 14th in the 200 free relay but dropped 3.5 seconds from its entry time to qualify second to Los Alamitos with a time of 1 minute, 38.92 seconds. The team of Ashlyn Acosta, Casey Adams, Camille Hopp and Alison Godbe turned the Diablos' projection in the race from 6 to 34 points.
Edison's scoring off the seeding yielded 222 for swimming. The Chargers were close to their mark after prelims, finishing at 215.
Edison picked up 15 points from diving, so its total projection for finals is 230 or 14 points behind the Diablos.
“It should be fun,” Edison sophomore Cindy Tran said of finals. “We'll be more focused.”
Krug and Hale ignited the crowd during the 50. In back-to-back heats, the club teammates on Redlands Swim Team clocked matching Division I record-times of 20.05.
Krug posted his time in Heat 3 and just moments later, Hale equaled the time in the fourth and final heat.
“By Karl doing that time, that just pushed me,” Hale said.
“Unbelievable,” Capistrano Valley coach Steve Yancey said. “Usually, there's one (really) fast guy. … Two guys? Wow.”
In a move that only built more drama for Friday, Yucaipa chose not to give Krug another chance at the 50 during the 200 free relay. Krug instead anchored his team to a Division I record 1:23.58.
Shields joined the record club by taking the butterfly mark in 48.00. Laguna Hills' Robbie Sullivan touched second in 49.37 — good for fifth on the all-time county list.
Shields also qualified first in the 200 freestyle in 1:37.27.
The junior has his sights on national age-group records in both events (1:36.19, 47.10). The 16-year-old will switch to a full-body swim suit for finals but believes it will be tough to get both marks. “I want to dive in and do my best,” he said.
In the girls fly, Edison's Yasi Jahanshahi qualified first in 54.55, placing her third on the all-time county list. Mater Dei freshman Melanie Klaren qualified first in the 200 free in a county-leading 1:50.78.
The meet was delayed about 40 minutes to repair a panel on the bulkhead in Lane 4.
>> Read more in Boys Swimming and Girls Swimming
Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com
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