Posted: 3/8/06
200 Freestyle relay team sets new school record at state
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The Forest Lake High School boys swimming and diving team finished 22nd at the Class AA State Swimming and Diving Meet Saturday at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center. The Rangers were lead by senior Dillon Hudalla who earned his second All-State honor by placing fourth in diving with a score of 353.70.
Hudallaís feat was not without challenges. He had difficulty on his first two dives, placing him far back in the field.
Hudalla diligently worked himself back to ninth place at the end of the eight dive prelims and then scored the highest final three dive score of the sixteen divers moving into the fourth place slot.
ìDillon battled back from a broken leg before the season and he was battling a sinus infection that affected his equilibrium in the eight dive prelims on Thursday night,î Rangers diving coach Deb Welch said.
ìHe also hit the board on his second dive of the night losing approximately 30 points on a dive that he has mastered for three years. It took a lot of poise to keep his composure and stay in the race after the early disaster. In the end he was 50 points from the leader after the prelims.
In the finals on Saturday Dillon came out scoring the most points of any diver and finished 19 points short of the leader. Welch says that in retrospect the one missed dive cost him the state championship.
In addition, the top two finishers both were able to repeat botched dives, claiming they were distracted by extraneous noise.
ìDealing with the atmosphere is part of the challenge of the State meet. To his credit, Dillon didnít make any excuses and didnít ask for a mulligan on his bad dive,î Welch said.
The Rangerís state swimming contingent was lead by senior Sam Gort who placed 16th in the 500 yard freestyle with a personal best time of 4:56.64. Gort was 21st in the 200 yard freestyle with a time of 1:49.89, and was also a member of the 15th place 200 yard freestyle relay and 15th place 400 yard freestyle relay team.
Both relays set school records at the prelims on Friday. The 200 yard freestyle relay time of 1:30.67 bettered the school record by more than a half second and the 400 yard freestyle relay teamís time of 3:21.00 bettered their own school record, which they set only last weekend at sections, by 2.88 seconds.
At the beginning of the season, the relay team made it their goal to go to state and break the relay records.
Junior Mark Sandager finished in 18th place with a personal best of 57.40 seconds in the 100 yard backstroke and also finished 24th in the 100 yard butterfly with a personal best of 55.87 seconds.
Sandager also was a big part of the record setting 200 and 400 yard freestyle relays, having the fastest split times of the four swimmers in each of the two events.
Sandager also set a school record in the 50 yard freestyle when his lead off time in the 200 yard freestyle relay was recorded at 22.43 seconds.
Sophomores Elijah Miller and John Goossens were the remaining members of the 200 and 400 yard freestyle relay teams. Both hit personal best split times in each of the relays to help the team attain the school records.
Rangers head swimming coach Barbara Vailodash and Welch were pleased with this yearís teamís results - five new school records were set (two in diving, two relays and the 50 Free), four swimmers and one diver went to state, and the state participants were in seven of the twelve events.
Though they lose Hudalla and Gort to graduation, the coaches are anticipating that next year they will do as well since three of the five state participants are returning and will be supported by a group of swimmers and divers who have shown great potential.
ìThis team has raised the level of motivation over the last couple of years and it has shown by competing in the State finals,î Vailodash said.
Editors Note: visit www.forestlaketimes.com for a photo gallery of the Rangers in the state swimming meet.
Forest Lake Times
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Forest Lake, MN 55025
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