The last time Juneau hosted the state swim/dive championship, the Juneau-Douglas High School girls won it all. With the state championship meet returning to Juneau this year, they’re once again a force to be reckoned with.
The JDHS girls team will compete for their third team title in four years this weekend as more than 250 of the state’s best prep swimmers descend on the Dimond Park Aquatic Center for the Alaska School Activities Association Swim/Dive State Championship.
Twenty-seven athletes from Thunder Mountain and JDHS will compete with 236 athletes from 24 schools for titles in 24 events. Preliminary races take place Friday from 10:15 a.m. to 9 p.m. Finals are Saturday from 10:55 a.m. to 6:15.
The Crimson Bears girls team leads a group of peaking upperclassmen whom coach Seth Cayce thinks is his most talented cohort since their back-to-back 2013 and 2014 state titles. Highly-decorated senior Mia Ruffin, having been a part of champion relay teams since her freshman year, broke out for her first two individual titles at last year’s state championship (in the 200-yard individual medley and 100 breaststroke).
The JDHS boys will have a tough time breaking out of their counterpart’s shadow, but the team boasts title contenders in several events.
JDHS title contenders:
Women’s 200 medley relay
As two-time defending champions, Ruffin’s 200 medley relay team face some stiff competition to three peat as the team’s best time this year stands at four seconds behind the state’s best with, three teams recording faster times this season (Chugiak, Dimond and South have all recorded faster times this year).
Ruffin is the only member of this year’s 200 medley relay team who has won that event both years. In 2014, she recorded a win as a sophomore with now-graduated JDHS swimmers Ciera Kelly, Dakota Isaak and Rielly Walsh with a 1 minute, 46.75 seconds time; that time set the all-time state record.
In 2015, Ruffin led a team of Eliza Chappell, Gabi Kito and Andyn Mulgrew-Truitt to the title with a time of 1:49.60.
This year, the senior standout will return to the event with Kito, Mulgrew-Truitt and fellow JDHS senior Sarah Mertz, who posted a 1:55.84 at the Region V meet.
“I think we’re going to do really well because we have been working really hard this season,” Ruffin said of the meet.
Women’s 200 freestyle relay
JDHS’ women’s 200 freestyle relay team may have a better shot at a relay title, as they currently hold the second-best time in the state, having been clocked at two seconds behind Sitka’s state leading 1:39.57 at the Region V meet last weekend.
Women’s 200 individual medley
In addition to shots at two relay titles, Ruffin is favored to repeat in the 200 individual medley (IM). She holds a smoking fast 2:07.49 time in that event, nearly 7 seconds faster than her closest competitor, Colony’s Camille Dayton.
Women’s 100 breaststroke
Ruffin also holds the state’s current best in the 100 breastroke with a 1:04.82 mark, nearly three seconds ahead of the No. 2 time held by Sitka’s Skylar Moore.
Women’s 100 butterfly and 500 freestyle
Behind Ruffin, JDHS senior Gabi Kito has a good shot at a few titles, provided the home crowd can cheer her on to personal bests. Her 100 butterfly time stands at only two seconds off the state’s best; she also holds the state’s fifth best time in Alaska swimming’s longest event, the 500 freestyle.
Men’s 200 IM
JDHS’ Aiden Seid has a shot at the men’s 200 IM with the state’s fourth-best time. He will attempt to catch TMHS’ Bergen Davis, the state’s fastest swimmer in that event.
If the JDHS women are Juneau’s seasoned vets, the Thunder Mountain men are the talented young upstarts. Sophomores Bergen Davis is currently ranked as the state’s top swimmer in two events, while teammate Spencer Holt holds the state’s third best time in the 100 butterfly.
Both have state championship experience and will be in contention in several events.
TMHS title contenders:
Men’s 100 breaststroke
Davis currently holds the state’s only time in this event under one minute, having recorded a 58.37 seconds time. Davis is already swimming nearly a second faster than his third place time in last year’s state championship.
State meet history favors hometown swimmers, who often shave seconds off their times in front of home crowds. Davis is a favorite to win the event this year and could approach Region V — or possibly state — records if he can dip below 57 seconds.
Men’s 200 individual medley
Davis also holds the state’s current top time in the 200 IM, having recorded a 1:55.44 this season, nearly two seconds off his second place time at last year’s state meet. Two Juneau athletes have a shot at the podium in this event as JDHS’ Aiden Seid will attempt to unseat his crosstown rival. Seid currently has the state’s fourth-best time.
Men’s 100 butterfly
Holt holds the state’s third best time at 52.26 seconds. He’ll attempt to unseat Colony’s Jake Simmons and South’s Cody Watkins, both of whom are within Holt’s striking distance at 51.49 and 51.15, respectively.
Men’s 200 freestyle
Holt will also have a shot in the 200 freestyle with the state’s fifth best time. He’s already shaved nearly three seconds off his time in this event compared to last year. Though Holt will have a hard time catching Ketchikan standout Talon Lindquist, who’s 1:40.43 stands more than 5 seconds faster than the next-best time, he has more than a legitimate shot at the podium if he finishes near 1:45.00.
Men’s 200 medley relay
Thunder Mountain’s team of Davis, Holt, sophomore Noatak Post and freshman Micah Grigg are less than three seconds from the state’s top time in this event, currently held by Dimond.
• Contact Sports and Outdoors reporter Kevin Gullufsen at 523-2228 or kevin.gullufsen@juneauempire.com.
Related links:
List of state qualifiers for each event:
Eric Schumacher launches himself from the starting platform during Juneau-Douglas High School swim practice at the Augustus Brown Swimming Pool on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2016.
