November 18, 2019 at 1:24 p.m.
MALIA'S MAGNIFICENCE
Rhinelander sophomore Francis captures WIAA D2 state titles in 100 backstroke, butterfly
MALIA'S MAGNIFICENCE
"I'm happy I practiced those all season," she said later.
The Rhinelander sophomore was nearly flawless on Friday night, winning a pair of Division 2 state titles during the WIAA state girls' swim meet at the UW-Natatorium.
Francis added a championship in the 100 butterfly to go with her backstroke crown - just the eighth and ninth titles won at the state meet in school history for the Hodags. Francis didn't just win she dominated both races, winning each by more than 0.95 seconds with times that ranked in the top seven in D2 state history.
"She came out and she knew what she wanted to do," coach Jenny Heck said. "I didn't have any doubt in Malia and I knew she could do that. She trains really hard. She had really specific goals. She just did what she was meant to do."
Francis' tour de force started in the 100 butterfly where she was seeded first by 0.40 seconds entering the meet. It became apparent from the onset the race would not be close. Francis opened a 0.84-second margin over the first 50 yards of the race and kept pulling away in a Secretariat-like effort. She was the only person in the 16-swimmer field to crack 30 seconds over the final 50 yards of the race. She hit the wall in a time of 56.23 seconds - tied for the seventh-best mark in D2 history - as she beat Ashwaubenon's Hallory Domnick by 1.38 seconds.
"During the fly I felt really great," she said. "I felt better than I thought I would. I just tried to really work my turns and underwaters, and just think about what I've been practicing all season. I knew after the first 50 I could probably win it, pull it off. That gave me extra confidence going into the last 50."
Francis faced a stronger challenge in the backstroke going against fellow sophomores Mara Freeman of McFarland and Anna teDuits of Madison Edgewood, who finished 1-2 in the event at state last year. Francis was seeded second behind Freeman entering the event.
No matter. Francis led wall-to-wall again. Her 26.42-second split over the first 50 yards put her 0.43 seconds ahead of Freeman and 0.55 seconds ahead of teDuits. Francis added another half second to the margin as she came to the wall in 54.72 seconds - only 0.07 seconds off the D2 state record set by Grafton's Autumn Haebig in 2016.
Francis said the little details are what helped power her to a 0.96-second victory over the much taller Freeman.
"During the backstroke, when I started I noticed that I was going to be able to win the race with my underwaters," she said. "I thought that was a spot where some of the other girls weren't quite as (strong). They weren't focusing on that quite as much. I was able to really work those and I think that's what won for me."
Sure enough, each time Francis' face emerged from the water following a turn, the gap between her Freeman and teDuits, who finished third, was larger.
"Look how strong and powerful she is. It really makes a big, huge difference in short course. She took advantage of it," Heck said.
Francis was subdued in her celebration - a couple of smiles and hugs for the swimmers in the lanes next to her. Her reaction belied the emotions running though the sophomore sensation.
"It feels awesome. I didn't exactly come into the meet thinking that I was going to be able to pull off both of my races, but I'm so happy," she said. "I felt great during both of them. I couldn't be more excited."
"I was so relieved that I was able to do that and win by a good amount."
Francis got on the podium a third time, joining Makenna Winnicki, Lisa Kennedy and Noelle St. Pierre to finish fifth in the 200 medley relay in a school-record time of 1:49.08. Francis' split of 29.60 seconds in the breaststroke leg of the race was the fastest in the field. The same quartet finished eighth in the 200 freestyle relay. The Hodags finished fifth overall in the team standings.
There to present Francis with her first of two gold medals of the night was none other than Heck, who had been assigned prior to the meet to hand out the awards in the 100 butterfly by the Wisconsin Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association.
"That was a real honor. They assigned that to me and it couldn't have been more special or heartfelt than it was," Heck said.
Malia's performance at state carried on a tradition of excellence at the UW-Natatorium for the Francis family. Her titles were the first for the Hodag girls' swim program at state since 2016, when her older sister Kiah won the 200 individual medley and the 100 breaststroke. Malia's older brother, Nolan, was the state champ in the 100 backstroke and part of the Hodags' championship-winning 200 freestyle relay at the WIAA D2 boys' state meet this past February.
The Francises join girls' snowboarders Amy, Emily and Sarah Babcock as the only trios of Rhinelander High School siblings this century to win state championships in the same sport.
"It's really cool to be able to do what my siblings have done in the past. I'm really proud of how we've done this season," Malia Francis said.
Heck said Kiah, Nolan and Malia Francis are bonded by more than the gold medals they possess.
"The kids, in some ways they're so much alike and they're also very different, but they have one thing they have in common. They all work really hard. They have specific goals and they really push themselves every practice to be the best that they can be. The don't let down all season," she said.
All season means all year for Malia Francis, who is eager to have an opportunity to do something neither of her older siblings had a chance to do - defend her state titles.
"I'll go back to club, train and go to some meets down south and get ready for next season," she said.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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