Sectional Saturday key for Hodags

The Rhinelander High School girls’ swim team will attempt to defend its WIAA Division 2 state championship a week from tonight in Waukesha, and the Hodags hope to have as many hands on deck as possible in that title defense.

Therein lies the key for tomorrow as the Hodags head to Menomonie as the overwhelming favorites to claim their sixth straight D2 sectional title. The story will be how many of Rhinelander’s 21 sectional entries will be able to make it through to next Friday’s state meet. 

Based on the preliminary psych sheets released by the WIAA Tuesday, there is a pathway for the Hodags to get all 21 of their entries through — though a number of those entries sit in a precarious position entering sectionals either on or very near the state qualification bubble. 

“The kids should be excited. We’re in great position,” Hodag coach Jenny Heck said at practice Tuesday after the psych sheets were released. “I don’t think we’ve had a group like this where everyone’s been projected to make it in. But, of course, they’ve got to perform on Saturday to make that happen and everyone in the state has that same goal in mind. That’s everyone’s No. 1 goal. It’s going to be a fight for everybody — some of them harder than others.”

Those psych sheets list all the entries and their seed times for this Saturday’s four Division 2 sectionals. There are two ways to advance to state — one, win an event at sectionals or two, have one of the 12 fastest performances statewide on Saturday among those who don’t win a given event.

In the big picture, Rhinelander will come in as the underdog in its title defense. Last year’s runner-up Whitefish Bay, which beat the Hodags last month at the Small School State Invite in Shorewood, enters as the overwhelming favorite to win the state title. Like the Hodags, the Blue Dukes are projected to advance all 21 of their entries through to state and currently have the top overall performance in eight of the 12 events. That gives Whitefish Bay a whopping 364-235 projected cushion over the Hodags for next week’s state meet. 

The battle appears to be for the silver trophy and Rhinelander is currently projected 18 points ahead of Madison Edgewood for the runner-up spot. That’s why getting as many entries through to state as possible will be key for the Hodags, because every point may be crucial in determining which teams finish in the top two. 

“Edgewood’s in our same position,” coach Heck said. “They were ahead of us at Small School State and they want to come home with some hardware also. I think it’s going to be who’s going to perform and get the most entries in and who can just do again and perform well that following Friday.” 

One thing is certain, there will not be a reprise of last year when the Hodags won all 11 swimming events at sectionals. Rhinelander opted not to field an entry in the 500 freestyle and enters Saturday as the top seed in the sectional in eight of the other 10 events — the two exceptions being the 50 and 100 freestyle. 

Rhinelander enters comfortably as the top seed in sectionals in all three relays, favored to win each by more than three seconds. Also seeded to win events and earn automatic berths to state are Celia Francis in the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke, Rylee Mickevicius in the 200 freestyle, Ellyse Younker in the 100 butterfly and Ella Heck in the 100 breaststroke. 

Francis, the defending state champ in the 200 IM, has the top overall seed time (2:11.17) in the state in that event and the second-fastest time overall in the 100 backstroke (57.00). Rhinelander also has the second-best time in the state in the 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays, and is seeded third in the state in the 400 freestyle relay. Younker and Ella Heck have the fourth-best times in the state in the butterfly and breaststroke, respectively.

    Rhinelander’s Ellyse Younker competes in the 100-yard butterfly during the Great Northern Conference championship meet in Colby Friday, Oct. 25. Younker is seeded first in the event in Saturday’s WIAA D2 sectional in Menomonie, one of eight top seeds for the Hodags entering the meet. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Vivian Lamers is Rhinelander’s top entry in both sprint freestyle races and though she’s seeded third in the sectional in the 50 freestyle and second in the 100 freestyle, appears to be very likely to advance. She’s seeded in the top seven overall in the state in both events and has a seed time faster than last year’s cutline in both events. The same holds true for senior Lily Thorsen in the 100 breaststroke. Though she’s seeded second in the sectional behind Ella Heck, she has the eighth-fastest seed time in the state. 

Where things could get dicey are with some of Rhinelander’s other entries. Those in OK position, but not totally out of the woods, include June Chiamulera in the 200 freestyle (seeded 2nd in the sectional/12th in the state); Thorsen (3rd/14th) and Younker (4th/15th) in the 200 IM; Mickevicius in the 100 butterfly (5th/13th) and Kiley Pooch in the 100 backstroke (5th/14th). 

It’s even more precarious for a number of girls sitting on or very near the cutline entering Saturday. Junior Emma Houg is currently projected as 15th in the state in the 100 backstroke and 16th, the last swimmer to qualify, in the 200 IM. 

Coach Heck admitted taking a calculated gamble with Houg, who won the 500 freestyle last year at sectionals, but would have been projected second in the sectional and outside the cutline at 20th in the state this year with her 5:42 seed time. 

“Emma, we were thinking about (the 500), but her IM’s been really great and her backstroke is really great,” she said. “She’s more than a 500 girl and I think she has a chance to prove that on Saturday.”

Others on bubble watch for Rhinelander will include Ella Heck in the 50 freestyle (5th/16th), Millie Gruett in the 100 butterfly (6th/15th) and Chiamulera in the 100 freestyle (4th/15th).

“Some are a little more rested than others. They’re going to have to be mentally tough and beat someone at the end,” coach Heck said. “We can only control what we can do. We can’t control the other sectionals or how other people are swimming. That’s what I told the girls earlier today. ‘You guys worry about yourselves, worry about what you can do and don’t worry about the other teams, because that’s out of our control.’”

While positioning itself for state will be the Hodags’ top priority on Saturday, the team will also be gunning for its sixth straight sectional crown and enters the meet as the overwhelming favorite, projected to score 415 points compared to 216 for projected sectional runner-up Merrill. 

“You start focusing at other goals beyond sectionals, but you always need to take time to celebrate things like that,” coach Heck said. “That doesn’t happen a lot. Sometimes we get wrapped up in, ‘Oh, we did that last year,’ but that won’t always be the case. We always want to celebrate and we’re going to have fun celebrating. Hopefully everyone achieves the goals they need to and we’ll have another win on Saturday.”

The sectional meet will get underway at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Menomonie High School natatorium.

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].