CANTON: Firestone senior Katie Miller and Jackson senior Chase Kinney brought a raucous, sold-out crowd to its feet one more time Saturday at C.T. Branin Natatorium.
Miller and Kinney both won their second and third individual Division I state swimming titles to cap outstanding high school careers.
They played starring roles in the 37th annual girls state championship meet.
Miller set a state record and pool record in the 200-yard individual medley with a winning time of 1 minute, 57.98 seconds, shattering her own record of 1:58.12 from Friday’s preliminary meet.
“That felt incredible,” Miller said. “When you have this entire place supporting you, it is so incredible. To bring everybody to their feet, it just meant the world to me. To go with a best time is all I wanted to do today in the finals in my individual races. Seeing all of those people standing up for me, I will never forget that experience.”
Miller, a Notre Dame recruit, also won the 100 backstroke Saturday in 54.04 seconds.
Kinney won the 50 freestyle in 22.53 seconds, just .01 second ahead of the state-record time she set during Friday’s preliminary meet.
Kinney, a Wisconsin recruit, also matched the state-record time of 49.70 seconds in the 100 freestyle final Saturday after she set it Friday in the preliminary.
“I don’t know how I matched that time,” Kinney said. “I did that last week too in the 100 at district by swimming the exact same time.
“This is the most fun I have had at a meet. We did really well as a team and I had a great meet. I am just glad it ended on such a good note.”
Jackson coach Matt Ziders said Kinney is a model of consistency.
“That is so hard to do,” Ziders said. “Last year at the district meet she was 50.33 and this year at the district meet she tied the record at 50.33. I am very happy for her. There is so much emotion that goes into these races.”
Miller and Firestone coach Cindy Virdo displayed emotion after the 200 IM with a hug.
“That was awesome,” Virdo said. “For that 200 IM, it was just going out after it and seeing what we could do. [Friday] I got a little teary-eyed watching that 200 IM race, and then when she came back and did what she did today, and then she got out of the pool and came running over to me, that was kind of it. We spend a lot of time together. To see that success coming up and seeing the smile on her face makes it all worthwhile.”
Miller also took part in two Falcons relays. The 400 freestyle relay was fifth in 3:32.31 and the 200 medley relay was 16th in 1:50.21.
“There were so many things going through my mind during this meet,” Miller said. “From start to finish, that medley relay was awesome and ending with that 400 free relay was awesome. I couldn’t have asked for four other better girls to come to this meet with [than junior Natalie O’Brien, sophomores Shannon Cahalan and Carly Chelovitz and freshman Lauren Vegh]. I love them so much. It has been such an honor. I am the only senior that is here with them and I will miss them so much next year when I am away for college.”
Walsh Jesuit senior Danielle Margheret, a Notre Dame recruit, placed third in the 100 breast stroke in 1:03.28. Green junior Kennedy Herbert was fifth in the event at 1:04.96 and Hudson senior Laura Murphy took seventh at 1:05.82.
“I am just really looking forward to the future,” Margheret said. “This really gives me some extra motivation to keep working hard.”
Walsh Jesuit freshman Lauren Heller placed fourth in the 200 freestyle (1:49.65) and fifth in the 100 freestyle (51.43 seconds).
Copley sophomore Madison Myers snagged a fourth in the 100 backstroke (5.29 seconds) and a seventh in the 200 freestyle (1:50.67).
Hudson junior Paige Kelly was third in the 500 freestyle (4:54.40) and eighth in the 200 freestyle (1:51.23). Her teammate Murphy was eighth in the 200 IM (2:07.09).
Jackson junior Elizabeth Graeff placed sixth in the 200 IM (23.86) and Wooster freshman Jessica Bonezzi took seventh in the 100 butterfly (56.11).
Heller and Margheret helped Walsh’s 200 medley relay place sixth in 1:47.35. Senior Lauren Tullis and sophomore Ayssa Heller also swam on the unit.
Jackson had two top-eight relays. The 200 medley was eighth in 1:48.04, and featured Graeff, freshmen Victoria Addis and Kaitlyn Daiger and Kinney. The 200 freestyle of Graeff, sophomore Haley Loughner, Daiger and Kinney placed fourth in 1:37.05.
Hudson’s 400 freestyle relay unit of senior Connie Gan, sophomore Stephanie Boyd, Murphy and Kelly was eighth in 3:32.91.
Michael Beaven can be reached at 330-996-3829 or mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the high school blog at http://www.ohio.com/preps.
