Just 33 swimmers combined for 11 different events, not including
diving.
”
We’re not a big team,
”
Gilroy High head coach Tom Clark said.
Indeed. With other swim teams boasting numbers near the 100’s,
GHS has come with a small yet strong team all season long. And
although it couldn’t equal the size of powerhouse programs like San
Benito and Salinas, a lack of depth and lack of numbers didn’t keep
the Mustangs far from the discussion Saturday at the Tri-County
Athletic League Finals in Salinas.
SALINAS – Just 33 swimmers combined for 11 different events, not including diving.
“We’re not a big team,” Gilroy High head coach Tom Clark said.
Indeed. With other swim teams boasting numbers near the 100’s, GHS has come with a small yet strong team all season long. And although it couldn’t equal the size of powerhouse programs like San Benito and Salinas, a lack of depth and lack of numbers didn’t keep the Mustangs far from the discussion Saturday at the Tri-County Athletic League Finals in Salinas.
Case in point, the Mustang boys finished runner-up to San Benito 349.5 to 262, while the Mustang girls took third with 233 points behind both Salinas (337) and San Benito (372).
“The girls took third, which was really surprising,” Clark said. “That’s the highest point total for the girls in a long time.”
Although it was not the outcome either team was hoping for – rival San Benito earned the TCAL title in both the boys and girls divisions – it is a team’s depth where the TCAL Finals are said to be won or lost, and Gilroy’s strong standing despite just 33 swimmers perhaps says more in the end.
“We’ve got strong individual swimmers,” Clark said Saturday. “We just don’t have the depth.”
Strong swimmers like Eddie Malick, David Pribyl, Jacob Abruzzini and Zack Kendrick, among others, provided enough of a punch Saturday that Gilroy was able to trump five other teams in the TCAL, including defending champion Salinas, which finished third with 258.5 points.
While the league championships are usually decided by those teams that rack up the second-, third- and fourth-place finishes, Gilroy found enough spark with what it had to finish with top places in the end.
“I was kind of disappointed we didn’t push Hollister better,” said Clark, whose boys’ team lost 93-90 to San Benito in a dual meet earlier this season, “but it was one of the best boys teams we’ve had in a long time.”
Strong in the strokes, the Mustangs set the tone early when it finished first in the 200-yard medley relay (Malick, Pribyl, Kendrick, Abruzzini) with a section qualifying time of 1:42.17 – just 47 one-hundredths of a second short of the school record – then garnered points when Malick took second in the 200-yard IM (2:00.94) and first in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:00.64).
“It was right on my best times,” said Malick, who also competed in the 400 free relay with Pribyl, Kyle Collett and Michael Shields, a foursome that finished third with a 3:29.50. Malick, though, said he fell just short of posting any personal records Saturday.
“Next week,” he added. “I didn’t shave or taper and that really affected it. At CCS (next week), I’ll go faster.”
Other strong times at TCAL’s by the Mustang boys included Shields’ 2:11.97 in the 200 IM (fourth place), Kendrick’s 56.59 in the 100 fly (fourth), Abruzzini’s 59.53 in the 100 back (second), Collett’s 5:14.92 in the 500 free (second) and Kooper Knutson’s 5:41.59 in the 500 free (fourth).
Lacking the depth to truly compete for the team championship at TCAL’s, though, Gilroy may just be better suited for Friday’s CIF-Central Coast Section Swimming and Diving Preliminaries in Santa Clara, and subsequent CCS Finals on Saturday.
“I’m already qualified for CCS and I have a real good chance to qualify for the CCS Finals,” Malick said.
David Pribyl is also eyeing Friday’s prelims. The GHS senior took second in the 100-yard butterfly (54.11) and second in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:02.00) behind Malick on Saturday.
“This was big for us but I think CCS is a bit bigger,” Pribyl said. “We have more people this year going to CCS.”
While plenty of swimmers from the boys side will attend this weekend’s meet, freshman Michelle Shields will be going as well after she clocked a 56.78 in the 100-yard freestyle event, taking second place overall. She’ll be joined by senior Maegan Collett, who was the lone female individual for Gilroy last year.
“I’m just really happy Michelle Shields qualified for CCS,” Maegan Collett said. “It was last second, but I’m really happy for her.”
Other top times for the girls included Isabella Comin’s 2:30.52 in the 200 IM (third place) and her 1:06.38 in the 100 fly (fourth), Ashley McDermit’s 1:03.45 in the 100 free (fifth) and Nicole Nelsen’s 1:21.97 in the 100 breast (fourth).
Collett, meanwhile, took first in the 100-yard butterfly in 1:02.59 Saturday, first with a 1:49.22 in the 200-yard free relay with foursome Comin, McDermit and Shields, and recorded a 1:03.63 in the 100-yard backstroke to finish second behind San Benito’s Shelli Reed (1:01.39).
“We totally push each other all the time,” said Collett of her relationship with Reed. “We would go over flip-turns together.
“I love to have friends and it’s nice to have someone push you in a friendly manner.”
And it’s perhaps even better to experience CCS with teammates.
Said Collett, “It’ll be me and [Shields] and all the guys in the pool.”
GIRLS
TEAM
1, San Benito, 372; 2, Salinas, 337; 3, Gilroy, 233; 4, Notre Dame, 172; 5, Everett Alvarez, 62; 5, North Salinas, 62; 7, Alisal, 47.
INDIVIDUAL (GILROY ONLY)
200 Medley Relay – 1, San Benito, 1:57.71; 3, Gilroy, 2:02.92. 200 Free – 1, L. Larson, San Benito, 2:05.38; 10, L. Rhodes, Gilroy, 2:30.03; 11, F. Comin, Gilroy, 2:30.05; 15, S. McGeehon, Gilroy, 2:35.11. 200 IM – 1, S. Aguayo, Salinas, 2:22.14; 3, I. Comin, Gilroy, 2:30.52; 11, M. Carvalho, Gilroy, 2:53.54. 50 Free – 1, H. Parcasio, Salinas, 25.86; 6, A. McDermit, Gilroy, 28.73; 7, R. Groppe, Gilroy, 29.02; 14, C. Tanaka, Gilroy, 30.49; 18, T. Schaut, Gilroy, 31.12; 25, M. Gjerde, Gilroy, 32.54; 41, T. Kaufman, Gilroy, 34.87. 100 Fly – 1, M. Collett, Gilroy, 1:02.59; 4, I. Comin, Gilroy, 1:06.38; 9, M. Carvalho, Gilroy, 1:16.89. 100 Free – 1, S. Reed, San Benito, 52.64; 2, M. Shields, Gilroy, 56.78; 5, A. McDermit, Gilroy, 1:03.45; 14, R. Groppe, Gilroy, 1:07.18; 17, C. Tanaka, Gilroy, 1:08.25; 18, A. Vanni, Gilroy, 1:09.63; 19, S. McGeehon, Gilroy, 1:10.14; 21, M. Wheat, Gilroy, 1:10.78; 26, T. Schaut, Gilroy, 1:12.95; 37, T. Kaufman, Gilroy, 1:18.59. 500 Free – 1, L. Larson, San Benito, 5:31.90; 6, N. Nelsen, Gilroy, 6:15.54; 7, H. O’Connor, Gilroy, 6:20.83. 200 Free Relay – 1, Gilroy, 1:49.22; 2, Salinas, 1:54.40. 100 Back – 1, S. Reed, San Benito, 1:01.39; 2, M. Collett, Gilroy, 1:03.63; 7, F. Comin, Gilroy, 1:15.03; 8, L. Rhodes, Gilroy, 1:15.13; 14, M. Wheat, Gilroy, 1:18.64; 29, J. Robles, Gilroy, 1:39.39. 100 Breast – 1, D. Gatrell, San Benito, 1:14.37; 4, N. Nelsen, 1:21.97; 9, A. Vanni, Gilroy, 1:26.97; 21, M. Gjerde, Gilroy, 1:36.39. 400 Free Relay – 1, San Benito, 3:55.86; 3, Gilroy, 4:25.89.
BOYS
TEAM
1, San Benito, 349.5; 2, Gilroy, 262; 3, Salinas, 258.5; 4, Palma, 202; 5, Everett Alvarez, 96; 6, North Salinas, 58; 7, Alisal, 48.
INDIVIDUAL (GILROY ONLY)
200 Medley Relay – 1, Gilroy, 1:42.17; 2, Palma, 1:47.49. 200 Free – 1, R. Whiteside, San Benito, 1:51.69; 5, J. Abruzzini, Gilroy, 2:00.11; 7, K. Knutson, Gilroy, 2:08.50; 12, A. Lucero, Gilroy, 2:18.08. 200 IM – 1, B. Drogemuller, San Benito, 1:59.88; 2, E. Malick, Gilroy, 2:00.94; 4, M. Shields, Gilroy, 2:11.97; 6, B. Pribyl, Gilroy, 2:14.48; 10, J. Kendrick, Gilroy, 2:23.95. 50 Free – 1, M. McCullough, San Benito, 22.90; 10, Z. Kendrick, Gilroy, 24.85; 13, S. Fenston, Gilroy, 26.01; 14, A. Apolonio, Gilroy, 26.15; 16, A. Lindseth, Gilroy, 26.52; 36, D. Bertolami, Gilroy, 31.56. 100 Fly – 1, B. Drogemuller, San Benito, 53.98; D. Pribyl, Gilroy, 54.11; 4, Z. Kendrick, Gilroy, 56.59. 100 Free – 1, S. Thompson, Salinas, 49.48; 7, K. Collett, Gilroy, 53.91; 8, J. Kendrick, Gilroy, 56.21; 12, S. Fenston, Gilroy, 57.89; 13, A. Apolonio, Gilroy, 58.12; 16, A. Lindseth, Gilroy, 1:03.15; 24, D. Bertolami, Gilroy, 1:11.17. 500 Free – 1, R. Whiteside, San Benito, 5:08.42; 2, K. Collett, Gilroy, 5:14.92; 4, K. Knutson, Gilroy, 5:41.59; 12, A. Lucero, Gilroy, 6:33.29. 200 Free Relay – 1, Salinas, 1:31.49; 3, Gilroy, 1:36.25. 100 Back – 1, C. Hunsdorfer, Salinas, 56.89; 2, J. Abruzzini, Gilroy, 59.53; 5, M. Shields, Gilroy, 1:02.22. 100 Breast – 1, E. Malick, Gilroy, 1:00.64; 2, D. Pribyl, Gilroy, 1:02.00. 400 Free Relay – 1, Salinas, 3:21.43; 3, Gilroy, 3:29.50.
Correction: A photo incorrectly identified Nicole Nelsen as swimming the 100 breaststroke in Saturday’s Tri-County Athletic League Finals. The picture taken was Melissa Gjerde swimming in the event. The Dispatch regrets this error.
