High school swim preview: The state title contenders, top athletes to watch this fall
Idaho heads into its sixth season with swimming as a sanctioned high school sport. And in this sixth year, Treasure Valley programs likely will continue to rule the sport.
The Boise boys enter the season as the overwhelming favorite for their eighth straight state title (counting the years before state sanctioning), and Bishop Kelly remains a threat to sweep the 4A boys and girls titles for the third straight year.
While much of the state’s top talent resides in those programs, they don’t hold a monopoly as the sport continues to grow. We surveyed the area’s coaches for the top swimmers to watch this fall.
These were the names that kept coming up over and over.
TOP GIRLS SWIMMERS TO WATCH
Kayla Wieckowski, Boise
She enters her senior season with five individual state titles under belt, including three straight in the 500 freestyle. She’ll go for four in a row after winning the event by 27.1 seconds last fall. She’s also the back-to-back 200 freestyle champ.
Lucy Penna, Bishop Kelly
She made a splash as a freshman last fall, racking up four gold medals at her first 4A state meet. That included individual titles in the 50 freestyle (25.32 seconds) and the 500 freestyle (5:19.63), as well as two relay victories.
Gabriela Stanton, Bishop Kelly
The senior returns to defend three state titles. She rolled to the 200 individual medley title a year ago at 2:21.18. She also showed the versatility to lead the Knights to two relay championships.
Grace Gunther, Bishop Kelly
The Knights’ senior captain gives Bishop Kelly a bounty of talent to chase the ever-important relay titles. She’s also out to defend her state championship in the 100 breaststroke after a commanding victory at 1:11.33 — 3.7 seconds ahead of second place.
Brianna Ruark, Skyview
The senior set the IHSAA 5A state meet record in the 100 butterfly last fall at 56.72 seconds, and added a relay title in the 200 medley. Now she drops down to dominate the competition at the 4A level.
Nicole Dumitrascu, Skyview
She made quite an introduction as a freshman last fall, winning the 5A state title in the 100 backstroke (58.36), swimming a leg on the title-winning 200 medley team and finishing third in the 200 individual medley (2:10.45).
Ellie McFarland, Timberline
The senior enters as the state favorite in the 50 freestyle after taking second (24.94) last fall. She’s also the favorite in the 100 butterfly after finishing fourth (59.65), with Ruark moving down to 4A and the second- and third-place finishers graduating.
Katie Nie, Timberline
The sophomore follows in the footsteps of former teammate Jillian Moses, who won four straight state titles in the 100 breaststroke. Nie finished second to her as a freshman last year at 1:06.91. She’ll also challenge in the 200 individual medley after a fourth-place finish.
Julia Hill, Cole Valley Christian
She finished on the podium twice last fall, taking second in the 4A 200 freestyle (2:07.37) and third in the 500 freestyle (5:43.85). Her times have reportedly gotten even better over the offseason, making her a threat for the top of the medal stand this time.
TOP BOYS SWIMMERS TO WATCH
Ben Stucky, Boise
The senior racked up four gold medals for the Brave at last year’s state meet and remains a threat to do so again. He repeated as the 100-yard backstroke champ (51.62 seconds), won the 200 individual medley (1:57.14) and swam legs of Boise’s 400 freestyle and 200 medley relay teams.
Tyler Quarterman, Boise
He narrowly missed out joining Stucky as a four-time state champ. He won the 100 butterfly in 52.08 seconds and swam legs of two winning relays. He finished second in the 500 freestyle by 1.66 seconds to a swimmer who has graduated, clearing the way for four possible gold medals this fall.
Milo Shue, Boise
Like Quarterman, the senior also was narrowly edged out for a fourth title last year by a graduated senior. The sprinter returns to defend his 100 freestyle title (47.62) and looks to recapture the title in the 50 freestyle in addition to his relay duties.
Shae Stratton, Bishop Kelly
Idaho’s top-ranked college recruit in the junior class returns to defend his individual title in the 100 backstroke (53.23). He also led the Knights to titles in the 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays, giving him a hand in 80 points at the state meet a year ago.
Jacob Schubert, Middleton
The junior finished off the medal stand a year ago, taking fifth in the 50 freestyle (22.70) and 100 freestyle (49.73). But all four swimmers ahead of him in the 50 freestyle graduated, and so did three of the four ahead of him in the 100 free.
TEAM PREVIEWS
The top swimmers to watch from each team in the Treasure Valley. Teams not listed did not participate in the Idaho Statesman’s preseason survey.
Bishop Kelly: Shae Stratton, jr.; Cameron Schauer, so.; Lucy Penna, so.; Gabriela Stanton, sr.; Grace Gunther, sr.
Boise: Tyler Quarterman, sr.; Milo Shue, sr.; Ben Stucky, sr.
Centennial: Nathan Rieth, jr.; Ethan Li, jr.; Abe Eliason, sr.; Remi LeBlanc, so.; Adri Pratt, sr.; Naomi Sekiyama-Nava, sr.
Cole Valley Christian: Julia Hill, so.
Meridian: Josh Hart, so.; Max Ciobanu, so.
Middleton: Jacob Schubert, jr.; Emorie Rasmussen, jr.; Valerie Mannsinne, so.
Mountain View: Tyler Maxell, jr.; Ruby McCullough, jr.
Nampa Christian: Brock Mills, jr.
Owyhee: Rainey Roecker, so.; Lari Zhang, so.; Adi Dowdy, jr.; Ava Oaks, so.; Matthew Gardner, so.
Rocky Mountain: Paul Anderson, so.; Maddie Weatherford, jr.
Skyview: Brianna Ruark, sr.; Nicole Dumitrascu, so.; Sadie Schaffer, so.; Camille Tindall, jr.
Timberline: Adam Peitz, sr.; Ellie McFarland, sr.; Kathy Nie, so.
