The last laps in the pool for the spring season are upcoming with the Class 5A boys state swim meet, which takes place May 8-9.
A total of 35 individuals and 14 relay teams from five area programs head to the Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center looking to put big finishing touches on what’s been a significantly successful season.
As usual, Regis Jesuit will have the largest contingent from the area for the meet, which begins with prelims at 5 p.m. May 8, followed by the diving competition at 9:30 a.m. May 9 with swim finals at 5 p.m.
Coach Nick Frasersmith’s Raiders will be 12 strong individually and carry a full set of relays, while Smoky Hill comes next with nine individuals, followed by Grandview with eight and Cherokee Trail with six. Overland’s entire contingent is made up of three relays.
Regis Jesuit took its customary approach of preparation for the state meet, as it did not have its top swimmers compete in the Continental “A” League meet hosted by Heritage May 2.
Still, the Raiders annually contend for a trophy as one of the top two teams at the state meet and have a major challenge in trying to surpass defending state champion Cherry Creek, but have the firepower to be the state runner-up.
At the top end of the lineup for Regis Jesuit is sophomore Treyvn Krauss, who is the state’s clear leader in the 500 yard freestyle. Krauss’s top time of 4 minutes, 34.01 seconds, is more than a full second clear of Fairview’s Luke Axisa (4:35.38), while he is also the No. 4 seed in the 200 freestyle with a best time of 1:42.11.
Another title contender for the Raiders is sophomore Spencer Greene, who is tops in the state seeding in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 48.41 seconds. He has a closer pack of persuers in the event that includes his former teammates Greyson Connett, now of Grandview. Greene also sits in the No. 4 spot in the 50 freestyle.
Senior Nolan Kohl is the No. 3 seed in both the 100 freestyle (45.74 seconds) and 100 backstroke (50.54) for Regis Jesuit, which also boasts 200 yard medley and 400 yard freestyle relays that have been second-fastest in the state over the course of the season.
The trio of Krauss, Greene and Kohl plus the relays represent the biggest point scoring potential for the Raiders, who also typically get strong performances from a lot of sources in prelims.
The Centennial “A” League Championship meet May 2 at Arapahoe High School provided a preview of the possibilities for some local teams at state.
The bigger winner of the meet individually was Cherokee Trail senior Tyson Walker, who garnered Centennial League Swimmer of the Year honors from league coaches. He backed that up with his performance at the meet, in which he won championships in both the 200 yard freestyle and 100 yard breaststroke.
Walker’s time of 1 minute, 40.67 seconds, set the league record in the 200 freestyle, as it knocked out the 1:41.43 posted by former Arapahoe star Fletcher Hayes. His time of 56.30 seconds in the breaststroke vaulted him to the top of the field in the state, as he is the No. 1 seed, while he is seeded No. 3 in his other state event, the 200 yard individual medley.
Junior Anderson Hardin is also potentially primed for a big state meet, as he is seeded No. 6 in the 50 freestyle (21.19 seconds) and seventh in the 100 freestyle (46.97), while the Cougars also are seeded to score in all three relays.
While Walker will be a contender for the state championship in the 200 IM, so, too, will another local standout who had an exceptional Centennial “A” League meet. That is Smoky Hill’s Cooper Walkup, who as a sophomore captured both the 200 IM as well as the 100 yard freestyle.
Walkup swam 1:52.06 to win the league title in the IM, but his season-best time of 1:51.04 puts him in front of Walker in the state seedings and only behind Columbine senior Joey Sudermann, who leads the field with a seed time of 1:50.68. Walkup won the league title in the 100 freestyle in 46.93 seconds, but went slightly faster earlier in the season (46.81) to go in as the No. 6 seed.
Grandview graduated a pair of two-event state champions from last season’s meet in Oliver Schimberg (last season’s 5A Swimmer of the Year and a four-time state champion, including three straight in the 100 backstroke) and Gherman Prudnikau, but coach Dan Berve’s team has a potential winner again in Connett.
Connett swam for Regis Jesuit last season, but transfered over and has been an outstanding contributor. He won a Centennial League title in the 100 yard butterfly — an event in which he is seeded third with a best time of 49.91 seconds — while he has a chance to extend the program’s legacy in the backstroke as he is seeded second with a best time of 49.96 seconds. The Wolves boast the third-fastest 200 yard medley relay team in 5A going into the state meet.
Grandview also has the only diver among Aurora area programs in junior Hunter Bull, who was recently selected the Centennial League Diver of the Year. Bull — who will look to improve on last season’s 14th-place finish, has 5A’s sixth-highest score of 494.95 points coming into the state meet, in which there are just 21 total qualifiers.
Overland will have two relay teams in the field and the highest seeded is the 200 yard freestyle unit, which holds the No. 31 spot in the seedings and will need to jump up 11 spots to score.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@sentinelcolorado.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
