Growth spurts continue for St. Viator's Balcerak, Wheeling's Reiff

For both St. Viator sophomore Michael Balcerak and Wheeling senior Nate Reiff, this year's boys swimming sectional meet provided a very different experience.

Both comfortably earned trips to next weekend's state championships, the second straight year they've done so, by excelling at the Glenbrook South sectional on Saturday.

Unlike last year, both will be advancing to state with a full head of steam after winning two individual sectional races apiece.

Balcerak won the 100- and 200-yard freestyles, while Reiff was tops in the 100 butterfly and 100 breaststroke.

Glenbrook South, powered by double winner Sam Iida, had the top team score at 233 points, just ahead of Glenbrook North (226) and Deerfield (219). Wheeling was fourth at 161, followed by Prospect (135) and Rolling Meadows (115).

Balcerak's times will qualify him among the elites for Friday's state meet prelims at Evanston Township High School. He won the 200 in 1:42.75 and the 100 in 46.32. That 100 clocking is both a lifetime best and school record.

"The main difference is, this year, there's a real sense of knowing he belongs," said St. Viator coach Jaime Klotz. "So today was a little more businesslike in a way, because there's no doubt - for him, it's about next week."

Klotz and Balcerak have had an ongoing discussion about what would define a successful season, and Saturday's performance puts St. Viator's sophomore right on track.

"All season, we've talked about getting in finals, then getting top three," Klotz said. "That's the goal."

Reiff, too, has seen big growth.

During his youth baseball days, teammates affectionately dubbed him "Planet Nate" for his reliably spacy behavior.

Over time, though, he's become one the most firmly grounded high school athletes around.

"Nate came to me after last year and asked about where he needed to improve," said Wheeling coach Tod Schwager. "I felt like strength was one area - and his turns needed to get better. And he took that really seriously, with lots of work in the weight room and extra time working on his turns.

"As a coach, that's the kind of athlete you hope for - one that asks for feedback, and then really listens to it and responds."

Reiff won the 100 fly in 51.37 and the 100 breast in 59.07 - both personal bests and team records.

There was plenty more good news for Wheeling, as the all-senior 200 medley relay of Kyle Noel, Reiff, Jake Noel and Justin Loquercio broke a team record and qualified for state in a fourth-place time of 1:37.25.

The same quartet set a team record in the 400 free relay, placing second in a state-qualifying 3:12.44.

Jake Noel added to the Wildcats' fun by placing third in the 200 IM (1:57.54) and also earned a sectional championship in the 100 backstroke (53.57). Both his individual times bettered the state-qualifying standards.

"I think we all feel like there's a little bit more in us for next week," said Jake Noel, eager for the challenge of his first crack at swimming the maximum four events in the state prelims for the first time. "We've had some rest, but now it's time to get a little bit more and see what happens next week."

Junior Ricky Reeve came up with one last team record for Wheeling by breaking the five-minute barrier for the first time in the 500 free, finishing seventh in 4:54.82.

Prospect sophomore Jacob Kosinski made his first sectional performance a memorable one, as he finished fourth in the 100 breaststroke in a state-qualifying time of 59.83.

"The whole way, it felt great," he said. "All year the goal has been to try to get to state, so to have gotten that done feels pretty amazing."

Rolling Meadows sophomore Josh Dellorto earned a second state trip to state in the 200 freestyle. Seeded next to Balcerak, Dellorto came up with a quick first half and held on to finish second in 1:44.48.

"I didn't really come close to my goal time for the day, so that's kind of disappointing," Dellorto said.

Dellorto placed second in the 100 back in 54.27, just ahead of Prospect senior Ryan Lakner (54.29).

Prospect junior Anthony Liva earned a second straight trip to the state meet in diving, with a second-place score of 479.65, likely one of the top at-large qualifying scores. Glenbrook South's Patrick Tener won diving at 482.25. Mid-Suburban League champion Cole Aykroid overcame a shaky start to produce a third-place score of 472.95 sure to get him back to state for a second straight year.

Among the top non-qualifying swimming efforts was the fifth-place 100 fly from Conant freshman Justin Lim (52.77). That's less than two-tenths of a second off the state standard - especially impressive given Lim's starting point this season.

"I think his first time in the fly this year was 59-something," said Conant coach Brian Drenth. "About these last four weeks, you could really see him gaining confidence and starting to believe in himself. It hurts to come so close to the cut and miss, but you can't dwell on that too much based on how much he improved."

Hersey sophomore Josh Irvine, meanwhile, entered the season thinking of himself primarily as a butterflyer but is leaving it as an extremely promising distance freestyler.

Irvine took a big drop to place seventh in the 200 free (1:49.78) and had an even more impressive fifth-place finish in the 500 free (4:53.50).

The 30-some second time drop in the 500 from the start of his season had Irvine checking the scoreboard very closely at Glenbrook South upon the conclusion of his race.

"He couldn't believe his time," said Hersey coach Dick Mortensen. "It's so rewarding because he's one of the guys who works really, really hard."

• Advancing to the state meet for a third straight year to compete against other athletes with disabilities were Maine West senior Anthony Alonzi and Elk Grove sophomore Jack Falejczyk.

Falejczyk, who is sightless, relies on assistant coaches to warn him of the walls as he approaches. The signal is given via a long rod with a pull buoy segment attached to it; a gentle bump on Falejczyk's noggin alerts him that he's closing in.

The Grens' sophomore has a long-range goal of becoming a paralympic competitor. In the short-range, he achieved his season goal by finishing the 100 freestyle in 1:10.71.