Hersey making most of invitations
Hersey's girls swimming team is getting pretty good at this invitational thing.
Last week, the Huskies came back from 10 points down to beat division rival Prospect to win the Buffalo Grove Invitational.
On Saturday, with event victories from Rebecca Ruffin, Meredith Wellhausen, Laura Wilcher and Ellen Deering, they placed second behind Stevenson 303-203 at the Conant Invitational.
Janelle Murphy, Heidi Johnson, Michelle Lewis, Mara Paraskevopoulos, Erin Cunningham, Laura Brubaker, Kristen Rathburn, Megan Anderluh, Kelly Boudart, Christine Rovani, Ilona Widomska, Caroline Stoklosa, Nicole Gill, Kathryn Korff and Maura Kelly also played key roles for the Huskies.
"Our relays did well," said Hersey coach Rob Lindgren, whose team hosts the Hersey Jamboree next Saturday. "We swam real, real well. We had a lot of season best times.
"This morning they did a spring set. A lot of girls had their best times then. We came here, and the girls were able to swim the same way.
"A lot of our C and B swimmers did really well. Laura Wilcher dropped 20 seconds in the 500 free on C level. Ruffin in the breaststroke was two seconds faster than she has been. She swam her season best and was close to her lifetime best."
Wilcher won the 500 with a 6:04.31. Ruffin placed second in the B-level breaststroke in 1:15.16.
Conant placed third with 160 points as Kelly Hendricks finished second in diving to state champion Kerrin Seymour of Stevenson, whose won with a pool and varsity record 414.9 points.
Natalia Woodbine, Kaylee Sickafoose, Olga Wiatr, Lucia Crivolio, Kirsten Reis, Monica Tanski -- the only freshman swimming on the Cougars' varsity this season -- Annette Wojciechowski, Nathalie Niedorowski, Stepanie D'Anza, Erin O'Connor, Hannah Duke, Kinga Wolska, Jessica Rowells, Ashley Pye, Caitlin Reis, Selina Wang, Megan Schram, Amber Marcis and Megan McGowan also contributed.
"I thought that was pretty phenomenal because of all the people we've lost the last couple of years," said first-year Cougar coach Wayne Oras. "We've pulled off third place the last few years.
"If you look at the B results, they're kind of deceptive. What we've got is a bunch of girls who don't have a lot of talent.
"They have a couple of hard practices, then still drop time. It's amazing to see what they can do. I expect them to get slower they more they swim, but they keep dropping time."
Stevenson won 32 of the 36 three-class events. Tori Alland, Melanie Koto, April McKee and Ashley Wanland won the three A relays -- the 200 medley (1:58.39), the 200 free (1:46.36) and 400 free (3:48.17).
Wanland (50 free in 26.36), McKee (200 free in 2:00.07) and Alland (200 IM in 2:16.3) also won A races. Erin Cunningham won the A 100 fly (1:02.84) and 100 breaststroke (1:10.59).