Ottaviano wins UEC 100 back
When St. Charles East star Caitlin Dauw edged Neuqua Valley's Kathleen Patterson to the wall to win the 400-yard free relay for the Saints, it was a great finish to a great meet.
But all the heroics by Dauw and her teammates were not quite enough to prevent Neuqua Valley from claiming its sixth straight Upstate Eight Conference girls swimming championship Saturday afternoon at St. Charles North.
Dauw won the 200 free title in 1:54.01; the 100 fly in 56.60, and then anchored the Saints' 400 free relay team that barely beat the Wildcats 3:39.53 to 3:39.91. Even so, Neuqua held on for a 263-261 team title, with Waubonsie Valley third (229) and St. Charles North fourth (210).
"We were just really excited about the relay," said Dauw, who followed teammates Diana Gehrman, Amy Holmstrom and Hayley Krzecowski in the 400 relay. "Everybody swam awesome and put me in a good position. We always say you have to go all out and that's what we did."
Patterson may have come up just shy of winning the final relay, but the Neuqua senior did plenty to assure herself of winning UEC crowns in all four of her years at Neuqua. The Wildcats all-stater won the 200 IM in 2:08.94, took first in the 100 breaststroke in 1:06.50 and helped the runner-up relay score enough points to hold off the Saints.
"Winning by two points is real exciting and obviously that last race really was close," said Patterson, who earlier this week verbally committed to swim at Northwestern. "Right before that last relay was the 100 breaststroke so it was kind of a tough double. But Lexi (Piranian) had it too. We were happy with how strong we swam that race."
Elgin/Larkin's Hilary Ottaviano claimed top honors in the 100 backstroke despite the fact that she just added the event to her repertoire.
"We had a Bartlett relay meet and I did real well in the backstroke and coach was like, 'I didn't know you were a backstroker,'" Ottaviano said. "This was only my third meet swimming the 100 back so I was like, 'Alright, let's go and swim and see what happens."
What happens next could be a trip past the sectionals for the sophomore. "Now I'll try and make it to state," she said.
With the UEC junior varsity race -- also won by Neuqua -- held on Friday, Saturday's varsity meet went quickly without much time between races. Patterson and Piranian (fourth) swam the 100 breaststroke and minutes later went all out in the final relay.
Wildcats coach Jennifer Heyer-Olson liked the way her team rebounded Saturday after a tough start to the meet.
"When you lead off the meet with the medley relay and you get disqualified, it's my job as the coach to remain level headed," she said. "You've got to give the kids a lot of credit."
In the 200 medley relay, the North Stars took first in 1:53.48 to hold off Waubonsie Valley (1:54.78). The Warriors also were second in the 50-yard freestyle where Elena Carvell's time of 25.18 was second only to Neuqua's Atlantis Wilkins (24.58). St. Charles North's Danielle Goebbert (313.05) and Marcy Blowers (309.95) finished 1-2 in diving.
Neuqua's Andrea Belter won the 100 free (54.17) and the Saints' Gehrman (5:17.10) and Lillian Cabel (5:18.47) finished 1-2 in the 500 free.