Neuqua swimmers dominate SCN
Fast, unprecedented and record-breaking -- those are probably the best ways to describe Saturday's Upstate Eight Conference boys swimming meet.
Neuqua Valley pool announcer Len Penkala spoke the words "new record" countless times, for not only were six conference records set, the times were sometimes the fastest in Wildcats pool history.
When the swimming finally stopped, Neuqua Valley had a dominant 332-226 victory over second-place St. Charles North to take a very confident first step in championship season.
"Everybody on our team had great times today," Neuqua Valley senior Brian Alden said. "We really came to swim today. The season's coming to an end, and we just focused on getting it done."
Alden received much of the attention. He broke the 50-yard freestyle record by more than two seconds when he swam 20.63, then changed the entry for the 100 butterfly record when his 50.77 broke by two seconds the existing mark.
"I liked my 50 time," Alden said. "That was good for this part of the season. My fly time was bad."
Neuqua Valley stormed through the first two-thirds of the meet, winning every event until the 500 freestyle. The question was put to Wildcats coach Chad Allen if he thought his team had gone too fast with the state meet still three weeks away.
"I certainly think we can swim faster," Allen said. "We certainly haven't topped out today. We know we're going to go faster than that at state."
In addition to Alden's individual titles, Neuqua Valley swept the three relay races and gained individual winners in Kevin Overholt (200 freestyle), Brien Gerber (200 freestyle) and Mike Lehman (100 freestyle). Overholt and the Wildcats' 400 freestyle relay set conference records while Hans Peters, Overholt, Ryan Farmer and Alden's 1:24.80 in the 200 freestyle relay was a pool record.
Ted Wagner won the diving competition.
Waubonsie Valley finished third in the meet and had one individual champion -- but what a performance Jim Zuponeck turned in to get that title. Zuponeck became only the second Waubonsie Valley swimmer to break one minute in the 100 breaststroke when he swam 59.99. The other sub-60-second Warrior was Chris Hagenbaumer, whose 57.29 time won the state title in 1989.
The thing is, Zuponeck broke one minute in the conference meet, untapered. Earlier in the meet he finished second in the 200 individual medley.
"That was a little nudge to do better in the breaststroke," Zuponeck said. "It's good to swim so well at the conference meet. You've got four or five of the top teams in the state here."
Lake Park's Bryant Honsa ended that run of Neuqua Valley victories when his 4:38.70 time dropped the conference record by two seconds. Honsa added a second-place finish in the 200 freestyle.
"The 200 was OK," Honsa said. "I expected to go a little faster than that. But the 500 and the relays, I did what I expected. This is a tough conference. Neuqua is one of the top teams in the nation. But we swam well."
Honsa and Lake Park finished fifth in a tight race. Just 58 points separated second-place St. Charles North from fifth-place Lake Park.