Huskies give it their best, beat Maine West

Lifetime bests already? Hersey coach Rick Kerwin will gladly take them, even if they're coming unusually early in the season.

The Huskies had enough fast swims to earn a 111-75 victory over host Maine West on Tuesday night, making them 2-0 so far in duals after a victory over Schaumburg last Friday.

Two races proved to be key for Hersey: the 200-yard IM and the 100 breaststroke.

In the IM, Alex Niemiec (2:26.88) a 1-2-3 Hersey sweep. Much later in the meet, Petro (1:12.62), Matt Williams (1:16.39) and Kenny Engelson (1:21.18) delivered another 1-2-3 sweep. In both races, all the performances were lifetime bests.

The times were particularly gratifying for the Huskies, because it was their first meet of the season in a conventional short-course yards pool with starting blocks.

"To go liftetime bests like this is really encouraging for our guys," said Kerwin. "We feel like it's definitely an indication of better things to come for us."

Maine West had plenty to cheer about, too. Senior Pat Cullen won the 200 free (1:58.63) and the 100 fly (58.94) and also had legs on the Warriors' winning 200 and 400 free relays. Another key senior, Matt Zych, joined Cullen on the winning relays and also won the 100 free in 54.29, and freshman Max Hough had lifetime bests in the 50 free and 100 free.

Coach Ryan Claus is exercising patience with this team. He understands that he's got a roster with lots of room to grow, and it may take some time.

"We've got a lot of work to do," Claus said. "But I like the direction we're headed."

Clearly, though, sophomore Danny Hanns is ready to help the Warriors win key points in duals right now. He won diving with a score of 171.0, nearly 20 points better than his nearest competitor.

Neil Mier and Vinny Ponzo helped Hersey with a 1-2 finish in the 50 free. Other Hersey winners included John Poelking in the 100 back (1:05.71) and Jon Hill in the 500 free (5:53.66).