Busy Malsom courts all-around athletic success
One reality of having a single-class championship in girls swimming is that an awful lot of terrific athletes don’t get to compete in the state meet.
That’s because in order to keep the meet at a reasonable length, which benefits the competitors, the qualifying time standards keep getting tougher and tougher.
Wheeling senior Leah Malsom was one of the near-misses to quality for the state meet at last weekend’s Barrington sectional — in spite of making quantum leaps forward in what turned out to be her final high school swimming meet.
She wasn’t about to dwell on her close call, though. Maybe that’s because after just one Sunday off, she needed to report the Wheeling girls basketball team. She’ll serve as one of three captains for the Wildcats.
“We’re excited about basketball,” she said. “Last year was kind of a down year for us, and we want to show people that Wheeling basketball is back.
“I feel like I’m way behind because I’ve missed a couple of weeks of practice while I’ve still been swimming.”
It will be much the same for Malsom when basketball season ends, and girls water polo begins in the spring.
She’s a three-sport athlete who’s on track to win an amazing 11 varsity letters at Wheeling. Malsom says she loves all the activity, but she acknowledges that the trade-off, at least in swimming, is that there are certain limitations that come into play.
Her swimming coach at Wheeling, Lisa Hanrahan, ackowledged that this year by adjusting Malsom’s training and meet events. Instead of swimming the distance freestyles, Malsom switched over to the sprints. In those races, Malsom’s limited conditioning opportunities are less of a disadvantage, and her obvious athletic abilities are clear.
At Barrington, she lopped nearly a full second off her previous best in the 100-yard freestyle, finishing eighth in 54.16, or 17 one-hundredths of a second off the state qualifying standard. In the 50 free, she placed sixth in 25.11, or 27 one-hundredths off.
“Having Leah on the team has been awesome,” Hanrahan said. “Of course we all wish she’d have made state, but you look at what she did this season and it’s just remarkable.”
Looking ahead: This time next year, don’t be surprised to see a whole lot of sophomores from area teams taking the next step and swimming in the state meet.
Malsom’s freshman teammate Theresa Godlewski was very close to the state meet cut in both the 100 back and the 50 free and shows loads of promise.
Barrington freshman Emma Barnett was a near miss in both the 500 free and the 100 backstroke, and Fillies freshman Kesley Holmes will race at state on the medley relay and wasn’t far off in the 100 free.
Fremd’s Loretta Stelnicki and Julia Portmann gained valuable varsity experience and also could make state with continued improvement.
Record wrecker? Glenbrook South junior Olivia Smoliga is again turning in some jaw-dropping times,
This year at the state meet she’s focused on the sprint freestyles, having already obliterated the state record in the 100 backstroke last season (her 53.90 lopped off more than a second off the previous best).
In the 50 free at New Trier this weekend, Smoliga has a great chance at beating one of the more enduring state records — the 22.78 set by Palatine’s Allison Wimer in 1996. Smoliga is the top qualifier in the 50 with a 23.03 sectional effort, a full seven-tenths of a second faster than the No. 2 qualifier.
Wimer’s record is all the more impressive considering the many improvements in suit technology and sprint training over the past 15 years.
In the 100 free, Smoliga will likely become the second female swimmer to break 50 seconds. Loyola’s Betsy Webb is the only one to have done it, with a 49.92 in the 2007 state meet prelims. Last weekend in sectional, Smoliga finished in 50.03.