Rosary starts strong on opening day

Although there were plenty of weird things that happened at Evanston on Friday, there was nothing strange about the team that sat atop the unofficial points leaderboard following the girls swimming prelims.

That team was Rosary, which rose above a potentially disastrous situation and had one of the best days of any team in the water.

Rosary is poised to claim its third straight title and become the first team to win three in a row since St. Charles won the last of its six straight titles in 1999. Unofficially, Rosary "leads" second-placed Hinsdale Central 179-103. New Trier, expected to battle the Beads for the title, struggled from the opening race and only "scored" 101.

Points are only counted on Saturday, but the total Rosary will score means only tragic events such as disqualifications will hinder their path to the title. The Beads suffered through a DQ on Friday and it came from an unlikely source in a very unlikely situation.

Olivia Scott, favored to win the 100-yard butterfly, edged forward and then back when two athletes high-fived in the area behind the starting blocks. The sound was unheard by the starter, who released the swimmers to race shortly after. Last off the blocks, Scott swam the race and coasted to the finish in 54 seconds, the fastest time in prelims. But the flinch cost Scott a spot in the finals.

"It was terrible," Rosary freshman Katherine Hare said. "I tried to comfort her and stuff - but I didn't know what to say to make it better. She worked through it."

That disqualification was about the only thing that didn't go tremendously well for Rosary on Friday. The Beads opened with a massive statement - a state record in the 200 medley relay. Kara Savegnago, Elisabeth Tavierne, Mackenzie Powers and Katherine Hare swam 1:44.85, topping the 1:45.08 set by Evanston in 2007.

"I don't think we were even aiming to get a state record," Hare said. "I was completely shocked and so excited."

Hare said preparation for her first state meet was intense.

"It's a lot more intense," Hare said. "I've been stressed all week. I've never felt this pressure before."

Rosary doubled its relay record haul in the 200 freestyle relay, where Savegnago, Scott, Kally Fayhee and Hare swam 1:33.89, which erased the 1:34.54 set by St. Charles in 1999. And as it was Scott's first race after the butterfly, it provided an in-water sense of redemption.

"I said before the race, 'Let's get a 33,'" Hare said. "It happened."

Rosary's 400 freestyle relay is also top-seeded heading to today's finals, but missed the state record by a half-second.

Additionally, six different Rosary swimmers have a shot at a state title this afternoon. Fayhee is seeded second in the 200 freestyle, Scott is seeded second in the 200 individual medley while Diana Norkus is seeded fourth in the same event, Savegnago is the No. 2 seed in the 50 freestyle, Powers is seeded third in the 100 butterfly while Tavierne is the third seed in the 100 backstroke.

By contrast. New Trier has only 1 swimmer competing for the state title while Hinsdale Central has 2.

St. Charles North had its own sterling moment when Angie Chokran turned in the fastest time in the 100 breaststroke. The junior is also seeded fifth in the 200 individual medley.

"It has been quite a day," Chokran said. "It started out a little rough in the IM. It wasn't a best time. But that breaststroke kind of turned everything around. I did achieve my goal of getting Top 6. I'm very happy with that."

Jessica England also swims for St. Charles North on Saturday after finishing 12th-fastest in the 500 freestyle.

St. Charles East has Emma Smith swimming in two events on Saturday. The freshman was the 12th-fastest in the 200 individual medley and is the No. 8 seed entering the finals of the 500 freestyle.

"I was happy with it and I got in in both events so I can come back and drop more time," Smith said.

"I was every excited to go. It's so crowded with so many people there."

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=253129">Saturday state girls swimming photo gallery</a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=253053">Friday state girls swimming photo gallery</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>