Boys swimming: Stevenson wins 10th straight NSC title

Stevenson boys swimming coach Doug Lillydahl welcomed back only one point-scorer from last year’s fifth-place state team — senior Sirui Wang.

Wang took fifth in the 100-yard breaststroke and helped the Patriots’ 200 freestyle relay team place seventh at state last winter.

“We lost several blue-blood swimmers to graduation,” Lillydahl said at Saturday’s North Suburban Conference boys swimming and diving meet at Libertyville. “So, there I was, early this season, wondering, ‘Should we hope to finish 15th at state?’

“I’m not wondering that anymore. I see us contending again for a top-five spot at state. I love that we’re an unheralded team with a bunch of highly productive role players.”

Lillydahl’s swift crew got faster in late January, with the addition of 6-foot-5 sophomore Kasper Lee, a transfer student from Sweden whose favorite course at Stevenson is?

“Geography,” he said with an Amazon River-wide smile.

“I clicked with this team right away,” added Lee, who’s as humble as he is grateful to be a member of another formidable Stevenson squad. “I’d never competed on a team with a swimmer as good as Sirui. He’s also a fantastic leader, pushing all of us. And I mean pushing in a good way.”

Lee — in only his fourth swim meet on U.S. soil — touched first in two events (100 free, 47.46, as the fast heat’s fourth seed; 100 backstroke, 51.63) and swam for the Pats’ championship 200 medley relay (1:34.69) on Saturday, helping Stevenson (402 points) capture its 10th straight NSC title in Lillydahl’s final season at the helm.

Wang and Stevenson’s Allan Zhu also zipped to a pair of individual-event titles. Wang topped the 200 free (1:41.24) and 100 butterfly (51.14) fields, and Zhu reigned in the 200 IM (1:55.32) and the 100 breaststroke (56.55).

Stevenson amassed 10 event wins in all at the seven-team meet, missing gold only in diving (Libertyville’s Hayden Cook, 473.25 points) and in the 50 free (Lake Forest’s Stefan Cucuz, 21.64). Patriots senior Timothy Rhee won the 500 free in 5:01.05.

Lillydahl’s relay champs, in addition to Lee, were Zhu, Rhee, Sirui Wang, Josh Wang, Kyler Chou, Matthew Oakes and Finn Schneider.

“The thinking, way back in early December, was that Sirui would always be yards and yards ahead of everybody else at practice,” Lillydahl said. “Well, that hasn’t been the case. They’ve seen the standard Sirui has set as an outstanding swimmer and they’re saying, ‘Let’s go, let’s strive to reach that.’”

Libertyville (325.5 points) finished runner-up in the team standings, followed by Lake Forest (314), Mundelein (293.5), Warren (234.5), Zion-Benton (161) and Waukegan (11).

Lake Zurich Bears raced, too, but not for team points. LZ’s Chase Slagter bronzed in the 50 free with a 48.62 and anchored the third-place 200 free relay (1:29.63, with Sebastian Railian, Kryspin Szczech and Owen Becker).

Libertyville coach Greg Herman received third-place efforts from Nicholas Ozimek (200 IM, 100 breast) and his 400 free relay (Ozimek, Shreyas Moorthy, Max Seres and Max Shores).

Jack Hansen paced Mundelein, claiming silver in diving (453.65). Mustangs Cameron Wiklund and Marek Sikora took third in the 200 free (1:47.42) and in the 500 free (5:09.46), respectively.

Warren’s Evan Di Vito finished second in the 200 IM (1:58.41) and third in the 100 back (53.29), right behind Stevenson’s Justin Zhao (52.89).

All NSC teams but Lake Zurich return to Libertyville next weekend to vie for state berths. LZ heads to the Barrington sectional on Feb. 22.

“A meet like this is a good opportunity for swimmers to fine-tune some things,” Warren coach Kim Lobitz said Saturday. “It’s nice that we get to come back here for a big meet next weekend.”

Quote-worthy: Impactful words from swimmer Katie Ledecky, a nine-time Olympic gold medalist, adorn the back of Mundelein’s swimming and diving team T-shirt.

“You just have to want it more than anyone else,” it reads.

“You can apply that to practices, to meets, to a lot of things in life,” Mustangs breaststroker and IMer John Gorsica said at Saturday’s NSC meet.

Sam he is: The NSC JV boys swimming meet was staged concurrently at Libertyville on Saturday. Stevenson’s fully tapered Sam Rahimzadeh churned to a head-turning time of 21.66 in the 50 free, setting an NSC JV mark while bettering the state cut (21.73) in the event.

Only the varsity victor in the 50 free, Lake Forest’s Cucuz (21.64), swam faster than Rahimzadeh did.

Herman, on Hayden: The NSC diving segment was held Friday night. Champ Hayden Cook’s approach impressed Libertyville coach Greg Herman.

“Hayden is real calm as a competitor,” Herman said. “Focused and coachable and easygoing, too. He had some awesome dives Friday. There might have been a couple of things he wishes he could have done better.”

Name game: Zion-Benton’s Tyler Fishback swims the … 100 free.