Girls swimming and diving: Hinsdale Central captures first state championship since 1993
For the first time since the 1993 season, Hinsdale Central is the state champion.
The Red Devils won the girls swimming and diving title Saturday at FMC Natatorium in Westmont, and the outcome wasn’t decided until the final event of the meet, the 400 freestyle relay.
Hinsdale Central swimmers Sarah Pelinkovic, Kristyna Patha, Karina Miller and Nicole Sun brought home a second-place finish in the 400 as the Red Devils outpointed runner-up New Trier 236-220.
“There was quite a bit on the line (in the final swim),” Pelinkovic said, “ and our team did it. We supported each other all the way through.
“We worked together and I’m so proud of everyone here. We knew right from the start of the meet that we had a chance.”
Hinsdale Central coach Bob Barber said that he was almost at “a loss for words” after the final scores were posted.
“We’ve been chasing it (a championship) forever,” the coach said, “and to do it having my daughter on the team (Lilia) as a senior just wrapped it all up. To be honest with you, this was just a total team effort. Every single girl contributed to this. If we didn’t have them, we couldn’t have pulled this off.”
Natalie Harder, a freshman from St. Charles North, excelled in the AWD division. She swam four races, finishing first in the time of 2:01.81 in the AWD 100-yard breaststroke. She indicated that she appreciated all the support from the legion of North Stars fans in attendance.
“I was so happy,” Harder said, “in the 100 breaststroke, when I knew I was going to get first place.”
North Stars assistant coach Kate Wolff said that Harder is “the most enthusiastic person I’ve ever met in my life.”
“I think she enjoys being with her sibling,” Wolff continued, “and she loves the sport.”
Natalie’s sister, Grace, is on the St. Charles North roster.
Wheaton North junior Elianna Moody won the diving competition with a point total of 483.50.
She reached the top of the podium this year after finishing 13th as a freshman and second as a junior.
“She has worked really hard this season,” said Wheaton North diving coach Ben Watanapongse. “She does her best every single meet, and we’re really proud of her for how far she’s come.
“We added two new dives for her this year, with higher difficulty. We weren’t really worried about how she was going to wind up (today) place wise, or points wise, for that matter. We just wanted to make sure she’s enjoying herself and enjoying the sport.”
Paige Kowal of Rosary won the 200-yard individual medley in the time of 1:59.34 and was second in the 500 free (4:50.97). Thea Bike from Saint Charles North captured the 100 back (52.68).
Nicole Sun contributed to the Hinsdale Central win with a second-place finish in the 100 free (49.80), and she swam anchor on the 400 free relay clincher.
“One of our major goals this year was to beat New Trier,” Sun said. “A lot of stress (in the final relay), but my teammates really helped me through. They told me just to relax because no matter what, we were getting a trophy. This is a moment I’ll never forget.”
Lilia Barber said that she “was really not expecting this at all.” But the possibility did go through her mind after the strong performance of her team Friday at the preliminaries.
“Last night we realized that we were seeded first after our placements (in the prelims). Then today (later in the meet), when it got to the breaststroke, we were very close and we realized we could win.”