Tough practice pays big dividends for Stevenson

For high school swimmers, winter break is not exactly synonymous with vacation.

No school means more practice time - and that's in a sport where athletes routinely practice twice a day.

At the same time, winter break is like taking your medicine. It might not taste good, but you know it will help in the long run.

"It was hard to get through at times, but you have to think about the end of the season," said Stevenson senior Josh Hodges. "If you put in a lot of hard work now, hopefully you get the results by the end of the year."

The Patriots certainly got results Thursday against visiting Lake Forest in a North Suburban Conference dual meet.

Not only did the Patriots (3-0) stay perfect in the league, they won going away. Stevenson's superior depth resulted in a convincing 107-78 victory.

Coach Greg Hartman said this was the first time in at least five years that the Patriots defeated Lake Forest in a dual.

Hartman liked the way his team reacted to winter-break practices.

"We had a slightly more advanced regiment than a year ago," he said. "We definitely upped our yardage and intervals."

Hodges strung together impressive performances to win the 50-yard freestyle (22.77) and the 100-butterfly (52.91). His time in the 100-butterfly was a personal best.

"I really held off the race well," Hodges said. "That's something I've been working on in practice."

In the 100-yard freestyle, senior Owen Yang placed first with a personal-best (52.03).

"I was surprised and happy," Yang said. "I didn't expect to do that well."

Stevenson's Langston Fitts (1:49.72) and Ryota Kuwahara (1:50.12) were first and second, respectively, in the 200-freestyle. Kuwahara came in second in the 100-butterfly (55.77).

Junior Adam Salzman (2:03.18) placed second in the 200-individual medley. Lake Forest senior Mitch Stoehr (2:00.05) finished first.

"He's a great swimmer and I stayed with him as long as I could," Salzman said.

Stoehr, who will swim next year for Stanford, had an easy time of it in the 500-freestyle (4:45.91). Fitts (4:55.49) was third.

Stevenson's 400-yard relay teams finished 1-2 to close out the meet.

The Stevenson divers were just as impressive. Mike Chaffer (175.85) edged out teammate Alex Tomczyk (175.20) for first place.

"We have so much depth," Salzman said. "It's amazing to beat Lake Forest by that large a margin."