Overholt shoulders some pain
Kevin Overholt wasn't going to let a little thing like tendinitis in his shoulders keep him from winning four races at the Fox Valley Swimming Invitational at Waubonsie Valley on Saturday.
Overholt won both the 50- and 100-yard freestyles and swam on two winning relay teams to help lead Neuqua Valley to victory at the 32nd annual Fox Valley meet. The Wildcats won with 636 points. Naperville Central was second with 594.5 points, followed by Naperville North with 534 points and Waubonsie Valley with 490.
"I've been up and down with sore shoulders all season," Overholt said. "And I missed some training this week. But today I felt a little better."
Even at not quite full strength, the Neuqua senior, who was second in state last year in the 200 freestyle and fourth in the 100 freestyle, finished well ahead of the competition.
In the 50 he swam a 21.59 to the 22.76 second-place Danny Tucker of Naperville Central swam. Mark Menis of the Redhawks was third at 22.83.
Overholt's time in the 100 was 47.58, ahead of Lincoln-Way East's Kevin Kubik with a 49.22 and Joel Demuth of Naperville North, who finished in 49.84.
"I haven't been near my personal-best times," Overholt said. "But that's OK based on the training I've had. I've been focusing on getting my technique as good as possible before I really start working the power stuff."
He's optimistic that he'll be able to work on the power this week and and that he'll be at full strength when he starts his taper for state.
"Kevin has had a great year for us," said Neuqua Valley coach Chad Allen. "If he's healthy, he can win any freestyle event at state. I think he'll be fine."
Overholt also anchored the 200 medley relay team - which also featured Grant Betulius, Kevin Cordes and Mike Lehman - to a win in 1:36.95, and he swam the first leg of the 400 free relay team that also included Ryan Jadwin, Andrew Bratsos and Hans Peters in a winning time of 3:16.73.
Peters, Jadwin, Lehman and Bratsos won the 200 free relay in 1:29.30.
Peters finished first in the 200 freestyle in 1:47.21.
"I kind of died in the second hundred," Peters said. "I won, but not in the time I would have wanted."
"Kevin and Hans are two freestylers who can do it all," Allen said. "Hans will be good. While he's got a way to go to be on the level of Kevin and Brian Alden, he'll be able to step up next year when he's in a position of leadership the way Kevin did this year."
Will Heidler of Naperville North also had an outstanding day, winning both the 200 IM in 1:56.88 and the 100 backstroke in 54.37.
"Will is really progressing all the time," said Naperville North coach Kurt Johns. "I'm amazed each year at how he challanges himself in practice."
Heidler's freshman teammate Kevin Butz won Saturday's 500 freestyle, while Waubonsie Valley's Jack Poletto and Jim Zuponeck, each earned a first-place medal, Poletto in the 100 butterfly.
Zuponeck, who touched first in the 100 breaststroke in 59.25, was the only swimmer to break the one-minute mark in that event.
Mike Greco of Naperville Central won the diving.