Boys swimming and diving: Scouting sectionals, Northwest

Scouting boys swimming and diving sectionals

When: Saturday, diving at 9 a.m. and swimming at 1 p.m. at all sites

At stake: Advancement to the state meet, to be held the following weekend at Evanston Township High School.

Qualification protocol: In swimming, sectional event winners advance to state along with any other competitors who equal the qualifying time. In diving, the champions from the 16 sectionals advance, and the next-best 32 scorers from throughout the state will join the field.

Think fast: This year's set of state-qualifying times is the fastest ever. Here are the times everyone will be trying to beat:

200 medley relay - 1:37.29

200 freestyle - 1:44.32

200 IM - 1:57.77

50 freestyle - 21.86

100 butterfly - 52.33

100 freestyle - 47.72

500 freestyle - 4:44.73

200 free relay - 1:27.71

100 backstroke - 53.32

100 breaststroke - 59.80

400 free relay - 3:12.86

at DeerfieldGlenbrook South looks like the strongest top-to-bottom team, with the top seed in all three relays and multiple individual state meet candidates. But Rolling Meadows, Hersey and St. Viator have plenty of those too, and Prospect, Wheeling and Elk Grove also have plenty of motivation to swim fast.

Individually, there's some extra intrigue here. St. Viator senior Michael Balcerak has opted not to defend his state title in the 100-yard freestyle, switching instead to the 100 butterfly this year. That matches him up with Hersey senior Michael Petro, a teammate of Balcerak's for many years outside of the high school scene. Petro was the runner-up at state last year in both the 100 fly and the 200 IM, and it seems likely their head-to-head matchup in the fly will bring out the best in both competitors at the state meet. Both have been comfortably under the state cutoff, so they'll both be focusing on peak performance next weekend.

Balcerak will again race in the 200 freestyle, and of course he's the key figure in a couple of strong Lions freestyle relays. Chasing a first individual state meet appearance for the Lions will be junior teammate Michael Ruben (200 IM, 500 free).

Petro, in addition to the 200 IM and fly, is the key cog on Hersey's 200 medley and 400 free relays. Also racing in the fastest heat will be Gavin Hill (50 free) and Josh Irvine (100 fly), and junior diver Nick Nocita figures to be among the top group in sectional which regularly produces many at-large qualifiers.

Rolling Meadows also has an elite swimmer in senior Josh Dellorto. After a breathtaking performance at the MSL meet which featured a conference record in the 100 free, he's the mainstay of 200 medley and 400 free relays with opportunities to make state. Dellorto, not yet a sectional champ, is top seed in both the 50 and 100 freestyles. Also qualifying top-six to the sectional were senior Jake Pors (50 free) and freshman Lukas Slifierz (100 back).

Prospect senior Jacob Kosinski is after a third straight state meet appearance in the 100 breaststroke, and the Knights' relays have been improving steadily over the latter part of the season.

Wheeling senior Nick Konstantos is out for an attempt at a repeat state meet appearance in the 100 breast. Elk Grove, featuring senior Mike Kulpa and junior Adrian Wlodarz, is taking aim at team records in the relays. And both will race in the 100 free individually, where Kulpa earned a spot in the fastest heat.

at StevensonThis meet brings together the best of the North Suburban Conference (Stevenson), the Mid-Suburban League (Fremd) and the Fox Valley (Dist. 300 co-op). All three of those squads won their conference meets and have many opportunities to earn state spots. With teams such as MSL runner-up Barrington and Fox Valley runner-up Cary-Grove in the mix as well, this shaping up as the kind of gathering which will include plenty of state qualifers, including some from the next-to-last heats.

Stevenson fields the top lineup, and it's led by the defending state champ in the 50 free, Topher Stensby. He will also race the 100 free and makes those Patriots free relays extra fierce. Other top Pats include Daniel Ng (100 free, 200 free), Joseph Song (200 IM, 100 breast), Jack Zhang (IM), Max Ryaguzov (fly), Nathan Gates (500 free), Ethan Ross (200 free) and A.J. Carollo (back, 500).

Fremd has chances to qualify all three relays but will need great performances to do so. And coach Kristen Newby has adjusted the lineup to allow for the best possibilities there. Individually, the Vikes feature senior Alex Schillinger, a state point-scorer in the 100 breaststroke last year. He's the second seed in that race and also has a chance to advance in the 200 IM. Other top competitors include Yoochan Lee (100 free), Danny Konishi (100 free) and Evan Stegall (100 back). Senior Zach Mega, the MSL's diving champ, is well positioned to earn another trip to state.

The Dist. 300 team has assembled a unique blend of experience and developing swimmers. Reid Coyle and Eric Boysen lead the way and make the free relays tough. Harold Ogaban is the top seed in the 100 back (where he'll be joined by teammate Alec Orndahl), and Ogaban also made the final heat of the 200 IM. Freshman Vince Chiappetta earned a spot in the fastest heat of the 500 free.

Barrington's got plenty of great racing to look forward to. The MSL runners-up have the top seed in the medley relay and several individual state possibilities. Jack Hoppe has great chances in the 100 breast and 200 free, Steven Fischer in the 50 free and 100 back. Count Sam Burrell (sprints), sophomore Dan Emary (back, 500) and freshman Daniel Langlois (IM, 500) as those capable of joining the state contingent.

Conant's top competitor is junior Justin Lim; he's the No. 2 seed in the 100 fly and a returning state qualifier. Dylan Pokorny (IM, breast) has also made big gains of late, and divers Caleb Savoy and Kyle Jones could make it in diving.

Palatine's best state possibility is senior Sean O'Brien, with chances in both the 100 back and 100 free, and senior diver Campbell Boston had a breakout performance at the MSL meet.

Schaumburg senior Matt Soltau is a threat in both the 50 and 100 freestyles, and senior teammate Tyler Reynolds, an MSL champ in the 500 last weekend, will again go in that race plus the 200 free.

Buffalo Grove junior Daniel Verdico had a solid MSL meet last week; he leads the Bison this time in the 200 and 500 freestyles.

Hoffman Estates senior Mark Heitkotter has opportunities to make state with great swims in the 50 and 100 freestyles.

Cary-Grove also brings a strong team. An excellent 400 free relay will be a highlight for the Trojans, and they have elite competitors such as Connor Dolezal (free), Hunter Jackson (breast) and Peyton Richardson (IM, and yes, he's the son of longtime Palatine girls coach Ed Richardson).

Rounding out the picture are a handful of terrific individuals. Woodstock's Quinton Cynor is the top seed in the 100 fly and 500 free, McHenry's Riley Hedberg is a top sprinter and Lake Zurich will have Andrew Jarcik (500), Travis Hull (breast) and Jonathan Wu (fly, breast) figuring in amongst the top competitors.

- Aaron Gabriel