Boys swimming: Barrington hits their goal, wins sectional in home pool
Twelve schools brought their teams to the Bronco Natatorium Saturday for Barrington’s boys swimming sectional seeking to claim a berth to next weekend's state finals at FMC Natatorium in Westmont.
The host Broncos set the pace in earning their first team sectional crown since 2017 as they bested the competition with 349.5 points to earn their 18th IHSA rectangular-sized plaque.
"It was cold and it was good," Barrington coach Alex Mikolajewski said after taking a victory plunge into the pool after receiving the team title plaque.
"It was rewarding for our team. I was kind of (trying) to get them in the mindset for intense swimming competition. We talked about all week the desire for something. You know what your goal is. It's how bad do you want your goal and they showed that they really wanted to do something today."
Fellow Mid-Suburban League members Fremd (315 points) and Prospect (306.5) engaged in a battle for second throughout the meet before the Vikings prevailed thanks to wins by seniors William Plizga in the 50 freestyle (21.36) and Tyler Franke in the 100 freestyle (46.95), and junior Marcus Witkowski (50.27) in the 100 backstroke.
Fox Valley Conference members Cary-Grove (276) and Jacobs (224) rounded out the top five.
In earning those top team honors the Broncos won the most individual events with four. In addition to the win in the final event of the day in the 400 freestyle relay (3:10.45), sophomore Quinn Bennet (1:44.00) edged junior Payton Cotner (1:44.01) in a memorable 200 freestyle race.
"We practiced a lot of fast 50 (yard) starts this week," Bennet said. "I think that really helps us a lot. We executed perfectly on that race."
Cotner echoed that sentiment as he relished qualifying for state for the first time.
"We were talking about finishing 1-2 all season,“ Cotner said. ”It's definitely a great milestone that I've looked forward to since my freshman year and I finally got it."
Their senior teammate Lucas Bucaro got individual titles in the 500 freestyle (4:34.50) and a new pool record of 1:50.53 in the 200 individual medley.
"I just knew that I had to get out quick because my breaststroke isn't the best and I brought it home on the freestyle. (It was) all positive energy. Everyone was hyped, amped, ready to go," said Bucaro, a Notre Dame recruit.
The Knights received their trio of individual triumphs starting with freshman Adam Banas in the diving competition as his score of 515.40 to beat out Mabry (500.45) for top honors.
Banas talked of how critical his pre-meet preparation was to his success.
"Just lots of ways that I have to think about my dives. Eat right because It's hard to dive on a full stomach," Banas said.
"I just focus on my discipline (and) the way I visualize everything. Go to sleep early the night before. It's a lot of positivity you need going into the dives."
In addition to their win in the 200 medley relay (1:35.46), a member of that unit, senior Auggie Lapys, turned in a pool record performance in the 100 butterfly (49.57). Lapys dedicated his victory to his swimming coach Peter Juris who passed away recently.
"My race was amazing,“ Lapys said. ”I felt good throughout the entire thing. The whole race I was thinking about him. I did it for him. I wouldn't have gotten this far without him."