State Swimming – 2018 Post-Meet Coverage

Ames claims closest State Swimming Championships since 1957

Little Cyclones hold on in final heat to edge Valley; Allmon, Frazier double up

IOWA CITY – The state championship came down to the final leg of the final heat of the final race.

And Ames head coach Dan Flannery was still dripping wet and smiling long after the clock stopped and the crowd cleared out of the University of Iowa’s Campus Recreation and Wellness Center.

The 2018 IHSAA State Swimming Championships in Iowa City concluded with the closest team race in more than 60 years, as Ames and Valley, West Des Moines finished the 400-yard freestyle relay separated by just one team point. Valley won the race, but the Little Cyclones held on to secure second place in the heat and first place on the scoreboard: 221 to 220.

“The good news is that we prepared them for this and we knew it could come down to the last race,” Flannery said after his team and coaching staff celebrated the win by jumping into CRWC pool after the meet.

“It can’t get any closer than that. Credit to Ankeny, Waukee, Bettendorf, Valley, and all the other schools that were here today on how well they swam, but this is a great way to win.”

Ames opened Saturday afternoon’s meet with a victory in the 200-yard medley relay and carried a seven-point lead over Valley into the 11 ^th and final event. The team scoring difference between first and second place in relay events is just six points, so Flannery told his squad to win or hang on. They would need every last stroke.

The Tigers were propelled to the 400-yard freestyle relay win by anchor Jacob Keller, who touched the south wall and ignited the crowd at 3:06.87. Ames held an early lead, then had to simply survive against surging Ankeny and Waukee squads. Dalton Lillibridge ultimately touched the wall in 3:10.96 – barely ahead of Ankeny’s relay team in 3:11.15 – and a championship celebration ensued.

“I just told the kids the truth,” Flannery said. “’If you get second to Valley, you’ll win by one point. If you win the relay, we’ll win by more. But you’ve got to be with Valley, because I knew they had a really good shot of winning that relay and had such a tremendous day.”

The team title is Ames’ first since 1982 and marked the first state meet decided by one point since 1957, when Clinton edged Des Moines, Roosevelt, 55-54. Those two schools were also responsible for the only title tie in state meet history in 1951. Ames is also the third school to win both girls’ and boys’ swimming championships in the same season.

Frazier shines in home pool

Iowa City, City High sophomore Forrest Frazier earned Outstanding Swimmer honors from the Iowa High School Swim Coaches Association after Saturday’s meet for an impressive performance that included two individual state championships. Frazier claimed the day’s fifth event by swimming 49.10 in the 100-yard butterfly, good for Consideration All-American marks as he led from start to finish. He bettered that in the 100-yard breaststroke where he set a state meet record in 54.16 and won by more than 1.5 seconds. The previous state record was set by Cedar Falls’ Sean Osborne and stood since 2003. Frazier crushed that 55.69 mark in his hometown and stood atop the podium.

Lewis Central’s Allmon takes two

Lewis Central senior Jackson Allmon topped the state’s leaderboards for much of the 2017-18 season and it paid off with two championships on Saturday. The St. Albert, Council Bluffs student who competes with the Titans in a co-operative agreement opened the meet’s individual races with a 1:39.11 in the 200-yard freestyle, earning him Automatic All-American honors. He followed that with a 100-yard freestyle title, going 45.61 after intermission.

Moffatt endures for repeat

Cedar Falls’ Dylan Moffatt defended his 500-yard freestyle championship in impressive fashion. The sophomore set a state meet record in the longest individual race of the day, going the distance in 4:27.77. It bested the previous record of 4:29.96, set by Cedar Rapids, Washington’s Cameron Kelley in 2016.

“I visualize myself succeeding in this, and just like last year, I won it,” Moffatt said. “It feels great and shows how all that hard work has paid off. It feels like I’ll be back next year.”

Event Winners

200 freestyle relay: Ames (Johnson, Lillibridge, Mahrous, Matthews) 1:33.83; 200 freestyle: Jackson Allmon, Lewis Central, 1:39.11; 200 individual medley: Caleb Aman, Bettendorf, 1:50.49; 50 freestyle: Jacob Keller, Valley, W.D.M., 20.75; 100 butterfly: Forrest Frazier, Iowa City, City High, 49.10; 100 freestyle: Jackson Allmon, Lewis Central, 45.61; 500 freestyle: Dylan Moffatt, Cedar Falls, 4:27.77; 200 freestyle relay: Bettendorf (Bunn, Nickles, Ottavianelli, Aman) 1:24.82; 100 backstroke: Nick Chase, Dowling Catholic, W.D.M., 49.48; 100 breaststroke: Forrest Frazier, Iowa City, City High, 54.16; 400 freestyle relay: Valley, W.D.M. (Lichinsky, Porter, Bach, Keller) 3:06.87.

Top Team Scoring

1. Ames 221; 2. Valley, West Des Moines 220; 3. Tie, Ankeny 166.5, Bettendorf 166.5; 5. Waukee 153; 6. Dowling Catholic, W.D.M. 127.5; 7. Iowa City, City High 126; 8. Pleasant Valley 122; 9. Johnston 119; 10. Cedar Rapids, Washington 104.5.

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