Tigers win five medals at state finals
Marshall wins medals in 3 individual events and two relays in final day of state competitionMatt Dahlseid mdahlseid@marshallindependent.com
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MINNEAPOLIS - Among some of the fastest swimmers to have ever competed at the Minnesota Class A State Swimming and Diving Meet, the Marshall swim team had its best finish in school history and took home five medals in Saturday's state finals at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.
The Tigers tied for a seventh-place finish with 109 points, claiming medals in three individual events and two relays. Sartell-Saint Stephen took the top spot with 236 points and had a part in three of the six Class A records that fell over the weekend.
Marshall freshman Marcela Sanchez-Aizcorbe took fifth place in the 100-Yard Butterfly with a time of 59.42 and she also swam for the Tigers' 200 and 400-Yard Freestyle Relay teams that placed fifth and sixth, respectively.
"We all went our best times and the times in Minnesota have gotten so much faster this year," said Sanchez-Aizcorbe, who also finished 10th in the 200-Yard Freestyle. "I think we were really happy overall with what we did."
Sophomore McKenzie Vermeire won individual medals in two events, placing sixth in the 200-Yard Individual Medley (2:13.77) and the 500-Yard Freestyle (5:20.10). She also swam the second leg of the 400-Yard Freestyle Relay.
Vermeire said she would have liked her times to be a little better in her individual events, but she was pleased with her performance in the finals.
"They weren't quite where I wanted them to be, but they weren't bad," she said. "I added a little bit (from the prelims), but not much. It's nothing to be disappointed in."
Heading into the finals, the Tiger relay teams were looking to finish in the top three of their events. Although the Marshall teams didn't place as high as they had hoped, they both swam faster than they did in the preliminaries on Friday.
The 200-Yard Freestyle Relay team of Sanchez-Aizcorbe, Emily Jensen, Kalin Webskowski and Kaylin Caron didn't just swim faster than it had in the prelims, it also broke the school record with a time of 1:39.92.
"Going a 1:39 is awesome," Caron said. "That's fast. Every year is getting faster and I just think we performed very well."
The 400-Yard Freestyle Relay team of Sanchez-Aizcorbe, Vermeire, Webskowski and Caron also shaved time off of what it swam in the prelims and placed sixth with a time of 3:38.56. While the team would have liked to have finished higher, it was swimming against some blazing competition. The top two teams in the relay swam under the previous state record.
"I think we did really well," Webskowski said. "It's exciting that we got the times we wanted and I think overall, everyone had a good meet."
Along with the medals she helped earn in the relays, Caron placed 13th in both the 50-Yard Freestyle (25.18) and 100-Yard Freestyle (54.03).
The anchor leg in the 400-Yard Freestyle Relay was Caron's final time in the pool for the Tigers in the six times she has qualified for state. She said the seventh-place finish for Marshall is something her teammates should be proud of.
"We made our goal halfway through that we wanted to place top eight and we got seventh, so it's a big deal in swimming for us," Caron said. "Some people might not think that's very good, but for us it's huge."
The seventh-place finish at state capped off one of the best seasons the Marshall swimming and diving team has had and head coach Nicole Peterson said the girls' performances on the final day of competition was "icing on the cake."
"I'm very pleased with how they swam," Peterson said. "There was a lot of tough competition at state and I think the girls rose to the challenge and did a fantastic job. It's an honor just to make it to the state meet and to make it to the second day is a big deal. They did a really great job and I'm proud of the entire team for their performances."
Team Results: 1. Sartell-Saint Stephen 236, 2. Hutchinson 207, 3. Monticello 185, 4. Breck School 151, 5. Visitation 127, 6. Hill-Murray School 113, t7 Marshall 109, t7, Fergus Falls 109, 9. Northfield 89, 10. Orono 84.
MARSHALL INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
200 Freestyle: 10. Marcela Sanchez-Aizcorbe 1:58.83.
200 Individual Medley: 6. McKenzie Vermeire 2:13.77.
50 Freestyle: 13. Kaylin Caron 25.18.
100 Butterfly: 5. Sanchez-Aizcorbe 59.42.
100 Freestyle: 13. Caron 54.03.
500 Freestyle: 6. Vermeire 5:20.1.
200 Freestyle Relay: 5. Sanchez-Aizcorbe, Emily Jensen, Kalin Webskowski, Caron 1:39.92.
400 Freestyle Relay: 6. Sanchez-Aizcorbe, Vermeire, Webskowksi, Caron 3:38.56.



