By Dave Hill
North Tonawanda and Kenmore West both have high hopes going into the Section VI Swimming & Diving Championships at Erie Community College’s Flickinger Center in Buffalo.
The diving finals are today at 11 a.m., with swimming preliminaries scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. Swimming finals are set for 11 a.m. Saturday.
Led by Marissa Dressel’s two individual and two relay wins, Kenmore West won last year’s team title at the meet. The Blue Devils captured the Niagara Frontier League championship two weeks ago. They’ll face a challenge from Niagara Falls in Saturday’s finals.
Ken West has some of the top relay times in the section this fall, including its 200-yard freestyle relay quartet of Haley Rice, Leah Villari, Dressel and Lindsey Sagasta, which has a Section VI leading time of 1:40.22, a full second faster than Clarence. That same lineup for Ken West has the second-best time in the 400 free relay (3:41.98).
The top swimmer for North Tonawanda is junior Andrea Parish, who has the second-fastest time this season in the 100 breaststroke (1:08.85). She’ll be chasing Clarence sophomore Victoria Jacumski (1:06.46). Ken West has three swimmers — Jacquie Sagasta, Alanna Blasting and Megan Sullivan — in the top 10 in breaststroke.
Going into this year’s sectionals, Dressel owns the fastest time in two individual events, the 200 free (1:54.54) and 100 free (53.41). Teammate Lindsey Sagasta has the third-best time in the 200 free (1:56.43).
Ken West has a trio of swimmers — Haley Rice, Blasting and Jacquie Sagasta — ranked in the top seven in the 200 individual medley.
In the 100 butterfly, Haley Rice is seeded second with her time of 58.76. Jamestown’s Lauren Caldwell has the top time of 57.74.
Ken West sophomore Lindsey Sagasta’s time of 5:12.62 in the 500 freestyle ranks her second, behind Jamestown’s Jennifer Bentley and ahead of Niagara-Wheatfield’s Marissa Oakey.
Villari ranks fifth in the 100 back with a time of 1:01.99.
For NT, diver Samantha Johnson is seeded third with a score of 367.30. Springville’s Audrey Mulhisen has the highest score, followed by Grand Island’s Megan McInerney. Also for the Lady Jacks, Brittany Whurl is seeded sixth (322.85).
Parish also is seeded sixth in the 100 free (55.19).
The state meet is scheduled for Nov. 20-21 at V-Webster-Schroeder High School in suburban Rochester.
