GSw STATE FINALS: #1 Carmel dominates for 27th straight state title

From ihsaa.org

Top-ranked Carmel’s girls swimming & diving team won four individual championships and all three relays, setting three state records in the process of capturing its 27th consecutive team title Feb. 9 at the 39th Annual IHSAA Girls Swimming & Diving State Finals hosted by the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis.

Already the longest streak of state championships in any girls sport in the nation, Carmel tied Pickford (MI) High School’s boys track & field team (1952-78) for the second-longest string in national high school history. (Punahou High School (Honolulu, HI) won 29 straight boys swimming championships from 1958-86 and tops the national high school charts.)

Carmel’s current mark continues to be the longest active streak in the country regardless of sport or gender.

The Greyhounds, who accumulated 397 points in crushing the field, were followed by second-ranked Penn (runner-up for the first time since 1980) with 189 points, No. 3 Zionsville (178), No. 5 Hamilton Southeastern (127) and fourth-ranked Chesterton (125).

The Greyhounds set the tone right out of the gate with a state-record 1:41.17 in the 200-yard medley relay, winning the event for a fifth straight year as senior Lacey Locke, sophomore Alex Clarke, senior Ariana Bullard, and Veronica Burchill teamed to set the new mark.

Locke and Bullard had been part of the Carmel foursome that set the previous state best of 1:41.42 two years ago. It was Locke’s fourth straight title in the event and Bullard’s third.

The Greyhounds’ 400 freestyle relay completed the day with another record swim as Burchill, junior Hanna House, Claire Adams, and Locke lowered the standard to 3:23.37.

With her two relay crowns, Locke capped a stellar prep career by finishing with 11 state championships overall, tied for second-most in state history with Lindsay Benko of Elkhart Central (1991-94). Carmel’s Emily Ayers holds the record with 14 from 1992-95.

Bullard won the 100 butterfly in :53.90 and was a link in the 200 medley relay and 200 free relay teams.

Adams and Burchill – both freshmen – offered a glimpse of the future by winning three individual titles between them and each grabbing the maximum four blue-ribbon medals.

Adams won the 100 backstroke in a state-record time of :53.40 and also edged Western junior Summer Brown at the wall by five-hundredths of a second to win the 200 freestyle (1:49.25). She also was part of the record-setting 400 freestyle relay as well as the 200 free relay.

Burchill won the 100 freestyle in :50.29 and was a member of all three winning relays.

Penn teammates Bethany Galat and Addisynn Bursch finished 1-2 in the 200 individual medley. It was the second consecutive state championship in the event for Galat, a junior who finished in 1:59.06 followed by Bursch, a senior, in 2:00.99. Galat also won the 100 breaststroke in 1:00.29 to help the Kingsmen equal their school’s best finish ever.

Northridge senior Brittney Walters became the first girls swimming state champion in her school’s history when she captured the 500 freestyle in 4:53.49 out of an unlikely Lane 8 starting position. She had set her own personal best during Friday’s prelims with a 4:59.53 and remarkably shaved more than six seconds off that time for the championship.

Zionsville junior Alex Cleveland took the top spot in the 50 freestyle in :22.99, while Indianapolis Ritter sophomore Sarah Bacon carried home honors in the 1-meter diving competition with 506.95 points.

Top 10 teams
1. #1 Carmel 397
2. #2 Penn 189
3. #3 Zionsville 178
4. #5 Hamilton Southeastern 127
5. #4 Chesterton 125
6. #8 Crown Point 120
7. #10 Homestead 106
8. #9 Munster 100.5
9. #6 Mount Vernon (Posey) 85
10. #11 Fishers 84

Individual state champions
200 Medley Relay – Carmel (Lacey Locke 12, Alex Clarke 10, Ariana Bullard 12, Veronica Burchill 9) 1:41.17 (state meet record)
200 Freestyle – Claire Adams, 9, Carmel, 1:49.25
200 Individual Medley – Bethany Galat, 11, Penn, 1:59.06
50 Freestyle – Alex Cleveland, 11, Zionsville, :22.99
One Meter Diving – Sarah Bacon, 10, Indianapolis Ritter, 506.95 points
100 Butterfly – Ariana Bullard, 12, Carmel, :53.90
100 Freestyle – Veronica Burchill, 9, Carmel, :50.29
500 Freestyle – Brittney Walters, 12, Northridge, 4:53.49
200 Freestyle Relay – Carmel (Veronica Burchill 9, Claire Adams 9, Hanna House 11, Ariana Bullard 12) 1:32.97
100 Backstroke – Claire Adams, 9, Carmel, :53.40 (state meet record)
100 Breaststroke – Bethany Galat, 11, Penn, 1:00.29
400 Freestyle Relay – Carmel (Veronica Burchill 9, Hanna House 11, Claire Adams 9, Lacey Locke 12) 3:23.37 (state meet record)

State championship record streaks
Longest streaks of consecutive state championships, all sports, all states (courtesy of National Federation of State High School Associations)
29: Honolulu Punahou, Hawaii, boys swimming, 1958-86
27: Carmel, Ind., girls swimming, 1986-2013*
27: Pickford, Mich., boys track & field, 1952-78
26: Woonsocket Mt. St. Charles Academy, R.I., boys hockey, 1978-2003
25: Bolles, Jacksonville, Fla. boys swimming, 1988-2012*
25: Paulsboro, NJ, wrestling, 1983-2007
24: St. Xavier, Louisville, Ky., boys swimming, 1989-2012*
24: Tacoma Wilson, Wash., boys swimming, 1960-83
 (*Active streak; courtesy National Federation of State High School Associations)

Carmel’s Locke wins Mental Attitude Award
Carmel High School’s Lacey Locke was recognized following the state championship meet by the IHSAA Executive Committee as this year’s winner of the Mental Attitude Award. Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, IHSAA’s corporate partner, presented the school with a $1,000 scholarship in her name.

The award is presented annually to a senior nominated by her principal and coach who demonstrates excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership, and athletic ability.

Locke holds a 3.55 GPA, participated in the American Cancer Society Relay for Life, and has been a board member for the CHS Key Club assisting with volunteer efforts both inside and outside of school. Additionally, the daughter of Twig & Nancy Locke of Carmel has participated as a member of the Executive Board with the CHS Dance Marathon for the children at Riley Hospital in Indianapolis, resulting in a donation of more than $250,000 to the cause in 2011.

She will attend Northwestern University in the fall and swim for the Wildcats.