Tue - 13 Sep
Written by Jim Ecker
McKenzie Asplund lives in the Linn-Mar district, attends school at Xavier and swims for Washington.
"It's different," she acknowledged Tuesday.
It makes sense, once you know the story.
Xavier High School does not have a swim team this year, so that was not an option, but Xavier has an agreement with Cedar Rapids Community Schools that allows its students to swim for Kennedy, Washington or Jefferson if they want.
Xavier does not have an agreement with Linn-Mar High School, so Asplund could not swim for the Lions. And since she lives closer to Washington than Kennedy or Jefferson, she swims for the Warriors instead of the Cougars or J-Hawks.
Asplund wasn't exactly sure of all the rules and regulations, but her mother figured it out. "My mom told me I was swimming for Wash," she said. "It's good. I love it."
Molly Snow also attends Xavier and swims for Washington. She lives in the Washington district, so that was easy to decipher.
Kennedy has three Xavier students on its team, so the Xavier swimmers competed against each other Tuesday night when Kennedy and Washington met in a dual meet at Kennedy.
The Cougars dunked the Warriors, 118-65, in a Mississippi Valley Conference event.
Asplund captured the 200-yard freestyle in a tight race with Jessica Schmeiser of Kennedy, winning by 29-hundredths of a second in the eight-lap race. Asplund was clocked in 2:03.20, compared to 2:03.49 for Schmeiser.
"She's fun to race with," said Asplund, who has traded victories with Schmeiser in the past.
Washington Coach Megan Lewis said she's delighted to have Asplund and Snow on the squad. "They're a good fit for our team," she said. "They've melded in really well."
Asplund has swum a variety of events for the Warriors, but considers the 200 free her strongest race.
"She's a very, very hard worker," Lewis said. "We're incredibly fortunate this year. It's probably the hardest-working team I've ever worked with and she fits perfectly right into that. She is a bundle of energy, and that works really well with our team."
Asplund swam for Xavier as a freshman and sophomore, but the Saints did not have enough girls for a team this year. She said her new teammates at Washington welcomed her right away.
"It was so inviting," she said. "It was like I was in school there. They didn't treat me any different, and they still don't."
Asplund enjoys the stiffer competition at Washington, compared to the past two years at Xavier.
"It's a lot different, because it was a really small team (at Xavier) and there was never a good competitive atmosphere," she said. "So this is a good thing. It's a case for the better."
Xavier practiced at the Kennedy High School pool in 2009 and 2010, so Asplund knew the waters Tuesday night. "This is what I thought of when I thought of our pool," she said.
Kennedy won eight of 12 events Tuesday with Sam Jacobsen, Lexi Scharmer, Hannah Botkin and Schmeiser all participating in three victories. Amanda Jacobsen was a double winner, while Katie Ferguson, Megan Berst and Myah McCoy also reached the victory circle.
Jackie Hughes was a double winner for Washington and Amy Parker captured the diving.
KENNEDY 118, WASHINGTON 65
200 medley relay - 1. Kennedy (Sam Jacobsen, Amanda Jacobsen, Lexi Scharmer, Hannah Botkin) 1:56.07; 2. Kennedy (Henna McCoy, Sydney Hofferber, Myah McCoy, Larkyn
Aldrich) 2:04.69; 3. Washington (Gloria Campbell, Olivia Altemeier, Alex McFarland, Jackie Allen) 2:09.43.
200 freestyle - 1. McKenzie Asplund (W) 2:03.20; 2. Jessica Schmeiser (K) 2:03.49; 3. Maddie Dietz (W) 2:11.37.
200 IM - 1. Jackie Hughes (W) 2:14.98; 2. Lexi Scharmer (K) 2:25.64; 3. Amanda Jacobsen (K) 2:29.02.
50 freestyle - 1. Hannah Botkin (K) 26.21; 2. Megan Berst (K) 26.86; 3. Sam Jacobsen (K) 26.92.
Diving - 1. Amy Parker (W) 178.95; 2. Tori Spaulding (K) 169.60; 3. Jocelyn Nelson (K) 156.10.
100 butterfly - 1. Lexi Scharmer (K) 1:03.23; 2. Kaitlin Ackerman (W) 1:12.56; 3. Sydney Hofferber (K) 1:12.89.
100 freestyle - 1. Jessica Schmeiser (K) 56.92; 2. Hannah Botkin (K) 58.05; 3. McKenzie Asplund (W) 58.59.
500 freestyle - 1. Katie Ferguson (K) 5:49.54; 2. Maddie Dietz (W) 5:50.09; 3. Rachel Brown (K) 5:56.07.
200 freestyle relay - 1. Kennedy (Jessica Schmeiser, Megan Berst, Myah McCoy, Amanda Jacobsen) 1:46.51; 2. Washington (McKenzie Asplund, Gloria Campbell, Maddie Dietz, Jackie Hughes) 1:47.87; 3. Kennedy (Larkyn Aldrich, Sydney Hofferber, Katie Ferguson, Kelsi Carney) 1:53.93.
100 backstroke - 1. Sam Jacobsen (K) 1:05.18; 2. Henna McCoy (K) 1:07.21; 3. Larkyn Aldrich (K) 1:10.50.
100 breaststroke - 1. Jackie Hughes (W) 1:10.67; 2. Amanda Jacobsen (K) 1:15.99; 3. Leah Beman (K) 1:18.63.
400 freestyle relay - 1. Kennedy (Jessica Schmeiser, Sam Jacobsen, Lexi Scharmer, Hannah Botkin) 3:49.01; 2. Washington (Jackie Allen, McKenzie Asplund, Maddie Dietz, Jackie Hughes) 4:00.64; 3. Kennedy (Larkyn Aldrich, Megan Berst, Kelsi Carney, Carly Kenney) 4:05.86.
