Linn-Mar Girls Swimming

Hughes, Berg, Lions capture MVC swim titles

Jackie Hughes dominated her junior varsity races for the Cedar Rapids Washington swim team last year as a freshman, but it's not what she really wanted to do.

Hughes wanted to swim for the varsity last year, but couldn't due to Cedar Rapids Community School rules. She lives in the Kennedy school district and open-enrolled at Washington, so she had to compete at the sub-varsity level for a year.

Now she's making up for lost time.

Hughes captured the 500-yard freestyle in 5:18.70 at the Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet at the Jefferson High School pool Saturday afternoon.

That was the varsity title, not the JV title.

"It was fun, especially after not being able to swim it last year because I open-enrolled," she said. "It was fun to be able to race some girls who I know from club swimming. It was just a fun feeling."

Hughes and other top swimmers from the Metro area made their mark in the conference meet this year, winning four out of 12 events.

Linn-Mar won three events in the Super Meet. Emilie Berg captured the 100 breakstroke, Sam Wagner took the diving crown and the Lions prevailed in the 200 freestyle relay.

Cedar Falls won the team championship with 432.5 points. Iowa City West finished second with 371.5 markers.

Kennedy finished third in the standings with 290.5 points, collecting points in a variety of events. Linn-Mar was fourth (258), Washington eighth (143.5) and Jefferson 10th (87).

Hughes was a terror in junior varsity races a year ago. Her winning times in JV events were often better than the winning times in the same varsity races, but there's nothing she could do about that.

Hughes went to Franklin Middle School, which sends most of its students to Washington High School and some of its students to Kennedy. Her brother attends Washington and she wanted to become a Warrior as well.

Hughes had a price to pay, due to the rules, but now she's proven she's the top distance swimmer in the MVC and one of the top in Iowa, ranking fifth in the state in the 500.

Hughes likes competing in the 500-yard freestyle, which requires strength and endurance. "I feel like the 500 is an event that's for people who are tougher," she said.

Hughes also enjoys the 100 breaststroke and finished third in the event Saturday.

Berg swam the opening leg on the championship 200 freestyle relay for Linn-Mar and won the 100 breaststroke in 1:08.18. Lizzie Adams, Lauren Dalecky and Alex Dunn joined Berg on the triumphant relay that finished in 1:41.98.

Berg ranks third in the state in the 100 breaststroke and Linn-Mar's 200 freestyle relay ranks fifth. She's hoping to compete for high finishes at the state meet in Marshalltown Nov. 4-5.

"It's my senior year," she said. "I really want to go out with a bang."

Berg plans to swim in college and hopes to make a decision by January. "I love swimming," she said. "I can't get enough."

Kennedy did not have any champions or runners-up Saturday, but the Cougars piled up points in eight events. Lexi Scharmer finished third in the 100 butterfly, third in the 100 backstroke, third in the 200 medley relay and fourth in the 400 freestyle relay to help spark the Cougars.

Jessica Schmeiser piled up points for Kennedy by placing third in the 200 freestyle, third in the 200 freestyle relay, fourth in the 400 freestyle relay and fifth in the 100 freestyle.

Sam Jacobsen and Jordan Muir also placed in four events for the Cougars.

Wagner won the diving title for Linn-Mar Thursday night at Jefferson. Dunn finished third in the 50 freestyle for the Lions.

MVC SUPER MEET
At Jefferson

Team Standings
1. Cedar Falls 432.5; 2. Iowa City West 371.5; 3. Kennedy 290.5; 4. Linn-Mar 258; 5. Dubuque Senior 172; 6. Waterloo West 157; 7. Hempstead 150, 8. Washington 143.5, 9. Wahlert 89; 10. Jefferson 87; 11. Iowa City High 72; 12. Waterloo East 22.

200 Medley Relay
1. Cedar Falls 1:51.46 (MVC record); 2. Iowa City West 1:54.29; 3. Kennedy 1:55.72 (Sam Jacobsen, Amanda Jacobsen, Lexi Scharmer, Hannah Botkin); 4. Linn-Mar 1:56.10 (Nicole Larsen, Lauren Dalecky, Emilie Berg, Lizzie Adams); 5. Waterloo West 1:57.75; 6. Hempstead 1:57.87.

200 Freestyle
1. Kathleen Bowman, Iowa City West, 2:00.83; 2. Brittany Moffatt, Cedar Falls, 2:01.03; 3. Jessica Schmeiser, Kennedy, 2:02.76; 4. Maria Gannon, Iowa City West, 2:03.23; 5. Jordan Muir, Kennedy, 2:04.70; 6. Taylor Pherigo, Waterloo West, 2:06.52.

200 IM
1. Lilian Zhu, Iowa City West, 2:11.61; 2. Aftin Phyfe, Cedar Falls, 2:13.79; 3. Autumn Roepsch, Dub Senior, 2:16.59; 4. Catherine Sell, Cedar Falls, 2:19.35; 5. Sophie Shoultz, Iowa City West, 2:21.23; 6. Savannah Butler, Iowa City West, 2:21.54.

50 Freestyle
1. Molly Lembezeder, Dub Senior, 24.43 (MVC record); Tereysa Lehnertz, Iowa City West, 24.84; Alex Dunn, Linn-Mar, 25.59; 4. Shelby Cline, Waterloo West, 25.74; 5. Emilie Berg, Linn-Mar, 25.85; 6. Lizzie Adams, Linn-Mar, 26.03.

100 Butterfly
1. Tereysa Lehnertz, Iowa City West, 1:00.09; 2. Aftin Phyfe, Cedar Falls, 1:00.28; 3. Lexi Scharmer, Kennedy, 1:00.87; 4. Jordan Muir, Kennedy, 1:02.01; 5. Taylor Pherigo, Waterloo West, 1:02.84; 6. Kathleen Bowman, Iowa City West, 1:02.93.

100 Freestyle
1. Kelsey Abbas, Cedar Falls, 54.01; 2. Molly Lembezeder, Dub Senior, 54.16; 3. Lilian Zhu, Iowa City West, 54.21; 4. Autumn Roepsch, Dub Senior, 55.91; 5. Jessica Schmeiser, CR Kennedy, 56.51; 6. Alex Dunn, Linn-Mar, 56.92.

500 Freestyle
1. Jackie Hughes, Washington, 5:18.70; 2. Clare Slagel, Hempstead, 5:20.08; 3. Brittany Moffatt, Cedar Falls, 5:24.54; 4. Maria Gannon, Iowa City West, 5:24.59; 5. Jasmine Roghair, Iowa City West, 5:33.83; 6. Sam Jacobsen, Kennedy, 5:34.42.

200 Freestyle Relay
1. Linn-Mar 1:41.98 (Emilie Berg, Lizzie Adams, Lauren Dalecky, Alex Dunn); 2. Cedar Falls 1:42.64; 3. Kennedy (Hannah Botkin, Jordan Muir, Amanda Jacobsen, Jessica Schmeiser); 4. Dubuque Senior 1:44.99; 5. Iowa City West 1:47.18; 6. Jefferson 1:48.25 (Erin Kibby, Emily Ritchie, Kylie Steimer, Kailey Drake).

100 Backstroke
1. Kelsey Abbas, Cedar Falls, 58.65 (MVC record); 2. Clare Slagel, Hempstead, 59.31; 3. Lexi Scharmer, Kennedy, 1:04.08; Sam Jacobsen, Kennedy, 1:04.37; 5. Nicole Larsen, Linn-Mar, 1:04.99; 6. Sophie Shoultz, Iowa City West, 1:05.01.

100 Breaststroke
1. Emilie Berg, Linn-Mar, 1:08.18; 2. Savannah Butler, Iowa City West, 1:10.02; 3. (tie) Jackie Hughes, Washington, 1:10.84; Montana Clasby, Cedar Falls, 1:10.84; 5. Natalie Shimp, Cedar Falls, 1:12.54; 6. Payton Augustine, Waterloo West, 1:13.11.

400 Freestyle Relay
1. Iowa City West 3:43.00; 2. Cedar Falls 3:45.27; 3. Dubuque Senior 3:48.70; 4. Kennedy 3:48.96 (Jordan Muir, Sam Jacobsen, Lexi Scharmer, Jessica Schmeiser); 5. Hempstead
3:53.58; 6. Linn-Mar 3:54.86 (Nicole Larsen, Alexa Klimes, Jessica Arebaugh, Alex Dunn).

Wagner ignores pain, wins MVC diving title

Linn-Mar senior Sam Wagner settled into a routine Thursday night at the Mississippi Valley Conference diving meet.

She'd stretch, perform her dive, cover herself with towels, slip into her ankle-length Linn-Mar cape and apply a heating pad to the lower part of her back.

Stretch, dive, bundle up, heating pad. Stretch, dive, bundle up, heating pad.

It worked.

Wagner won the MVC title with a season-high score of 388.35 points for 11 dives, nudging Betsy Osterberger of Dubuque Wahlert by 11.15 points in a slight upset at the Jefferson pool.

Osterberger was ranked second in the state in 11-dive competition when the night began and Wagner was ranked fifth. Both girls showed why they are considered two of the premier divers in Iowa.

Wagner had two opponents Thursday: Her sore back and Osterberger. She defeated both.

"My back flares up every once in awhile, but it's nothing I can't handle," she said.

The back injury is a remnant of her years in gymnastics. She doesn't know the exact nature of the injury, but thinks it's a strain from over-use. She quit gymnastics about a year ago, but has the back ailment as a painful reminder.

Diving puts pressure on her back, but somehow Wagner is able to ignore the discomfort when she's performing. "All those years of gymnastics taught me to block out the pain pretty well," she said.

"It's not that bad," she insisted.

Wagner scored 384.30 points in a major meet at Kennedy High School Sept. 24, so her 388.35 Thursday night was a move in the right direction and helped her climb from No. 5 to No. 4 in the state rankings.

"It was a decent meet," she said. "It was my highest score this season, so it was good. But I hope I can keep improving and getting higher."

Wagner got good elevation off the diving board and made clean entries into the water, for the most part. "My back one-and-a-half pike was probably my best dive tonight," she said.

Any bad dives? "Yeah, there were a couple," she said.

The swimming portion of the Mississippi Valley Conference meet will be held at Jefferson this Saturday at noon.

MVC DIVING RESULTS

1. Sam Wagner, Linn-Mar              388.35
2. Betsy Osterberger, Wahlert       377.20
3. Hannah Brummel, Cedar Falls      364.55
4. Katie Mason, Cedar Falls             327.45
5. Clarie Baumgartner, Cedar Falls   316.35
6. Jindalae Suh, IC High                311.35
7. Adelia Clark, Linn-Mar                294.65
8. Rachael Schafer, Wahlert         291.30
9. Alex Aaberg, IC West              287.60
10. Amy Parker, Washington        283.45
11. Alyssa Deuso, Linn-Mar           278.90
12. Megan Broadbent, Hempstead  274.90
13. Tori Spaulding, Kennedy         270.70
14. Mo Groe, Jefferson                253.50
15. Jacintha Thomas, IC West      250.20
16. Jocelyn Nelson, Kennedy        242.35
17. Justine Wieser, Jefferson        181.80
18. Riley Finer, IC West               181.30
19. Caroline Ott, Wahlert             165.10
20. Carolyn Simon, Kennedy         158.30

Alex Dunn wins 4 events for Linn-Mar swimmers

IOWA CITY - Alex Dunn won two individual events and swam on two triumphant relays Tuesday night as Linn-Mar dunked Iowa City High, 124-61, in a Mississippi Valley Conference meet in Iowa City.

Dunn won the 50 freestyle and 500 freestyle, showing her versatility in the shortest race and the longest race. She also swam on the 400 freestyle relay and 200 medley relay that finished first.

Samantha Fitzgerald won the 100 butterfly and swam on two winning relay races. Nicole Larsen took the 200 individual medley and swam on two winning relays.

Lauren Reynolds captured the 200 freestyle and 100 backstroke. Emilie Berg swam on two victorious relays. Sam Wagner won the diving with 243.30 points and Alexa Klimes took the 100 freestyle.

LINN-MAR 124, IOWA CITY HIGH 61

200 medley relay - 1. Linn-Mar (Nicole Larsen, Lauren Dalecky, Emilie Berg, Alex Dunn) 1:56.96; 2. Linn-Mar (Lizzie Adams, Lauren Reynolds, Jessica Arebaugh, Alexa Klimes) 2:04.39; 3. Iowa City High 2:06.53.

200 freestyle - 1. Lauren Reynolds (LM) 2:10.30; 2. Samantha Fitzgerald (LM) 2:12.26; 3. Claire Rowden (ICH) 2:12.53.

200 IM - 1. Nicole Larsen (LM) 2:32.13; 2. Jessica Arebaugh (LM) 2:32.58; 3. Nicole Ehlers (ICH) 2:36.91.

50 freestyle - 1. Alex Dunn (LM) 25.28; 2. Emilie Berg (LM) 25.78; 3. Kortlan Ollinger (LM) 27.52.

Diving - 1. Sam Wagner (LM) 243.30; 2. Adelia Clark (LM) 214.70; 3. Jindalae Suh (ICH) 195.50.

100 butterfly - 1. Samantha Fitzgerald (LM) 1:07.06; 2. Emma Baxter (ICH) 1:09.06; 3. Lauren Dalecky (LM) 1:11.92.

100 freestyle - 1. Alexa Klimes (LM) 58.75; 2. Claire Rowden (ICH) 1:01.14; 3. Kelly Wingerson (LM) 1:01.23.

500 freestyle - 1. Alex Dunn (LM) 5:55.80; 2. Emilie Berg (LM) 5:56.70; 3. Ava Vargason (ICH) 6:08.60.

200 freestyle relay - 1. Linn-Mar (Nicole Larsen, Samantha Fitzgerald, Jessica Arebaugh, Kelly Wingerson) 1:50.36; 2. Iowa City High 1:52.17; 3. Linn-Mar (Alexa Klimes, Kortlan Ollinger, Caitlin Gearhart, Sam Carpenter) 1:52.53.

100 backstroke - 1. Lauren Reynolds (LM) 1:11.05; 2. Jindalae Suh (ICH) 1:12.70; 3. Kelly Wingerson (LM) 1:14.58.

100 breaststroke - 1. Elizabeth Brown (ICH) 1:15.28; 2. Annie Hartley (ICH) 1:20.53; 3. Maggie Morony (ICH) 1:21.47.

400 freestyle relay - 1. Linn-Mar (Alex Dunn, Emilie Berg, Lizzie Adams, Samantha Fitzgerald) 4:01.55; 2. Iowa City High 4:05.27; 3. Linn-Mar (Kelly Wingerson, Caitlin Gearhart, Lauren Dalecky, Lauren Reynolds) 4:20.82.

Metro’s top diver is about more than scoring wins

In her own words, she is “a really, really, really competitive person.”

During her high school career, Linn-Mar diver Samantha “Sam” Wagner has twice rewritten the school record book for six-dive (dual meet) and 11-dive (multi-school invitational) scoring. This season, she has vanquished every diver she has faced.

Currently ranked second in the state in six-dive and fifth in 11-dive scoring, Wagner is a virtual lock to mount the diving board at state for the fourth consecutive year.

But a focus on her balletic prowess on the one-meter board misses Wagner’s larger role as the senior leader on a Linn-Mar diving squad that possesses a bounty of young talent, points out diving coach Meghan Sievertsen.

“She has been a dream,” says Sievertsen, a 2005 Kennedy grad who earned three state diving titles for the Cougars and went on to dive at the University of Iowa.

“We have a huge freshman class this year, and she is so supportive of them. She sends them messages before meets, reminds them of things, and tells them to go out and have fun. Nobody asked her to do it, and it’s been absolutely amazing.”

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