3 Local Athletes Crowned State Swimming & Diving Champions; New National Record Set
Volume 2 Issue 9
Three local athletes wrote their names in the history books this week after they were crowned state champions at the C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton. It was a tremendous showing and a great start to the winter championship season.
Max Wasiniak of Huron got things started by repeating as the division two champion in the diving competition. He had the best mark of his life with a score of 485.90. That mark put him more than thirty points ahead of second place. Wasiniak is the only boy in Sandusky Bay Conference history to win a state diving title and the first to repeat as champion in Northwest Ohio since Jim Martin of Fremont Ross (1941, 42, 43).
Kami Periat of Port Clinton had her own historic performance. The junior won the 100yd backstroke in division two with a time of 54.32 seconds. Periat became the first girl in Northwest Ohio history to win a state title in the backstroke. She became the first individual girl to win a state title from Northwest Ohio in 13 years.
Scotty Buff saved his best performance for last. The Toledo St. Francis senior and defending state champion went out with a bang in the 100yd butterfly by setting a new national record of 44.97 seconds. He obliterated the previous national record set by Aiden Hayes of Norman North, Oklahoma who had a time of 45.47 seconds. Buff is one of the top recruits in the country and will compete collegiately at Florida. He is the first Northwest Ohio boy to win back-to-back titles in the butterfly.
Charlie Clark Wins Big Ten Title in 1650yd Freestyle
The swimming sensation Charlie Clark struck gold again with his victory in the 1650yd freestyle at the Big Ten Championships in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Clark repeated as conference champion for the second year in a row by finishing more than nine seconds ahead of second place. His time of 14:41.75 places him 7th in the NCAA in that event. Clark, a Perkins graduate, also ranks 3rd in the country in the 1000yd freestyle.
3 SBC Athletes Win College Conference Titles
Three Sandusky Bay Conference Athletes won collegiate conference titles this past week. Jimmy Harkelroad (Huron) won the 400m at the Mid-American Conference Indoor Championships for the University of Akron. His time of 48.77 came in a heat of just one other competitor. Harkelroad has now won back to back indoor 400m MAC titles. Kenna Stimmel (Margaretta) won the Atlantic Coast Conference pole vault competition as just a freshman by defeating junior temmate Julia Fixsen on misses. Her winning vault was 14 feet 5.25 inches. She is currently tied for 6th in the country. Macie Majoy (Huron) won the Sun Belt Conference pole vault title in Marshall’s first year in the league. Majoy had previously had multiple podium finishes when Marshall was in Conference-USA but finally got the gold this year in the new league. Majoy went 13 feet 1 inch, about half a foot off her personal best but still two inches higher than second place.
Leading Updates
Gunnar Oakes (Swanton) was drafted by the Michigan Panthers in the USFL Draft.
Notable Game Updates
On February 19th Marc Loving (Toledo/St. John’s) had 22 points for the Leicester Riders in a win over the Chesire Pheonix.
On February 19th Zia Cooke (Toledo/Rogers) had 24 points in a South Carolina overtime win over Ole Miss.
On February 19th Tahj Staveskie (Sandusky) had 17 points in a Canisius loss to Mount St. Mary’s.
On February 22nd Casey Santoro (Bellevue) had 14 points in a Kent State win over Ohio.
On February 22nd Ivy Wolf (Minster) had 22 points in a Miami OH loss to Northern Illinois.
On February 23rd Zia Cooke (Toledo/Rogers) had 19 points in a South Carolina win over Tennessee.
On February 24th Zavier Simpson (Lima/Lima Senior) had 21 points in a Lakeland Magic loss to the Cleveland Charge.
On February 24th Vince Williams Jr. (Toledo/St. John’s) had 20 points in a Memphis Hustle win over the G-League Ignite.
On February 25th Jamiya Neal (Toledo/Rogers) had 12 points in an Arizona State win over Arizona.
On February 25th Sammi Mikonowicz (Rossford) had 10 points and 10 rebounds in a Toledo win over Ball State.
On February 25th Ethan Wolf (Minster) had 3 catches for 19 yards in a DC Defenders win over the Vegas Vipers.
Interesting Reads
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4 things to watch during 2023 Ohio high school wrestling postseason
Sunday Chat with former Central Catholic hoops star Courtney Mix Davis
High Score Series: Quinn's 60 points in 1992 was a basketball awakening
Just For Fun
Local 3x and 4x State Championship Wrestlers
4x
Jared Opfer - Sandusky St. Mary’s - 1996, 97, 98, 99
Logan Steiber - Monroeville - 2007, 08, 09, 10
Hunter Steiber - Monroeville - 2008, 09, 10, 11
Chris Phillips - Monroeville - 2008, 09, 10, 11
Cam Tessari - Monroeville - 2008, 09, 10, 11
Dylan D’Emilio - Genoa - 2016, 17, 18, 19
3x
Mark Falk - Bluffton - 1980, 81, 82
Greg Goad - Swanton/Oak Harbor - 1983, 84, 85
Clark Forward - Archbold - 1997, 98, 99
Jeff Ratliff - Marion Harding - 1997, 98, 99
Drew Opfer - Sandusky St. Mary’s - 1999, 00 ,01
Tanner Shearer - Sandusky St. Mary’s - 2002, 03, 04
Cody Magrum - Oak Harbor - 2006, 07, 08
Felipe Martinez - St. Paris/Genoa - 2009, 10, 11
Jake Spiess - Delta - 2013, 14, 15
Drew Mattin - Delta - 2015, 16, 17