INDIANAPOLIS — With a strong performance in Friday’s preliminaries, the Franklin girls swimming and diving team went into the second day of competition at the IHSAA state meet well positioned for a top-10 finish after placing 14th a year ago.
“Well positioned for” and “assured of” are two very different things, however.
The Grizzly Cubs still improved upon last season’s performance, finishing in 12th place with 83 points, but they couldn’t help but leave the IU Natatorium at IUPUI kicking themselves a little bit after leaving numerous additional points on the table.
“I think we’re going to be asking ourselves for a couple of weeks what might have been,” Franklin coach Zach DeWitt said.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryFranklin started the day strong, sitting third in the team standings after the first two events. The 200-yard medley relay team of Scarlet Friend, Ali Terrell, Anna McCahill and Ella Pheifer finished eighth, posting a time of 1 minute, 45.40 seconds. Sophomore Carla Gildersleeve, swimming in the first of her four event finals, then swam the 200 freestyle in 1:50.51 to take fifth.
When Gildersleeve turned in a third-place finish in the 100 butterfly (54.68 seconds), the Grizzly Cubs were in seventh place at the midway point — with swimmers in each of the remaining consolation finals and a spot in the championship race of both remaining relays. Even last-place finishes in those could have wrapped up a position in the top 10, but Franklin was disqualified in the 200 freestyle relay, wiping a minimum of 22 points off the board.
Those points would have been enough to lift the Grizzly Cubs up to eighth in the final standings.
Despite that setback, Franklin managed to continue pressing on, and an eighth-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay (3:31.22) lifted the team up a couple of spots in the final standings.
Still, it was tough for the girls to shrug off the missed opportunities.
“We’re definitely going to think about it,” Gildersleeve said. “We’re definitely going to remember it.”
Carmel rolled to its 31st consecutive state title, extending its national high school record. The Greyhounds had 386.5 points, enough to easily top the combined total of the next two teams in the standings (Chesterton and Fishers).
The good news for the Grizzly Cubs is that every swimmer who scored points on Saturday returns. Gildersleeve, who also led off the 400 free relay in addition to her two individual top-five efforts, anchors a talented sophomore class.
“I know that she obviously wants that elusive title like most people do,” DeWitt said, “and hopefully this inspires her to realize that she’s not that far away.”
That class also includes Terrell, who swam on the 200 medley relay team and picked up points in the 200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke; Jessie Fraley, who reached consolation finals in the 500 freestyle and 100 backstroke and also swam on the 400 free relay; and Friend, who swam a pair of relays and narrowly missed advancing to Saturday in the backstroke. Back for one more season are Pheifer and McCahill, who were both on Franklin’s two scoring relay teams. Pheifer also advanced to the consolation final in the 100 freestyle.
Among those who suited up this weekend, only relay swimmer Abi Gibson and diver Maddie Powell graduate — and DeWitt anticipates welcoming a group of freshmen that can come in and contribute immediately.
Expectations will be even higher a year from now — and those coming back will be bent on redemption.
“It definitely pushes us to want more,” Pheifer said.
In the morning, Center Grove’s Sarah Kempf was 20th after the preliminary round of the 1-meter diving, claiming the last semifinal berth. She was able to move up a couple of spots during the semis, finishing in 18th with a score of 283.75 but coming up two places shy of a spot in the final.
Franklin’s Powell and Maria Campbell of Whiteland were eliminated after the prelims, winding up in 23rd and 26th place, respectively.
