Boys Gold Star Awards

1990-1999

Ohio High School Swimming

"Keep in mind that the past is not history, but a much vaster region of the dead, gone, unknowable or forgotten. History is what we choose to remember."
Joseph J. Ellis

1990

  • Joe Hudepohl
    Sophomore
    Cincinnati St. Xavier
    • Cincinnati St. Xavier had been relatively absent from state contention for over 5 years, but all that changed this year as they came through with the most dominant victory the state has seen since their own national title team in 1973. Part of the reason for that was the drastic improvement of several key upperclassmen; the other part was Joe Hudepohl.

    The sophomore won all 3 of his events and blew away the state record in each. He won the 200 Freestyle on day 1 with a 1:37.38 that dropped a full 1.5 seconds off the state record, and his 44.66 in the 100 Freestyle on day 2 was nearly as impressive. Hudepohl also anchored St. Xavier’s 400 Freestyle Relay team to a 3:03.25 that knocked almost 2 full seconds off the prior state record in that event. But wait, there’s more! Hudepohl even had an in-season time in the 50 Freestyle of 20.96 giving him another top national swim. In fact, those times for the 100, 200, and 50 Freestyle were the 2nd, 4th, and 13th best times in the nation this season.

    Hudepohl’s dominance in the most competitive events still wasn’t enough to win the Gold Star award going-away. Matt Brunsman, senior from Yellow Springs, had just about as stellar a meet as Hudepohl. He won the 200 IM and 100 Breaststroke with the 2nd best times in Ohio history. In fact, his 1:49.47 time in the 200 IM was the number 1 time in the entire country this season, and his 56.29 100 Breaststroke with a national rank of 4th wasn’t far behind.

    Hudepohl gets the nod for the state records, and the fact that he was the leader on such a dominant team, but Brunsman’s national title performance shouldn’t go unnoticed.

    The only other swimmers who even had national ranks (Top-16) this year were Jake Harms and Jamie Farnham. Harms, a Toledo St. Francis sophomore, won the 500 Freestyle for the 2nd straight year with the nation’s 13th best time, while Farnham, a Hudson junior, was the 100 Backstroke Champion and 200 IM runner-up. That IM time from Farnham was ranked 6th nationally at 1:52.

1991

  • Joe Hudepohl
    Junior
    Cincinnati St. Xavier
    • In arguably the greatest prep season in national history, and certainly the greatest such season in Ohio swimming history, Cincinnati St. Xavier’s Joe Hudepohl broke 5 state records and 3 national records, all by significant margins in leading St. Xavier to their 2nd straight state title.

    Hudepohl’s talent was evident the entire year, but the true breakout occurred on night 1 of the state finals where he went a 1:34.96 in the 200 Freestyle. That won the state meet by almost 6 seconds and beat the old national mark from 1984 by almost 1.5 seconds! Hudepohl quickly resumed his tear on day 2, winning the 100 Freestyle with a 43.54 time that was almost a half-second better than Andy Coan’s infamous 43.99 from 1975. Hudepohl continued, beating Coan’s national record in the 50 Freestyle with his leadoff leg in the newly added 200 Freestyle Relay. His time of 20.01 knocked off Coan’s 20.19 time, also done during that 1975 season. To finish things up, Hudepohl anchored X’s 400 Freestyle Relay again and after touching first, it made him the first swimmer in OHSAA history to win 4 events at the state meet.

    If that wasn’t impressive enough, Hudepohl had an in-season 500 Freestyle time of 4:24.49 that not only was the 5th best in the country this year, but also gave him yet another state record, knocking off David Fairbanks’ 4:26 from 1985. In seasons past, 25 national level points almost guarantees the Gold Star award, and the record is 40 by Dave Wilson (twice) and Mark Rhodenbaugh when they were double-national champions. Hudepohl, with his 3 national records and the 5th ranked 500 Freestyle, scored a remarkable 74 national level points! After this season, Hudepohl’s name was on 6 of the 11 state record slots.

    While more could be said about Hudepohl’s record season, Ohio was loaded with talent this year and several other swimmers deserve mention, starting with number 2 in our Gold Star Ranks: Marty Hubbell. The Waynesville junior was state champion in both the 200 IM and 100 Breaststroke, and his 1:50 and 56-second times were the 5th and 6th best times in the country this year, respectively; a 27 national point performance that might’ve won the Gold Star any other year. Waynesville had their best ever team finish at the state meet this year because of Hubbell and his teammate, Jason Praeter. The senior joined Hubbell and Hudepohl as a double-event winner after Praeter took home gold in both he 50 Freestyle and 100 Butterfly.

    Also deserving mention is Jake Harms of Toledo St. Francis. He won the 500 Freestyle for the 3rd straight year and was once again runner-up to Hudepohl in the 200 Freestyle. Finally, Mike Andrews of St. Xavier was their 2nd best swimmer, winning the 100 Backstroke and finishing 4th in the 200 IM while also leading X to a new state record in the 200 Medley Relay. His 100 Backstroke time of 49.9 was 2nd best in state history and 7th best in the country this year.

1992

  • Joe Hudepohl
    Senior
    Cincinnati St. Xavier
    • Joe Hudepohl was already a superstar of the highest magnitude before his senior season began. That summer before, he won the 200 Freestyle at US Nationals against pro and college swimmers. With Olympic Trials taking place mere days after this year’s state meet, Hudepohl elected to still compete for St. Xavier, but only swim a single individual event, the 50 Freestyle. That means that Hudepohl becomes the first swimmer to win the Gold Star award without having swum 2 individual events since Bill Schulte in 1972.

    Considering Hudepohl ended up making the Olympics in the 200 Freestyle, 4x100 Freestyle Relay, and 4x200 Freestyle Relay, the Gold Star seems pretty warranted. Even with the single event, Hudepohl ended up setting 3 state records, 1 national record, and tied another national record. Hudepohl won the 50 Freestyle and then led off both St. Xavier freestyle relays. His leadoff times were again the 20.01, and then a new record 43.43 in the 100 Freestyle leadoff of the final relay. Hudepohl was the top swimmer in the country in both of those events again.

    During the regular season, Hudepohl posted a 4:28 in the 500 Freestyle to set a Southwest Classic Meet Record, and he even swam an in-season negative-split 1:39 in the 200 Freestyle. Those were the 6th and 13th best times in the nation. The in-season swims proved to be critical because with Hudepohl’s 57 national level points, his teammates Mike Andrews’ 16 national points in backstroke and Shawn Trokhan’s 7 points in the 50 Freestyle, and the relays, St. Xavier won their 2nd national team title! It should be noted that according to Hudepohl in the February 16th edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer, he wasn’t even shaved or fully tapered for the state meet. Besides never losing an event at the state meet, he graduated with 4 national records, tied another, and set 12 total state records during his tenure.

    As good as Hudepohl was, it took a team effort to win the national title, and St. Xavier had 3 other excellent swimmers who need to be talked about. The aforementioned Andrews’ was easily one of the best swimmers in Ohio, setting a new state record in the 100 Backstroke with a 49.64 that broke Mark Rhodenbaugh’s 10-year old state (and former national) record. Andrews was also runner-up in the 200 IM and part of 2 state record setting X relays. Leading off that 200 Medley Relay, Andrew’s was on some watches as a 22.9 split, which gives him another state record.

    Dod Wales, just a freshman, won the 100 Butterfly (in a tie), was 3rd in the 100 Freestyle, and was also part of 2 record setting relays. Wales notably anchored X’s 400 Freestyle Relay in a 45 - an unusually fast time for a freshman. Also helping X was Shawn Trokhan, a senior who was 3rd in the 50 Freestyle with a 20.7 that was the 10th fastest time in the nation. He anchored both record setting sprint relays.

    While Hudepohl and St. Xavier stole the spotlight, 3 other swimmers of note were having meets that would have been good enough in years past to win the Gold Star. Marty Hubbell once again was one of the top swimmers in the nation as he successfully defended his 200 IM and 100 Breaststroke state titles with the 7th and 3rd best times in the nation, respectively. His 55.7 time in the 100 Breaststroke was .2 off Glen Mills’ 1980 state record. Scott Claypool, just a sophomore, won the 100 Freestyle and was 4th in the 50 Freestyle, but had some of the best national times in each.

    Finally, Jay Hladish of Solon had arguably the greatest season in Ohio history without an event victory. He finished 2nd to Hudepohl in the 50 Freestyle with a 20.57, runner-up to Andrews in the 100 Backstroke with a 50.30, and led off Solon’s 400 Freestyle Relay in 44.69. Those were the 6th, 5th, and 9th best times in the nation this year, which gives him 36 national level points…better than all but 5 previous Gold Star winners.

1993

  • Scott Claypool
    Junior
    Hudson
    • This year’s Gold Star race came down to 2 swimmers: Scott Claypool of Hudson, and Dod Wales of St. Xavier. Claypool gets the nod in the end because not only was he the only Ohio boys’ swimmer to win both of his events at the state meet, but he beat Wales in the only event they went head-to-head: the 200 Freestyle.

    Claypool, the defending 100 Freestyle champion, 50 Freestyle All-American, and 2x all-star, switched it up this year from the 50 Freestyle to the 200 Freestyle. The two star swimmers were neck and neck the entire time and Claypool touched him out in the end with a 1:38.06 to Wales’ 1:38.12. On day 2, Claypool successfully defended his state title in the 100 Freestyle with a very fast 44.43. This made Claypool the 2nd fastest swimmer in state history (to Joe Hudepohl) in both of those events. His national ranks were 3rd in the 100 Freestyle, 4th in the 200 Freestyle, and he even had a 50 Freestyle time this year of 20.83 that was good for 14th best in the nation.

    Despite not being chosen for the Gold Star, St. Xavier sophomore Dod Wales deserves much credit for helping silence any doubters who may have thought that losing Joe Hudepohl and Mike Andrews would mean St. Xavier was no longer the best team. Besides finishing 2nd to Claypool in that 200 Freestyle, Wales swam a 49.5 in the 100 Butterfly to successfully defend his title in that, and then he anchored St. Xavier’s 200 and 400 Freestyle Relay teams to victory. Wales’ times in the 200 Freestyle and 100 Butterfly were both the 5th fastest times in the country this year, and his anchor leg of 44 on that 400 Freestyle Relay suggests he likely wouldn’t have been too far behind had he swam the 100 Freestyle individually.

    The only other swimmer that will be mentioned here is Shaker Heights senior, Mike Melley. He finished 3rd to Wales and Claypool in that 200 Freestyle with a Top-16 nationally ranked time, and then was the 500 Freestyle champion with a 4:27 time that was 3rd best in state history and 4th best in the country this year.

1994

  • Dod Wales
    Junior
    Cincinnati St. Xavier
    • This season in Ohio saw a trio of phenomenal talents: A new star, sophomore Justin Thornton; last year’s Gold Star winner Scott Claypool; and St. Xavier superstar, Dod Wales. All 3 swimmers won both of their individual events with some of the very best times in the nation.

    The decision to give the Gold Star to Dod Wales, however, wasn’t very hard as he led St. Xavier to their 5th straight team title after becoming just the 2nd swimmer in Ohio history to win all 4 of their events at the state meet (Joe Hudepohl). Wales, who was touched out last year by Claypool in the 200 Freestyle, won the event this time with a 1:37.84 that was 2nd best in the country and Ohio history. He then won his 3rd straight state title in the 100 Butterfly with a 49.32 time that was 4th best in the country this year…but that was just the beginning. On day 2 and for the 2nd straight year, Wales anchored both St. Xavier’s 200 and 400 Freestyle Relays to state titles, but did so with some of the very best times in the country.

    Wales’ split 20.12 on the 200 Freestyle Relay final leg which gave X the victory in that race over Upper Arlington by just .08. Their time of 1:24.5 was less than a half-second off the 1992 Hudpohl relay state record. Wales saved his best for last, though: Anchoring that 400 Freestyle Relay, he dropped a 43.68 which is the fastest such split recorded in state history. Essentially having 4 swims that were among the very best on the national scale, combined with leading the team to victory clinched the award for Wales.

    Justin Thornton takes the second spot in the Gold Star rankings after winning the 200 IM and 100 Backstroke. His 1:51 time in the 200 IM was 10th best nationally, but it’s his 100 Backstroke that gets him the #2 spot. In that, he went a 49.42 that was a new state record and the 3rd best time in the country this year.

    Last year’s Gold Star winner, Scott Claypool, was just about as fast as ever, winning the 50 and 100 Freestyle in dominating fashion. He had times of 20.40 and 44.89 that were the 2nd and 5th fastest 50 and 100 Freestyle times in the country this year, respectively. Claypool misses out on a 2nd Gold Star award because his best 50 Freestyle time did not come at finals, and his 100 Freestyle time was almost a half-second slower than last year. Had he gone up against Dod Wales in the 200 Free again and beat him, Claypool would have had a shot.

    Finally, Pat Maynard of Upper Arlington and Jay Tant of Kettering Alter deserve some mention. Maynard challenged Wales the entire way in the 100 Butterfly, posting a 49.5 time that was 7th best in the nation this year, while Tant was nationally ranked in both the 50 and 100 Freestyle, finishing 2nd to Claypool in each.

1995

  • Justin Thornton
    Junior
    St. Paris Graham
    • The talent level in Ohio has risen dramatically in recent years as there were several swimmers whose performances may have warranted the Gold Star award at some point in history.

    Justin Thornton, who finished 2nd in last year’s rankings, takes the award this year over the rest of the deep field after he once again won the 200 IM and 100 Backstroke. In an eerily similar performance to last year, Thornton’s 2 title defenses came with some of the best times in the nation. Last year in the 200 IM, his 1:51.7 time was 10th best in the nation. This year, his 1:50.7 time was 9th best. Last year, his 49.42 time in the 100 Backstroke was 3rd best in the nation and set a new state record. This year, he dropped a tenth of a second and that 49.3 was 2nd best in the nation (and obviously another state record). Thornton’s improvement at the highest level, along with the new state record pretty much guaranteed him the Gold Star.

    St. Xavier senior Dod Wales was still the best swimmer in Ohio this year, but his chances for a second straight Gold Star fell through when he came down with mononucleosis in January. Because of that, and with a rising Toledo St. Francis team, St. Xavier’s title chances were put into question as he was out several weeks. Wales got healthy enough to swim the qualifying rounds and at State, he was able to win his 2nd straight 200 Freestyle title, but he did so in a much slower time than last year. Wales then went to become the first boys’ swimmer in state history to win the same event 4 straight years, but he ended up getting touched out in the 100 Butterfly by less than a tenth of a second. After losing his first relay ever in the 200 Freestyle Relay, Wales anchored St. Xavier’s 400 Freestyle Relay in an event that would determine the outcome of the meet. In that, he outswam the St. Francis anchor to clinch St. Xavier’s 6th straight state title.

    Even with mononucleosis, Wales’ 1:39.1 in the 200 Free was 6th best in the country while his 49.31 time in the 100 Butterfly was 4th best. He graduates with a state record 12 titles to his name (5 individual, 7 relay).

    The swimmer who beat in him the 100 Butterfly, Upper Arlington senior Pat Maynard, had at least as impressive a meet as Wales. Maynard’s speed helped Upper Arlington win both the 200 Medley Relay and 200 Freestyle Relay. His leadoff leg in the latter was a 20.8 time that made him the 13th best in the nation in that event. His 100 Butterfly champion time of 49.2 was 3rd best. Not even mentioned yet is Jay Tant, who was the only other double-event winner (Thornton). Tant came through for his first 2 state titles, winning the 50 and 100 Freestyle with Top-16 national times in both (20.83, 45.87).

    Finally, the runner-up Toledo St. Francis team deserves mention and their best swimmer was junior Steve Harms. Besides being the best swimmer on St. Francis’ 200 Medley and 400 Freestyle Relay teams, Harms was runner-up to Thornton in the 200 IM, and was state champion in the 500 Freestyle. Both his 1:52 and 4:29 times were top 20 in the nation.

1996

  • Justin Thornton
    Senior
    St. Paris Graham
    • Justin Thornton wins his 2nd straight Gold Star award in one of the easiest decisions since the Joe Hudepohl era.

    For starters, Thornton successfully completed a ‘threepeat’ in both the 200 IM and 100 Backstroke, the first boys’ swimmer to do so in Ohio history. That obviously gives him 6 total career victories, another record (tie). He also set a state record in the 100 Backstroke for the 3rd straight year, yet another record. Thornton improved from 1994 to 1995 but his times were relatively close; this time he took a big leap forward. His 200 IM finally broke the 1:50 barrier, and that 1:49.82 time was the 7th fastest in the country this year. In his primary event, the 100 Backstroke, Thornton had gone 49.4 and 49.3 the last 2 seasons but dropped his own state record to a significantly faster 48.67 this season, which gave him a national title in his final high school swim.

    While nobody was in contention with Thornton for the Gold Star, several other names deserve mention, starting with a duo of Worthington seniors. Kevin Butler (2nd in the Gold Star rankings this year) and Rory McVay (9th) helped Worthington to their best ever finish. Butler was the only other double-event winner to Thornton, taking 1st in both the 100 Freestyle (tie) and 200 Freestyle. McVay was runner-up in the 100 Backstroke and 3rd in the 100 butterfly. They combined to win the 200 Freestyle Relay and finish 3rd in the 400 Freestyle Relay, both with fast 20-point and 45-second splits on each.

    Toledo St. Francis ended Cincinnati St. Xavier’s team winning streak at 6, taking their first school title since 1968. Their best swimmer, Steve Harms, successfully defended his 500 Freestyle state title and again finished 2nd to Thornton in the 200 IM while also anchoring St. Francis’ 400 Freestyle Relay to victory.

    Finally, Kevin Euans of Westerville North gets mention after his 100 Butterfly victory because he is the first freshman in the history of the Gold Star era (since 1970) to win an event with a Top-16 national time.

1997

  • Matt Drenik & Craig Wales
    Seniors
    Cincinnati St. Xavier
    • After several seasons of top national swimmers competing for the Gold Star award, 1997 saw a general decrease in the high-end talent throughout the state. After losing to Toledo St. Francis last year, Cincinnati St. Xavier rebounded to reclaim the state crown, and the primary leaders of that team were Matt Drenik and Craig Wales.

    There’s no real debate that the best overall swimmer in the state this year was Matt Drenik, and he started out well, cruising to victory in the 200 Freestyle with a 1:38.66 that was the 9th best time in the country. At finals on day 2, however, he had a mishap. After qualifying with a 45.23 preliminary time in the 100 Freestyle (8th best in the country), he was called for a false start at finals and was disqualified. Drenik (who’s personal best times over the years were good enough to win this year’s 100, 200, and 500 Freestyle, 100 Butterfly, and 200 IM), was all but a lock for the Gold Star before that DQ.

    Our other co-Gold Star winner, Craig Wales, was the high point scorer at the state meet this year. He started with a butterfly split that helped X finish 2nd in the 200 Medley Relay, and then came through to end day 1 with a 49.83 in the 100 Butterfly that unseated defending champion Kevin Euans and gave Wales his first career title. That time was Top-16 in the country. On day 2, Wales continued his excellent meet, finishing 2nd in the 100 Backstroke to teammate Ryan Earhart. The 400 Freestyle Relay ended up being the race to decide the meet, as St. Francis and St. Xavier went into the event separated by just 2.5 points. Wales led off the relay, and then after a close race throughout, Drenik dove in even with the St. Francis anchor and split a 44.8 that clinched the relay, and the meet for St. Xavier, giving Drenik some redemption for the DQ earlier that night.

    A couple of other swimmers deserve mention this year, starting with David Weis. Toledo St. Francis has turned into a direct rival for St. Xavier, and Weis was their best swimmer this year. He was state champion in the 50 Freestyle and runner-up in the 100 Freestyle, while also swimming the anchor leg on St. Francis’ 200 and 400 Freestyle Relays, the former of which won the state title. His 50 Freestyle time of 20.68 was 12th best in the nation this year, making him the only swimmer with a Top-16 national time other than Drenik and Wales.

    Finally, Steve Kemmerling, St. Ignatius senior, deserves at least some mention for making his 3rd straight all-star team, as last year’s 100 Freestyle champion was 2nd in both that and the 200 Freestyle this year.

1998

  • Dan Ketchum
    Sophomore
    Cincinnati Sycamore
    • Boys’ swimming in Ohio took a huge leap this year. Based on Top-16 scoring format, there were 165 national level points scored which is more than any other year, in state history, and several relays were ranked top 10 in the country.

    Dan Ketchum, just a sophomore, wins the Gold Star after a 2-win performance in two of the best races the state has perhaps ever seen. He won the 200 and 500 Freestyle with times of 1:37.84 and 4:25.68, both of which were the 2nd best times in state history. His 500 Freestyle set a new state meet record, breaking David Fairbanks’ 1985 mark, and he even split 44.55 on Sycamore’s 400 Freestyle Relay. Ketchum’s 200 and 500 Freestyle times were ranked 2nd and 3rd in the country this year, respectively.

    Jason Cobb, Centerville sophomore, was the only other double-event winner this year, taking gold in the 50 and 100 Freestyle. Cobb’s 20.40 time in the 50 Freestyle was 3rd best in state history and the country this year, while his 45.07 time in the 100 Freestyle was 5th nationally. Cobb may have missed out on the Gold Star because Ketchum broke a state meet record and scored a couple more national level points, but Cobb notably split a state record 19.64 on Centerville’s 200 Freestyle Relay and a 44.20 on their 400 Freestyle Relay.

    The "St. Francis vs St. Xavier" rivalry continued this year with St. Francis claiming their 2nd title in 3 years in relatively dominant fashion, taking down St. X, 307 to 280. Their leader was junior Tony Kurth who won his 2nd straight title in the 200 IM and was runner-up in the 100 Butterfly. Kurth’s 200 IM time of 1:48.96 broke Mark Rhodenbaugh’s 1982 state record by a hundredth of a second, but it was barely enough. Matt Keay, a senior from Shaker Heights, almost ran Kurth down with a 24.96 freestyle split that would’ve been the second best such NCAA split this year! Kurth’s 200 IM was his best event and 4th in the national ranks, but he also had a Top-16 time in the 100 Butterfly (49.97) and had best splits of 20.3 and 44.8 on St. Francis’ state title winning 200 and 400 Freestyle Relays.

    Jim Pullin, hereby known as "Ketchum’s rival" had an incredible meet himself. His 1:38.93 time in the 200 Freestyle kept him close to Ketchum until the last lap, and then he was with Ketchum in the 500 Freestyle the whole way, touching .06 behind at 4:25.74 - a time that was also ahead of Fairbanks’ old state meet record. Pullin’s times were 6th and 4th in the country, respectively.

    Finally, sophomore Mark Gangloff of Akron Firestone deserves mention after winning the 100 Breaststroke with the 2nd best time in state history. His 55.64 time was 4th best nationally and 2nd best in Ohio history, his 1:51.03 time in the 200 IM was 4th at state and 13th best nationally, and his 25.15 breaststroke split on the 200 Medley Relay was a state record.

    Other swimmers who posted nationally ranked (Top-16) times were Cincinnati St. Xavier’s Ryan Earhart, who won his 2nd straight title in the 100 Backstroke; Kevin Euans, who reclaimed the 100 Butterfly state crown; John Carroll from Toledo St. Francis in the 200 IM, and Matt Keay from Shaker Heights in the 200 IM.

1999

  • Tony Kurth
    Senior
    Toledo St. Francis
    • 1998 was a record-breaking year for overall national presence of Ohio boys’ swimming - but 1999 blew it out of the water. For the first time since Joe Hudepohl, Ohio had the national swimmer of the year, but unlike those Hudepohl years, there were several other boys on this year’s all-star team that could have won a Gold Star in seasons past.

    Tony Kurth is that aforementioned national swimmer of the year as he became the first boys’ swimmer to break a record in all 4 of his events at the state meet. Kurth won the 200 IM for the 3rd straight year, breaking his own state record with a 1:47.70 that was the top time in the nation. He followed it up with a victory in the 100 Butterfly where his 48.79 preliminary swim was a new state meet record, 2nd best in state history, and the 4th best time in the nation.

    St. Francis didn’t beat St. Xavier this year, but they were the stars of the state meet with Kurth and their relays. Anchored by Kurth, St. Francis blew away the old (Hudepohl led) Freestyle Relay records, setting a national record in the 400 Freestyle Relay at 3:01.80. Kurth’s anchor legs of 19.81 and 43.95 were key to the records, and those relays were obviously ranked 1st nationally. If that wasn’t enough, Kurth’s preliminary leadoff in that 400 Freestyle Relay was a 44.30, the 2nd best time in the nation.

    Kurth’s 1st, 2nd, and 4th place national swims gave him 52 national level points (most ever other than Hudepohl) and that’s not even counting the 50 Freestyle where he was also likely a top 5 national talent. A ridiculous side note is that another St. Francis all-star, senior James Leahy won the 50 Freestyle, but wasn’t even used on that record breaking 200 Freestyle Relay (1:23.21)!

    Kurth and St. Francis’ summary took as long entire seasons past, but 1999 has several other swimmers who need to be talked about, starting with last year’s Gold Star winner, Dan Ketchum. Now a junior at Sycamore, Ketchum had an even better meet than last season in his title defenses of the 200 and 500 Freestyle. Many thought he’d have more great races against Jim Pullin of Hawken, but Ketchum blew him, and everyone else out of the water this season. His 200 Freestyle was a 1:37.29, which was the top time in the nation this season, and the 2nd best in Ohio history. His 500 Freestyle was the record breaker though. In that, he broke Hudepohl’s state record by almost 2 seconds going a 4:22.73 that was the 2nd best time in the nation. Ketchum topped things off by swimming a 44.40 split on Sycamore’s 400 Freestyle Relay.

    Next up is Akron Firestone star, Mark Gangloff. The junior went from breaststroke stud to superstar after racing Kurth the entire way in the 200 IM, posting a time better than Kurth’s previous record. His 1:48.63 was highlighted by a 29-second breaststroke split that was faster than all but a few college kids this year! Gangloff’s time was the 2nd best in the nation this year. In his 100 Breaststroke, Gangloff defended with ease, posting a 55.58 that was 5th best in the nation. Gangloff also tied his own record breaststroke split on the 200 Medley Relay with a 25.1.

    Cincinnati St. Xavier obviously needs to be mentioned because they won the state meet over the powerhouse St. Francis squad by an incredible 69 points: their 347 point total was a meet record. Mostly accomplished with insane depth, they were still led by stars Jayme Cramer and Ryan Earhart. Those two guys along with Garth Fealey and Rob Toth combined to set a new state record in the 200 Medley Relay at 1:32.47 led by Cramer’s state record butterfly split of 21.71. Just a sophomore, Cramer pushed Kurth the entire way in the 100 Butterfly, finishing 2nd with a 49.5 that was the nation’s 9th best time, and then he won his first state title in the 100 Backstroke with a 49.14 that was the nation’s 4th best time. Earhart, the 2x defending champion in the 100 Backstroke, finished 2nd to Cramer with a 50.2 that was 11th best in the country.

    Finally, Upper Arlington Sophomore Ed Matkovich was arguably the best freestyler in the state this year other than Kurth. Matkovich posted times of 20.53 and 44.98 in the 50 and 100 Freestyle to give him the 5th and 7th fastest national times in those events. At state, however, he did that 100 Freestyle and the 100 Backstroke, and his 50.70 time in the latter was also a Top-16 national time! Matkovich, however, was beaten in the 100 Freestyle at state by St. Ignatius junior Todd Minnier, who had nationally ranked times himself in the 100 Freestyle and 100 Butterfly!