Girls 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

  • Susan Wolfe
    Senior
    Bowling Green
    • This was not a bad year in girls’ swimming for Ohio, but no individual swimmers stood out. For just the 2nd time in state history (on the girls’ side), no swimmer won multiple events at the state meet, making the Gold Star award very ‘up for grabs’. There were really 4 girls in contention for the award, and 3 of those girls scored 37 points (the 2nd highest possible option with a win and a runner-up).

    Susan Wolfe of Bowling Green has been chosen as the Gold Star winner because of her national rankings and consistency over the years. Wolfe is the most experienced swimmer in Ohio this year, now making her 3rd all-star team. She’s notably won an event each of the last three seasons. Her sophomore year saw her take the 200 IM, and the last 2 years she’s won the 500 Freestyle (while finishing 2nd in the 200 IM). Her 200 IM was ranked 15th in the nation this year while her 500 Freestyle was ranked 18th. No other girl’s swimmer had multiple events ranked better than 26th. Because of that, and the fact that Wolfe is the most senior member of the all-star team with her 3 separate years of state titles, she gets the award.

    Rachel Gustin and Melissa Burovac also scored 37 points this year. Gustin, a freshman from Cincinnati Seven Hills, actually beat Wolfe in the 200 IM for her first state title, and finished runner-up in the 100 Breaststroke. Gustin’s 200 IM time was 12th fastest in the country this year. Burovac was 1st in the 200 Freestyle and 2nd to Wolfe in the 500 Freestyle but deserves credit for leading the Hawken Girls to yet another school title.

    Tina Silbersack of Cincinnati McNicholas also deserves mention. Just a sophomore, she makes her 2nd straight all-star team after scoring 36 points and successfully defending her state title in the 100 Butterfly. That time was top 10 in the nation this year, but she lacked a 2nd event as her 200 IM was just 3rd at state and 45th nationally.

    Finally, Sonja Leiter of Worthington took after last year’s national record setting teammate Sheri White by dropping a state title 100 Backstroke time of 56.5. That gave her the 3rd fastest time in the nation this year (the best finish by an Ohio girl), but her 2nd event (the 50 Freestyle) was just 6th at state and not even top 50 in the nation.

    The most unique thing to happen this year was that three girls tied for 1st place in the 50 freestyle. Dana Goettsch, Jessica Montegut, and Jennifer Saul all standing atop the podium, along with the fact that no girl won 2 events, made it so that all 10 all-star spots would have been filled up by only champions with no at-large bids possible. Therefore, an exception was made so that Julie Speier of Cincinnati McAuley could still make the team as the top at-large swimmer this season. Her 33 points would have been the most ever to not make the all-star team, and she still scored more than 3 state champions.

1991

  • Rachel Gustin
    Sophomore
    Cincinnati Seven Hills
    • With one of the more dominant performances in OHSAA Girls’ Swimming history, Rachel Gustin is the easy pick for the Gold Star Award. Making her 2nd all-star team in as many years, Gustin came through this year with a repeat victory in the 200 IM, and another win in the 100 Breaststroke. Gustin scored 32 national level points with rankings of 2nd in the 100 Breaststroke and 4th in the 200 IM. That latter swim was done with a 2:03.20 time that set a new state 200 IM record by a full second! Her 100 Breaststroke was no joke either with that 1:03.32 time being the 2nd best in Ohio history only to Kim Rhodenbaugh who set the national record in that event.

    Besides Gustin’s dominance, the state saw essentially a takeover from underclassmen as the all-star team had just a single senior on it. Melissa Stone, a sophomore from Mansfield Madison, was the 2nd best in Ohio this year and the only swimmer other than Gustin to win both of her events. Stone was state champion in both the 50 and 100 Freestyle where her 23.56 time was 7th best in the nation.

    State champion Ursuline was led by 2 juniors: Beth Jackson and Emily Landon. Jackson was state championi n the 100 Backstroke and 3rd in the 100 Butterfly. Her backstroke time was top 10 in the country and she also led Ursuline to a victory in the first ever 200 Freestyle Relay. Landon was 2nd in the 500 Freestyle and 3rd in the 200 Freestyle.

    Tina Silbersack, a junior from Cincinnati McNicholas, won her 3rd straight state title in the 100 Butterfly with the 6th best time in the nation, and she was also a 100 Backstroke state finalist. Leigh Bassler, a sophomore from Cincinnati Sycamore, was runner-up in both the 200 IM and 100 Backstroke, but that backstroke time was 11th best in the nation. Tracy Cook, a sophomore for Hawken makes her 2nd all-star team after a 1-2 performance in the 200 and 100 Freestyle while Laurie Kline, a freshman from Findlay, was 500 Freestyle state champion.

    Even underclassmen who didn’t make the all-star team scored national level points, like Cynthia Janssen and Amy Fritch from Cincinnati Oak Hills, who also helped their all-star teammate Michelle McCarthy to a 2nd place finish and multiple relay wins.

1992

  • Rachel Gustin
    Junior
    Cincinnati Seven Hills
    • For the second straight year, Rachel Gustin of Seven Hills was the easy pick for the Gold Star Award. She won her third straight state title in the 200 IM and second straight in the 100 Breaststroke. Her times were almost Identical to last year as she was 2:03.77 in the 200 IM and 1:03.29 in the 100 Breaststroke. Those times were the 8th and 3rd best in the country this year, respectively, which was far and away the best combined result in Ohio this year on the Girls’ side. Gustin’s 100 Breaststroke time was the 2nd best in Ohio history.

    The only other double-event winner this year was Melissa Stone from Mansfield Madison. Still just a junior, Stone successfully defended her state titles in both the 50 and 100 Freestyle.

    Tina Silbersack of Cincinnati St. Ursula deserves special credit for winning her 4th straight title in the 100 Butterfly. While she was also part of St. Ursula’s state champion 200 Medley Relay, Silbersack’s 2nd best event, the 100 Backstroke, saw her finish just 5th. Had Silbersack been able to post a nationally recognized time in a second event, and/or set a state record in her 100 Butterfly, she’d have been in contention with Gustin for the Gold Star. She is the 2nd girl in Ohio history (Katherine Creighton) to win the same event 4 straight years.

    Cincinnati Sycamore won the Girls’ team title this year and their best swimmer was Leigh Bassler, who makes her 2nd straight all-star team. Bassler, a junior, was state champion in the 100 Backstroke, 4th in the 200 Freestyle, and led Sycamore to a title in the 400 Freestyle Relay. Her 100 Backstroke time of 56.79 was the 7th best in the nation this year.

    Finally, Alison Fealey, a freshman from St. Ursula, was a force, being runner-up to Gustin in both the 200 IM and 100 Breaststroke. Her time in that 100 Breaststroke of 1:04.1 was 7th best in the nation and that makes her the 3rd fastest breaststroker in state history.

1993

  • Alison Fealey
    Sophomore
    Cincinnati St. Ursula
    • Breaking out in a big way this year is St. Ursula Sophomore Allison Fealey, who led St. Ursula to its first ever girls’ state team title. Fealey was a double-event champion, winning the 200 IM and 500 Freestyle, with dominant swims. In fact, her 200 IM time of 2:01.10 not only demolished the old state record by over 2 seconds but won the event by over 5 seconds and was the 3rd fastest in the country this year! She also swam the breaststroke leg on St. Ursula’s runner-up 200 Medley Relay and ended the meet in style by anchoring the St. Ursula 400 Freestyle Relay team to a state title to end the meet. While St. Ursula already had the state title clinched at that point, it’s notable that Fealey ran down the nearest competition from Rocky River Magnificat to win the race.

    Fealey’s meet was certainly impressive but it could be argued that Melissa Stone, senior from Mansfield Madison, was just as deserving of the Gold Star. Stone successfully completed a threepeat in both the 50 and 100 Freestyle which gives her a state record tying 6 individual state titles. Her 50 Freestyle time of 23.3 was the 2nd fastest swim in state history and the nation this year, while her 100 Freestyle time of 51 was the 14th best national time. Fealey was picked for the Gold Star in the end primarily for leading her team to their first school championship, and for completely demolishing that 200 IM state record.

    Some might be wondering why senior and 2x defending Gold Star winner Rachel Gustin hasn’t been mentioned yet. Gustin actually had the most national level points of any girls’ swimmer this year in Ohio, but she had a mishap in the 200 IM at the district meet the week prior and was disqualified. Because of that, she only had a single event swam at the state meet and with the success of Fealey and Stone, didn’t really stand a chance. Still, Gustin made the most of her time in the water, swimming right on her best time in the 200 IM at districts with a 2:03.6, and then winning her 3rd straight state title in the 100 Breaststroke with a time of 1:02.49 that tied Kim Rhodenbaugh’s legendary state record. Gustin’s 100 Breaststroke time was 3rd fastest in the nation this year while her 200 IM was 10th best. It’s a shame she wasn’t able to race Fealey in that 200 IM at the State Meet because she wasn’t fully tapered for that ‘almost’ best time at the District Meet.

1994

  • Alison Fealey
    Junior
    Cincinnati St. Ursula
    • This season saw two girls win both of their events at the state meet, but Allison Fealey was unquestionably the best choice for the Gold Star award. For starters, Fealey scored 31 national level points this year - no other girls scored a single point. That’s right, Allison Fealey was the only nationally ranked Ohio girls’ swimmer this year, and she was one of the nation’s very best swimmers overall. Fealey successfully defended her own state title in the 200 IM and switched back to the 100 Breaststroke for her first victory in that event. She won those by an average of almost 3 seconds!

    Fealey wasn’t quite on her 200 IM state record of 2:01.1 from last year, but her 2:02 time was still 4th best in the country. The 500 Freestyle champion last year, it should speak volumes that she was able to come through in a second event, and not only that, post the 3rd best time in Ohio history and the nation this year. Her 1:02.95 time in that 100 Breaststroke was less than a half-second off the state record of Kim Rhodenbaugh and Rachel Gustin; a time that was a national record when Rhodenbaugh swam that 1:02.49. Fealey was also part of St. Ursula’s state title 200 Medley Relay team, all of which helped lead them to their 2nd straight team title.

    The only other swimmer truly deserving of mention here in the Gold Star summary is Allison Kemmerling from Rocky River Magnificat. Kemmerling, a senior, was a double-event winner in the 100 and 200 Freestyle. In fact, Kemmerling also led both of Magnificat’s freestyle relays to state titles, which means that Kemmerling is the first girls’ swimmer in Ohio history to win 4 events at the state meet, something Fealey has come up 1 relay short on each of the last 2 years! Kemmerling’s times prevent her from competing with Fealey for the Gold Star but before this season, the only swimmer in Ohio history to have won all 4 events they entered at the state meet was Joe Hudepohl.

1995

  • Alison Fealey
    Senior
    Cincinnati St. Ursula
    • For an Ohio record third straight time, Alison Fealey is the Gold Star winner, and just like last year, it wasn’t even close. What’s most impressive about Fealey is that she notably improved each year and led her team to victory every time. As a senior here, she successfully completed a threepeat in the 200 IM, and then won her 2nd state title in the 500 Freestyle.

    There’s no other way to put it, her 200 IM was possibly the most dominant swim in Ohio girls’ history. In 1993, Fealey swam a 2:01.10 that set a new state record by over 2 seconds. This year, she went a 1:59.66! Although not quite a national record, the fact that in just 2 years she’s dropped about 4 seconds from the prior state record is significant. Fealey won the 100 Breaststroke last year with a 1:02.9 time that was top 3 in the country. To prove her versatility, she switched back to the 500 Freestyle this year and swam the nation’s 3rd best time in that event! Her 4:49.89 time was just off the state record. Fealey even had the 14th best 100 Breaststroke time in the nation this year despite only swimming it during the regular season!

    To top things off, Fealey was again a huge relay participant for the champion St. Ursula team. Her 200 Medley Relay team finished 2nd, and she anchored the final 400 Freestyle Relay team to victory. St. Ursula almost broke the record for most team points this year as their 291 total was 60 better than Cincinnati Ursuline’s own superstar squad. Much of that is because St. Ursula had Fealey and the 2nd best swimmer in our Gold Star rankings, Kathy Lowry.

    As a junior last year, Lowry was the last swimmer picked for the all-star team, primarily for her team efforts. This year, she improved to finish 1st in the 100 Freestyle, 2nd in the 50 Freestyle, and that 50 Freestyle time of 23.37 was 5th best in the nation. Not only that, she was also part of St. Ursula’s state champion 200 and 400 Freestyle relay teams, with that 200 Freestyle Relay setting a new state record.

    The only other swimmer deserving mention this year is Jill Siefers. The Cleveland Orange sophomore was 1st in the 50 Freestyle and 3rd in the 100 Freestyle, and her 50 Freestyle time of 23.35 was 4th best in the nation this year.

1996

  • Jill Siefers
    Junior
    Cleveland Orange
    • The two best swimmers on the girls’ side this year uniquely went head-to-head in both of their events. Jill Siefers of Orange HS and Kate Milling of Upper Arlington, both juniors, both swam the 50 and 100 Freestyle. Siefers was the 50 Freestyle champion and finished 2nd in the 100 Freestyle, while Milling won the 100 Freestyle and was 2nd in the 50. Siefers has been chosen for the Gold Star award because her results on the national scale were noticeably better than those of Milling.

    Siefers swam a 23.19 in the 50 Freestyle and 51.06 in the 100 Freestyle, while Milling was a 23.49 and 51.00. Both of the girls deserve credit because those were all Top-16 nationally ranked times, but Siefers’ 50 Freestyle is what makes the difference. That 23.19 time was not just the 2nd best time in Ohio history but was the fastest in the entire nation this season. Her 100 Freestyle time was 12th best in the country, giving her 25 total national level points to Milling’s 14.

    After those two girls, Michelle Thomas of Hawken was 3rd on the list. Just a freshman, Thomas was the 100 Backstroke state champion, finished 4th in the 200 IM, and was key to Hawken winning both the 200 and 400 Freestyle Relay, the latter of which set a state record. Her 100 Backstroke time of 56.26 was 2nd best in Ohio history and 5th best in the nation this year. Because Hawken won the meet, Thomas was considered for the Gold Star, but Siefers being national champion in the 50 Freestyle, scoring 2 more state points and 11 more national level points than Thomas, was enough to ensure she got the award.

1997

  • Jill Siefers
    Senior
    Cleveland Orange
    • Much of Ohio got slower this season and that includes all 3 of our top contenders for the Gold Star Award from 1996: Jill Siefers, Kate Milling, and Michelle Thomas.

    Last year, Siefers was given the award over Michelle Thomas from Hawken primarily for being the national champion in the 50 Freestyle. Thomas, just a freshman last year, was the leader of a newly crowned Hawken team where she won 2 relays and the 100 Backstroke with the 2nd best time in state history. This year, Siefers was a touch slower in the 50 Freestyle (23.19 to 23.40) and a touch faster in the 100 Freestyle (51.06 to 50.99). Her 50 Freestyle time was good enough to repeat as state champion, while her 100 Freestyle time was good enough for her first win in that event, taking down defending champion Milling.

    Similarly, Thomas successfully defended her 100 Backstroke state title, and took down her competition in the 200 IM to improve from 2nd to 1st. Since Thomas was again key to a state title relay (200 Medley), and the leader on the winning team, it’s tempting to give her the award, but closer analysis proves Siefers was definitely the better swimmer. The Orange High School senior might not have been national champion this year, but both of her times were still Top-16 national marks with her 50 Freestyle being ranked 11th and her 100 Freestyle being the 14th best in the country.

    Thomas, on the other hand, had national ranks of 14th in the 100 Backstroke, and 39th in the 200 IM. Siefers being the only girls’ swimmer with 2 nationally scoring swims (Top-16) was the final justification. Kate Milling added time this year and finished 2nd to Siefers in both sprint freestyle events, but she certainly deserves credit for making 4 straight all-star teams. The relatively slower ‘state’ of Ohio swimming should take nothing away from the Hawken girls’ winning their 2nd straight state title, and 8th overall.

1998

  • Diana Munz
    Sophomore
    Chagrin Falls
    • There were plenty of new beginnings on the girls’ side this year. The all-star team has just two girls who have made the team in the past, and Cincinnati Ursuline won their second ever state team title. Diana Munz already owned several national age group records but this was her first year in Ohio high school swimming, and she took over immediately.

    To start things off, Munz won the 200 Freestyle with a 1:49.76 time that put her more than 2 and a half seconds ahead of runner-up Abby Wakeham. Munz’s time was the 14th best in the country, but the gap between 14th and top 7 was mere tenths so had she been pushed by another swimmer, it’s fair to think she possibly could have been much higher. On day 2, Munz swam the 500 Freestyle in a 4:48.69 time that beat the defending champion Erica Rose by almost 3 seconds, and broke Katherine Creighton’s 1988 state record by 0.80 seconds. That time was 4th best in the country and Munz finished the season widely thought of as the best girls’ swimmer in Ohio.

    Second in the Gold Star ranks this year is Erin Phenix, an Ursuline junior who had about as impressive a meet as Munz, but in more of a team-sense. Phenix was the leader on an Ursuline squad that with 8 girls, dominated the state meet and won by over 50 points. Phenix became just the 2nd girl in state history to win all 4 of her events at the state meet, taking gold in the 50 Freestyle, 100 Freestyle, 200 Medley Relay, and 400 Freestyle Relay. Both of those relays broke the state record and those individual wins ensure her 3rd straight all-star team, the most of anyone on the team this year. Phenix wasn’t considered a true contender for the Gold Star, however, because none of her individual times were Top-16 in the nation.

    Phenix was helped immensely by teammate Tami Ransom. Just a freshman, Ransom was state champion in the 100 Butterfly, finished 4th in the 100 Backstroke, and was part of both of those state record relays.

    The only other swimmer who will be mentioned here in the Gold Star section is Kelly Jones of Kettering Alter. Another freshman, Jones was state champion in the 100 Breaststroke and runner-up in the 50 Freetsyle. Her 100 Breaststroke time of 1:02.35 notably broke the 1:02.49 state record held by former nationally acclaimed swimmers Kim Rhodenbaugh and Rachel Gustin. Jones’ 100 Breaststroke time was the 2nd best in the nation this year.

1999

  • Diana Munz
    Junior
    Chagrin Falls
    • In what was essentially a rerun of last year’s Gold Star rankings, Diana Munz was a record breaking force in the distance events, Erin Phenix of Ursuline won all 4 of her events, and a third contender was about as dominant on the national scale but didn’t win 2 individual events at the state meet (Tami Ransom of Ursuline).

    Munz was picked over the 2 Ursuline girls for having successful title defenses in her 200 and 500 Freestyle, and for destroying her old state record in the latter. Munz swam similar to her 1998 championship time in the 200 Freestyle at 1:49.58 which was the 13th best time in the nation. In her best event, the 500 Freestyle, she dropped an insane 3.15 seconds from her national record going a 4:45.54 that was the 3rd best time in the nation.

    The Hawken girls’ team was able to overcome defending champion Ursuline to reclaim the state title, but the loss wasn’t the fault of Ursuline’s stars: Erin Phenix and Tami Ransom. Phenix ends her tenure having not lost an event at the state meet since she was a sophomore. She’s the first girls’ swimmer to win all 4 events at the state meet twice, again taking the 50 and 100 Freestyle along with the 200 Medley and 400 Freestyle Relays. Phenix did have a nationally ranked swim this year with her 50.97 in the 100 Freestyle, but it was just 15th best in the nation. 4 state titles in a single season is an incredible feat but Munz was just too good on the relative national scale to not win the Gold Star.

    In fact, Tami Ransom’s national rankings were much better than Phenix, but Phenix beat her in the finals of the 100 Freestyle. Ransom’s preliminary time of 50.70 in that 100 Freestyle was the 11th best time in the country while her 2:01.07 time in the 200 IM was 3rd best nationally and 2nd best in Ohio history!

    The Hawken girls’ team won the state title with depth all the way down, including 2 all-stars and 2 other girls who just missed the cut. Freshman Anna Strohl was 2nd and 3rd in the 200 and 500 Freestyle, respectively, and her 500 prelim time was 5th best in the country. Her Hawken teammate, Erica Rose, makes her 2nd all-star team after actually beating Strohl in the 500 for the runner-up spot, and finishing 4th in the 200 IM. Rose’s 500 time was 14th best nationally.

    Helping those two out were Kristen Mikelonis (Senior) and Shelly Klaus (Freshman) who were the first two girls to miss the all-star team but both scored 31 points. Finally, Mandy Commons, a Sycamore senior notably tied the state record in the 100 Breaststroke at 1:02.35 which was the 2nd best time in the nation this year.