SD Prep Sports

SD Prep Sports: Swimming

Barons' team of destiny aims to make a splash at Metro finals, beyond

By Phillip Brents
Posted May 15, 2003

The Bonita Vista High girls swim team — 15 seniors strong — is looking to make perhaps its biggest splash in school history this season. The Barons will seek to show that they are headed in that direction at Saturday’s Metro Conference championship meet.
Competition is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Loma Verde pool in Chula Vista.

Bonita Vista has defined the word dynasty for nearly two decades since the sport was refunded by the Sweetwater district. For all the Barons’ dominance in local waters, success has been more difficult to achieve at the section level. The highest place-finish for the girls team has been eighth.

Head coach Steve Wiggs is hoping to at least match that figure with this year’s squad.

“This is the fastest team I’ve coached,” said Wiggs, who is in his seventh season with the team either as an assistant or head coach. “We’d like to make top 8 at CIF. Hopefully we can qualify more swimmers for the CIF finals. Our relays are strong. We need more individuals involved to achieve that goal.”

How strong is this year’s Bonita Vista team? The Barons recorded a 103-77 non-league win against Division II power Grossmont earlier this season. The Hillers finished second at last year’s Division II finals and some are giving them the nod to win this year’s CIF girls title.

The vast collection of senior talent looks to keep Bonita Vista afloat in terms of experience level. In the high profile meet against Grossmont, the Foothillers captured first-place finishes in eight events but the Barons’ depth preserved the victory.

Metro rival Hilltop discovered that aspect of Bonita Vista’s game plan in absorbing a 139-46 loss. The Barons captured first-place finishes in all l2 events — touching two deep in 10 events and three deep in six others.

The Lancers finished runner-up to Mar Vista for this year’s South Bay League title.

Danielle Torre (100 breaststroke), Melissa Mattero (200 freestyle), Alvizia Alexander (200 individual medley, 100 butterfly) and Kim Linder (50 and 500 freestyle) comprise Bonita Vista’s returning Metro Conference individual champions. Linder earned recognition as the conference’s Girls Swimmer of the Year last year.

Pictured at left: Bonita Vista's Alvizia Alexander

The Barons won all 11 events at last year’s swim finals, sweeping all three relay events. The only event Bonita Vista did not win last year was the diving championship, which is held separately but included in the overall team scoring.

The Barons’ 15 seniors include Linder, Torre, Mattero, Rebecca Jimenez, Marianne Paradowski, Susanna Orozco, Jasmine and Melanie Dyjak, Melissa Sandoval, Stacie Peterson, Erika Urrutia, Tammy Wang, Lauren Webster, Marissa Loya and Brittney Aland.

Talented underclassmen on the team include Alexander, Brittany Estrada, Sara Glick, Jeanette Islas, Katie Leahy and Gina Murrillo. Leahy recorded the second-fastest time in school history earlier this season in the 200 freestyle.

“We have a very solid, strong team,” Torre said.

Balance defines the lineup.

Double event winners in the victory against Hilltop included Leahy (200 freestyle and 100 backstroke), Alexander (200 IM and 100 butterfly) and Jimenez (50 and 100 freestyle). Other individual event winners included Aland (diving), Linder (500 freestyle) and Murrillo (100 breaststroke).

Wiggs said he knew the team was prepared to do battle even before the season began. “This is the best condition I’ve ever seen them in coming over from the girls water polo season,” he said.

About a dozen swimmers competed on the Barons’ Metro tournament championship girls water polo team.

The Bonita Vista boys team also returns to defend its team championship. The Barons are led by last year’s Boys Swimmer of the Year Paul Hernandez, who captured last year’s conference IM and breaststroke titles. He went on to finish second in the breaststroke and third in the IM at the San Diego Section Division I finals. The Baron standout ranks as the top returner in the section both events this season, though he is expected to receive a strong challenge from Poway super frosh Nick Zech.

Pictured at right: Bonita Vista's Paul Hernandez

Bonita Vista got a chance to flex its collective muscles by winning 10 events in posting a 125-60 win against South Bay League runner-up Hilltop earlier this season. The Barons won five of the nine individual events in topping nine-time defending Grossmont North League champion Grossmont 96-84 later that same week.
Chris Sanchez (200 freestyle , backstroke) and Hernandez (IM, breaststroke) doubled in the meet against Hilltop while Sanchez (200 freestyle, backstroke) and Chris Lopez (50 and 100 free-style) doubled in the meet against the Foothillers.

A freshman, Sanchez entered Wednesday’s conference prelim meet with the top times in the 200 freestyle (1:50.96) and backstroke (56.88) while Lopez, a junior, had the top time in the 100 freestyle (50.36).

The Bonita Vista talent parade does not end here. Though this year’s team may not be large on numbers, the talent level remains high. Carlos Escaba entered Wednesday’s prelims with the second-fastest time in the conference in the 500 freestyle (5:36.41) while teammate Niko Marshall ranked third in the same event (5:36.72). A freshman, Marshall also owned the third-fastest time in the 200 freestyle (2:04.36) ahead of teammates Marc Lewis (2:04.72) and Escaba (2:04.90).

Returning champions
•Eastlake High senior Nik Clair-Williams, who will attend UC-Irvine on a partial scholarship, returns to defend his Metro title in the 50 freestyle. He ranks among the favorites to win the sprint distance at the upcoming Division I CIF championship meet and holds the school record in the event. He finished sixth as a freshman before winning the Division II title his sophomore year. As a junior he was second after making the move up to the Division I ranks. He may concentrate on the backstroke this year instead of also swimming 100 freestyle, and entered Wednesday’s prelims with the top 50 clocking of 22.50.

Pictured at left: Eastlake's Nik Clair-Williams and Dani Kimmel

•Marian Catholic’s Roberto Lopez produced the highlights of last year’s Division II meet for South Bay swimmers by finishing fifth in the 500 freestyle finals while winning the consolation title in the 100 butterfly. A two-time Metro champion in the 500 free, Lopez had Wednesdays’ top entry time of 5:19.11. He ranked second in the butterfly event to Hilltop’s Nick Davidson with a time of 59.09 to Davidson’s 57.76 mark.

Swimmers to watch
•Hilltop’s Nick Davidson owns automatic CIF qualifying marks in the 50 freestyle (22.94) and 100 butterfly (57.75) while possessing consideration times in the 200 IM (2:15.07), 100 freestyle (52.7) and 100 butterfly (1:10.83).

•The Lancers own an automatic qualifying time in the 200 freestyle relay (1:38.08) and consideration marks in both the 200 medley relay (1:53.31) and 400 freestyle relay (3:44.46).

•Sweetwater’s Tony Arroyo entered Wednesday’s prelims with the second-fastest clockings in both the 100 freestyle (52.29) and 200 freestyle (1:54.94).

•Southwest’s D.J. Figueroa had Wednesday’s top entry time of 1:11.46 in the boys 100 breaststroke. Montgomery’s Roberto Garcia was second with a 1:12.10 entry mark.

•Mar Vista’s South Bay League champion boys team is led by returning championship heat placers Joe and Julian Czerwiec and Josh Madigan. Joe Czerwiec entered Wednesday’s prelims with the conference’s second-fastest time in the 50 sprint (22.95) and third-fastest buttferly time (1:00.45). Julian Czerwiec ranked third in the backstroke (1:04.04) and sixth in the 200 freestyle (2:05.06). Newcomer Don Sales joins Madigan in the IM while Sean Gill, Andrew Allen and Eric Cornwall help fill out the Mariners relay teams.

•Jennifer Parra (50 and 100 freestyle) and Meredith Moses (200 IM and 100 backstroke) doubled in Mar Vista’s 113-72 South Bay League title-clinching victory against Hilltop. The Mariners won 11 of the 12 events, sweeping all three relays and also receiving individual wins from Staci Warren (200 freestyle), Jennifer Hobdell (100 butterfly) and Rebeca Valadez (500 freestyle). Mar Vista standouts also include 200 freestyler Shannon Jauregui and breaststrokers Natasha Ellis and Devon Love.

•Hilltop’s girls team is led by Julia Relph (IM, butterfly), Rosi Lopez (IM, 100 freestyle), Christine Nicolas (50 freestyle and butterfly), Jessica Street (breaststroke) and Christy Fox (500 freestyle and backstroke).

•Junior Julie Williamson (200 and 500 freestyle) leads the returners on Eastlake’s girls team. However, it is an influx of talented freshmen who give the 2003 squad its bite. Dani Kimmel, one of those impact newcomers, has excelled in both the 50 freestyle and 100 breaststroke events this season while Alexis Gackstetter (backstroke) and Andrea Williamson (IM) have stood out alongside another underclassman, sophomore Yvette Moreno (butterfly). Contributors include Jessica Carpio (butterfly), Devon Cannon (50 and 100 freestyle), Jessica Codallos (200 and 500 freestyle), Jessica Germany (IM and backstroke) and freshman Bree-Anna Brown (100 freestyle).

•Chula Vista senior Vanessa Young — the 2002-03 Metro girls water polo Player of the Year — has been a team leader in the freestyle distances.

•Eastlake’s Clair-Williams was one of three Titans to win four events in a 105-45 victory against Chula Vista earlier this season. Sam Gottlieb doubled in winning the 200 IM and 100 breaststroke while Tom Dziadkowiec captured first-place finishes in both the 200 freestyle and 100 butterfly. Both freshmen also swam legs on the Titans’ victorious 200 medley and 200 freestyle relay teams.