Grossmont gears up for CIF title push

By Phillip Brents

Posted March 30, 2003

The Grossmont High School swim team – specifically its girls squad – is looking to make an even bigger splash this spring than it did last year.

Picutred at right: Danielle Dutro, coach Doug Selby, Danielle Peebles

The Grossmont girls team finished second at last year’s San Diego Section Division II championship meet. Midway through this season, some observers have already tabbed the Foothillers as the favorites to win this year’s division title. 

Grossmont finished third overall at last year’s Division II championships, combining the results of both the boys and girls meets. The Foothiller boys team finished fourth overall, and despite the loss of several key swimmers to graduation, will be looking to maintain its standing near the top of the pack.

Lauren Clements, Kate Thornton, Mary Westervelt, Danielle Peebles and Claire Nicolson lead the top returners on the Foothillers girls team.

Clements, Thornton and Nicolson all return from the team’s CIF championship 200-yard medley relay team. Clements, Westervelt and Peebles were all members of the team’s CIF runner-up 400 freestyle relay squad while Peebles, Kari Keach, Thornton and Westervelt swam to a fourth-place finish at last year’s CIF finals in the 200 freestyle relay event.

Thornton (second in the 100 breaststroke and fourth in the 200 individual medley), Westervelt (fourth in the 100 backstroke and sixth in the 100 freestyle); Clements (fourth in the 100 butterfly) and Peebles (sixth in the 200 freestyle) all recorded championship heat (top six) place-finishes at last year’s CIF meet.

Clements was second in the consolation 50 free finals (eighth overall) while Keach was third in the consolation 100 butterfly finals (ninth overall). Consolation finals include swimmers who place seventh through 12^th in the meet.  

With so much returning firepower in its arsenal, the Foothillers’ goals could very well be met. The girls team is going for its third consecutive Grossmont North League championship – and potentially something greater in postseason competition.

Head coach Doug Selby said meeting those goals will depend on the swimmers themselves.

“It depends on the kids – how hard they work from here until the end of the season will determine if they can win the championship,” said Selby, who is in his fifth year with the team. “It takes a lot of dedication to win CIF. Our number one goal was the league championship. If we’re strong out of league, we’ll take whatever CIF gives us.”

Grossmont got a taste of what it will take to excel at the top after posting a 103-77 loss to Division I power Bonita Vista in a non-league meet March 28 at Southwestern College. Selby noted the absence of Clements (on a recruiting trip) could have shifted the balance in a couple events. Loaded with 16 seniors, Bonita Vista is looking for its best-ever finish at CIF this season.

“They gave us everything we could want in a meet,” Selby said of the competitiveness exhibited at the March 28 meet.

Keach finished second in the butterfly (1:06.17) and third in the 50 freestyle (27.46) while Melissa Smith took runner-up honors in the diving competition. Grossmont won two of the meet’s three relay events -- capturing the 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays.

“Relays are the real key to doing well at CIF,” Selby said.   

Grossmont’s boys team – which has won the last nine Grossmont North League banners -- is led top returners Billy DeRidder, Eric Stone and John Tolosko, all seniors, junior Randin Lambrecht and sophomore David Lefstein. They are joined by impact newcomer Matt Clements, a freshman.

Stone and Tolosko were part of last year’s fourth-place CIF championship heat 200 medley relay team while DeRidder swam a leg on the Foothillers’ fourth-place 200 freestyle relay unit.

Stone finished second (eighth overall) in the consolation 100 backstroke finals while Tolosko was third (ninth overall) in the consolation 100 breaststroke finals. Lefstein was sixth (12th overall) in consolation 500 free finals.

All expect to significantly better their place-finishes this season as team leaders.

From left, Matt Clements, David Lefstein, Billy DeRidder, Eric Stone, John Tolosko

DeRidder, whose expertise lies in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle events, is hoping to qualify for the CIF championship heat finals along with Lefstein (500 freestyle, IM) and Tolosko (breaststroke). 

Clements (butterfly), Lefstein (500 freestyle) and Tolosko (breaststroke) all chalked up individual victories in the high profile meet against Bonita Vista (a 96-84 Barons win) while the Foothillers impressively swept all three relay events.  

Tolosko, who owns one of the county’s top times this season in the breaststroke, scored a key head-to-head win against Bonita Vista senior Paul Hernandez. Tolosko timed 1:04.78 to win the event; Hernandez, who finished second in the event in last year’s Division I finals, touched second in 1:09.57.

Lambrecht also aided his team’s scoring potential by winning the diving competition with a career-best mark of 188.1 points for six dives. The record total came in only his second meet this season after totaling 182 points the day before in a league win against El Cajon Valley. He ranks as the second-highest returning place-finisher from last year’s CIF finals where he finished third as a sophomore. He scored

DeRidder finished second in the 50 freestyle (24.17) and 100 freestyle (54.40) to Bonita Vista’s Chris Lopez (23.64 and 51.69, respectively) while Clements (200 freestyle) and Lefstein (IM) both earned second-place finishes to go with their wins.

The losses to Bonita Vista dropped both the records of both Grossmont teams to 4-2 on the season. The boys’ team other loss came against University of San Diego High in another top flight non-league battle while the girls team previously lost to Granite Hills, another Division I team.