When girls swimming started at Lake Orion nine years ago, growth of the program was expected. But perhaps not quite this fast.
‘Our goal is to win the (OAA) Division II dual meets and league championship,? Coach Darin Abbasse said. ‘Last year we won the league title and the championship meet, but we had two losses in our dual meets and we want to improve on that.?
With multiple state qualifiers returning, the coach would like to see his team move in the top-10 at the Division I state meet as well.
‘We’ve been in the top-15 before and the top-20, but we haven’t broken that top-10,? Abbasse said. ‘With the state dividing into three divisions (formerly two divisions), I like what our chances are.?
‘We’d like to score points not just with a couple individuals, but with several individuals, and we’re capable of doing it,? he added.
The team has plenty of talent with which to score points.
‘We have senior Emily Loerch, a team captain, returning in the 200 freestyle and all of our relays,? Abbasse said.
Senior Jenna Dorey returns after placing at states in diving in 2006 and joins Loerch as a captain, along with senior swimmer Kelsey Wilkop.
Abbasse said this team is likely his most balanced, with his senior leaders followed by a deep group of juniors, some solid sophomores and a couple of promising freshmen.
‘Returning junior swimmers and divers that are potentially state qualifiers and definitely county qualifiers are Sara Simic, Liz Eesley, Chelsea Booth, diver Hailey Augillon and junior Emily Ribitch,? Abbasse noted.
Nicole Kudla, Sarah Stiel and Chrissie Forrest headline the returning sophomores in Abbasse’s lineup.
‘They were on relays last year at the state meet,? Abbasse said. ‘They’ll definitely be swimming at the state championships this year, it’s a matter of how many races they’ll be competing in.?
Kudla and Eesley teamed with Loerch and the graduated Katrin Vetter to place in the 200-freestyle relay at states last year, while Stiel and Forrest teamed with Loerch and Vetter to place in the 400-freestyle relay.
Amy Norman and Ronnie Booth are two of the freshmen Abbasse expects to score points for the team this season.
The team tied for second at the Warrior Relays, 10 points behind Lahser, in late August.
‘We definitely showed signs of quality swims,? the coach noted.
The team fell in a tight 94-92 dual meet against visiting Stoney Creek last week, but that result won’t change Abbasse’s outlook.
‘This is our ninth year as a team, and each year this team has improved,? he said, noting their last outright league title came in 2002 while competing in the OAA III.
In the loss to Stoney Creek, Loerch won two individual events to lead LO (200-free and 100-butterfly).
Stiel (200-IM), Dorey (diving), Forrest (500-free) and Simic (100-backstroke) were also individual winners.