Aquagirls send out 'Coach P' with four top-20 finishes
Nov. 14—MARSHALLTOWN — When the Newton-Colfax-Mingo-Pella girls' swim team went against Decorah at the conference meet earlier this season, the Vikings showed up in their tech suits.
That surprised the Aquagirls, but NCMP head coach Sarah Patterson had a simple message for her team.
"I was really confused and we were caught off guard," freshman Harper Barton said. "Coach P just told us we'll get them at state. I had that in my mind today. I had a feeling we were going to do it."
NCMP did do it. One of the goals for the Aquagirls coming into the state meet was to swim faster than Decorah in both freestyle relays and they accomplished that goal on Saturday during the Iowa High School Girls State Swimming Championships at the Marshalltown YMCA.
The Aquagirls set season-best times and moved up at least one position from their seed in all three relays during a successful weekend.
"When I touched (the wall), Harper yelled 'we beat them' and then I looked at the coaches and they were jumping up and down," senior Lillie Ray said. "It was exciting."
Ray was part of all three relays on Saturday and competed in the 50-yard freestyle both days.
She anchored the 200-yard freestyle relay to 12th and the 400 freestyle relay to 14th.
"Swimming has no classes so to be able to say we are 12th in the state is huge," Ray said. "It's a very big deal for us."
Decorah defeated NCMP in the 200 freestyle relay at the conference meet and was seeded higher than the Aquagirls at the state meet. They both swam in heat three, but the Vikings were in lane 4.
NCMP edged its long-time NCC rival though by .22 seconds. The team of Barton, Peyton Ray, Maylei Ruggles and Lillie Ray finished in a season-best time of 1 minute, 41.54 seconds. The Aquagirls entered the state meet seeded 14th but moved up two spots.
"I told the girls that the last big wish I have in my coaching career was them beating Decorah," Patterson said. "I was just kidding but not really.
"They weren't hugging and celebrating because they dropped time. They were more excited to beat Decorah."
It was an emotional day for the Aquagirls. It was the final prep swim meet for Ray. And the rest of the roster is just not ready to let her go yet.
"It was the last time I was going to get to swim with Lillie. That got me emotional after the race," freshman Tori White said. "I'm so blessed to be here. It was an amazing experience. In the water, I couldn't even feel anything. I felt fast though. I touched the wall, and I just didn't want it to be over. I wanted to do another 50."
It's also the final state meet for long-time coach Sarah Patterson. At least for now. Patterson is retiring as a teacher after this school year and won't be permitted to coach the Aquagirls in 2023.
Her future with the program after next year is still up in the air. She does plan to coach the NCMP boys after this year though.
"This year, everyone had either swam together all four years of high school — Lillie and Maylei — or have come up swimming together since they were little. I would say that's what made this year extra special.
"Just watching Estella (Allen), Addison (Van Maanen), Peyton (Ray), Alex (Riney), Paige (Benson) and the freshmen Harper (Barton) and Tori (White) become even better friends and then get to enjoy the state-meet experience together and with Lillie and Maylei was pretty cool. And being there with Jenny (Jensen) and Hannah (Scotton) was amazing."
White started the 200 medley relay to open Saturday's schedule. The rest of the foursome included Barton, Lillie Ray and sophomore Paige Benson and that group finished 18th in a season-best time of 1:53.29.
The Aquagirls moved up one position from their seed of 19th.
"It was exhilarating. The adrenaline kind of carried us all," Benson said. "It was a really cool experience. I worked myself up more than I needed to so that's something I can improve on next year."
The final event of the night featured another matchup with Decorah in the 400 freestyle relay. This time, the Aquagirls came in faster than the Vikings and stayed in front with a season-best time of 3:44.48. That team included sophomores Peyton Ray, Alex Riney and Addison Van Maanen and Lillie Ray.
NCMP moved up from its 15th seed to place 14th. Decorah finished 20th and came in nearly 3 seconds behind the Aquagirls.
"I dropped a second so I was very excited," Van Maanen said. "To do this with my best friends and have so much fun doing it, I just love it.
"It was a crazy atmosphere. It wasn't like anything I expected. There's so much energy and that makes it fun."
Waukee cruised to the team title with 402 points. It won all three relays to create a large gap between runner-up Dowling Catholic (267.5). Johnston (184) finished third, NCMP (21) was 23rd, Marshalltown (19) placed 24th and Decorah (6) ended up 30th.
Part of NCMP setting a personal-best time in the 400 freestyle relay was because Riney swam a fast 55-second split on the second leg.
"It was an awesome experience. I expected to drop time but getting a 55 was huge," Riney said. "I'm really proud of these girls, and I'm glad I got to experience this with them."
Ruggles was shooting for a 25.5-second split on her leg of the 200 freestyle relay. She didn't quite hit that mark but ended her swimming career on a high note.
"I was close, but putting aside times, our goal was to beat Decorah and we did that," Ruggles said. "I think that was an amazing way to end my season and my career in general."
Saturday's events at the Linda Bloom Natatorium featured finals for all three relays and the individual finals. Friday's session included preliminary heats of the individual races.
Lillie Ray was the only NCMP swimmer to make Saturday's final in her individual event. She qualified 18th in the 50 freestyle but finished ninth overall in the preliminary round with a season-best time of 25.02.
Barton placed 18th in the 100 breaststroke and Peyton Ray was 30th in the 100 freestyle. The top 16 finishers in the preliminary round got to swim again on Saturday.
"It's surreal. After I touched and saw my time, I thought there was no way I made finals," Ray said. "That time usually isn't good enough. It felt really good and it felt fast though."
Lillie Ray swam under 25 seconds in the event at state last year and placed 23rd overall. The eighth qualifier finished in 24.98 this season.
She was unable to move up from ninth in the finals but did move down a few positions with a 12th-place finish.
"The 50 is tricky. It's a turn, it's a stroke and you just never know," Patterson said. "But she came back with a vengeance on her relay splits. She feels good about it and I feel good about where she finished."
Barton turned in a career-best time of 1:07.93 in the 100 breaststroke. It took a 1:07.61 to advance to the final round.
"I'm happy with it. I felt fast," Barton said. "I tried to stay with the girl to my left. I gave it all I had on the first 75 and I was coasting on adrenaline the rest of the way."
Patterson said Barton dropped a full second from her qualifying time. And she was 6 seconds faster on Friday than she was in her first high school race this season.
"The average person may not understand, but a full second time drop at this point in the year is massive," Patterson said. "She started the season with a 1:13 so that's a huge time drop. She's got a few things to tweak, but she's got such a great career ahead of her."
Peyton Ray was the most disappointed of the NCMP trio. It's natural to want to drop time and move up in place. She came in 30th and finished 30th and completed the race in 56.34 seconds.
"It wasn't the time I was looking for. I tightened up at the end," Peyton Ray said.
Patterson thought Peyton lost her rhythm on the last length of the race but expected her to bounce back for the relays on Saturday.
"This is her first time swimming in an individual event. Of course you want to drop time," Patterson said. "If you don't care it means you're not a competitor."
Lillie Ray and Ruggles will be lost to graduation, but the rest of the state contingent returns next season.
"It's sad that it's my last year with Lillie," Barton said. "Everyone was crying. She's such a good leader and a role model for all of us. And now she's going to leave, and I'm not sure anyone can fill her spot."
When next season begins, it will be the first time in several seasons the Ray sisters don't attend practices together or swim on the same state relay teams.
"It's going to feel really weird. I have been on every single state relay with her," Peyton Ray said about her older sister. "We are always walking up to the relays together and cooling down together. It will be weird going to practice next year without her, too."
It sunk in for Lillie Ray after Peyton gave her a hug following the final race on Saturday.
"I feel like it will be maybe weirder for her because there's never been a time when she's swam without me," Lillie Ray said. "Once the season starts for her next year, and I'm going to watch her swim without me, that's when I think it will hit me the most. That relay was my last time getting to compete with my little sister."
Notes: Lillie Ray plans to go to PCI in Ankeny for Cosmetology after high school. It's pretty easy to see how much she means to her NCMP teammates. "My one goal this year as a senior was to step into a leadership position that I had seen all of the other seniors do in my first three years," Lillie Ray said. "I just wanted to be the senior who all these girls looked up to, were comfortable with and who they came to with problems. To know that I made that much of an impact on them is incredible." ... Ruggles said she is headed to the University of Minnesota to study engineering and Korean language. She plans on taking a year to study abroad in South Korea. "I think after nine years I am ready to take a break from swimming and focus on something else in my life," Ruggles said. ... White was emotional before and after she swam in the 200 medley relay. The before tears had to do with a surprise guest in the stands. "I cried before it started because I saw someone in the bleachers who I didn't know was coming," White said. "It was my old daycare teacher. I have known him forever and he doesn't live in Newton anymore." ... Baxter freshman Camryn Russell placed seventh in 1-meter diving with a career-best score of 457.4. She is part of the Grinnell-BGM-Baxter swim team.
