'That is the real Jonny': Firestone state champion Jonny Marshall jokes, hugs, swims fast

CANTON — Firestone senior Jonny Marshall smiled and joked around with his teammates on the pool deck Saturday night at C.T. Branin Natatorium.

Marshall held out a cell phone and took pictures with swimmers on the Falcons boys and girls teams moments after winning another Division I 100-yard backstroke state championship.

“That is the real Jonny,” Firestone coach Cindy Dial said. “He was so excited for his teammates to be here."

Marshall won his third consecutive state title in the event by swimming a school-record time of 46.31 seconds. The University of Florida recruit just missed Carson Foster’s 2019 state- and pool-record time of 46.28.

Marshall, 18, smiled and flexed his muscles as he got out of the pool and made his familiar trip to the podium. He won the state title in 46.74 as a junior and 47.41 as a sophomore.

Firestone swimming coverage:More Firestone swim pool, school records fall with senior Jonny Marshall in the water

“We focused on our turns and we focused on our breakouts so much, and then tempo-ing up that last 25 [yards],” Dial said. “He executed the game plan. I am proud of him. It was a tough meet. … I am very happy with the support that my swimmers received from their families. Our principal, Tina Loughry, was sitting up in the crowd the entire meet. My assistant coaches, Carl Shallenberger and Erin Crabtree, are terrific.”

Marshall’s cheering section featured several family members, including his parents, Louise and Steve, and his brother George, who was celebrating his 14th birthday Saturday.

“I have two very special women in my life. One is Cindy Dial and two is my mother, Louise,” Jonny Marshall said. “Every day they give that sense of nourishment, my mom especially. She is also where I get my competitive spirit from. Cindy is a lady that is such a hard chin sometimes, a stiff-chinned coach, but other times when you win one you get a little tear out of her. She inspires me every day. She pushes me to swim my hardest when I am in the pool and then when I come home my mom pushes me to be the best I can be.

"I am very grateful for those two in my life, and also my dad, my brother, my grandparents, my teammates and the alumni.”

Firestone graduates also were cheering with the Marshalls, including Jon Albrecht, a three-time state champion in the 2002 meet and a former University of North Carolina swimmer.

“As a freshman, I was in a hard place at this meet,” Marshall said. “I got 10th in the 100 back and 13th in the 100 fly. This is the amazing thing about Firestone. I look back and I looked at Mark Gangloff, an Olympic gold medalist, state champion for Firestone High School and head coach at UNC right now. He was 10th in the 200 IM his freshman year and then the next three years he won the state title [in the 100 breaststroke and added a state crown in the 200 IM as a senior in 2000].

“I looked at that and said, ‘Hey, it’s not over yet.’ And I went out and did it.”

Firestone article from 2022:Firestone junior swimmer Jonny Marshall wins second Division I state championship

Firestone article from 2021:Firestone sophomore swimmer Jonny Marshall wins Division I state title in 100 backstroke

Toledo St. Francis de Sales senior Scotty Buff finished second in the 100 backstroke Saturday for the third year in a row to Marshall, a friend and future Florida teammate.

Buff’s Saturday also included a win in the 100 butterfly in a pool-, state- and national-record time of 44.97 seconds.

“Scotty has really been a great competitor for me,” Marshall said. “He’s a great guy and a great swimmer. … He pushes me to be my best and I’d like to say I push him to be his best. It’s great to win and he got his national record so he can’t be too mad.”

Firestone swim coverage:Firestone swimmer Jonny Marshall heads into final OHSAA state meet seeking more titles

Marshall’s final state meet also included a second-place finish in the 200 freestyle for the second year in a row. His school-record time of 1:35.93 was just behind Cincinnati St. Xavier junior Thackston McMullan (1:35.86).

Marshall’s day did include frustration when Firestone’s 200 freestyle relay was disqualified when a swimmer accidently entered the pool before his teammate touched the wall.

Marshall said his approach after the relay was “put it behind you” and “joke around” with other swimmers to lighten the mood before the 100 backstroke.

“It’s a relay, so I can’t control the whole thing,” Marshall said. “I was also a little bit disappointed after my 200 free, but I couldn’t be that mad because it was my best time.”

Marshall also set a school record in a preliminary race Friday when he posted a 50 freestyle leadoff split of 20.33 in the 200 free relay.

Firestone swim article from 2020:Firestone freshmen Jonny Marshall, Tera Brilmyer ready to make a splash at state swim meet

“I have seen the maturity in Jonny, not only as a person, but also as an athlete,” Dial said of Marshall, who is 6-foot-5 and 190 pounds as a senior after being 6-3 and 165 as a freshman.

“I think once he finally grows into all that height and puts a little bit of muscle on, he is going to be something to watch over the next four years at Florida.”

Dial, who has been coaching at Firestone since 1996, added she saw that type of growth from Gangloff, Albrecht and other Falcons swimmers, such as Chris Ash, who won four state titles in the 100 breaststroke from 2002-2005.

Green senior Olivia Elgin finishes strong in Division I state swim meet

Olivia Elgin closed out her senior season at Green with a third-place finish in the Division I girls 100 freestyle in a school-record 51.20 and was seventh in the 200 medley relay in a school-record 1:46.76.

“[Friday morning] when I swam in the prelims, I swam a lifetime best as well [in the 100 free],” Elgin said. “I was already blown away with my time [of 51.36]. I felt really strong in the water [Friday] and I was incredibly nervous going into [Saturday night], especially being third. That is something where I have never been ranked that high in the state meet before.

“I am just happy to get into the state meet and get into the finals, let alone to be seeded third overall. I was super nervous, but I trusted myself and trusted my training and went out there to try to swim my best. I got a career best time and got third overall. It is insane. The last time I placed in the state meet was my sophomore year and I got seventh.”

Green coach Mike Lazor lauded Elgin, a University of Arkansas Little Rock recruit, for “the way she trains.”

“I see it everyday in practice,” Lazor said. “I think about her intensity in practice and in the back of my mind I am like, ‘That is a podium set. That is going to get her on the podium.’ I see that work ethic in her everyday. She comes to practice and walks on the pool deck with a purpose. She gives her absolute best. I am confident in her ability to perform in big meets like this.”

“... Liv is an outstanding athlete and swimmer, and her impact and legacy is going to be felt for a long, long time at Green High School. What is even going to run deeper is the type of young lady that she is and the healthy perspective that she has on her accomplishments.”

Michael Beaven can be reached at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal and is on Twitter at @MBeavenABJ.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Jonny Marshall enjoys final OHSAA state swim meet for Firestone