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Aqua Cats Showcase a Bright Future with an 8th Place Finish at States

By Joe Ginley '12 , 02/24/19, 6:15PM EST

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Something special is brewing inside of the Saint Ignatius swimming & diving program.

From the outside looking in, it might not appear so. The Aqua Cats are a youthful team with only a few seniors sprinkled in. The Wildcats placed eighth at the Division I Swimming & Diving State Tournament, a placement that undersells the achievement and incredible potential of the Wildcats.

On Friday and Saturday in Canton, Cincinnati swimmers stole the spotlight. Brothers Jake and Carson Foster set records for Cincinnati Sycamore, while St. Xavier cruised to its 40th state title in program history. The state meet has seen little intrigue with regards to the team champion since the 1970’s. In a Saint Ignatius student-athlete’s lifetime, the Bombers have failed to capture the team title only once (in 2008).

But look closer at the results, and you’ll see the future promise of the Aqua Cats. Only one out of eight Saint Ignatius swimmers at the State Meet this weekend was a senior. And the Wildcats delivered great results among top competition.

In nearly every race at the C.T. Branin Natatorium, the Wildcats cut time. The team saw representatives in the podium in 4 events and raced in the B final of 3 more events. 

The Wildcats entered the prelims on Friday with 9 competitors – 8 swimmers and 1 diver. The Aqua Cats finished second to Toledo St. Francis at the District Meet a week before. Simply emerging from Districts is a tough feat, so most Saint Ignatius swimmers must taper for Districts, not States.

“You have put a lot into the District Meet in order to get down here,” said Head Coach Mike Lehto. “There are a couple guys we knew would be here – Tyler Hong, the relays, Joe Richmond. But you never know when you get to the State Meet how you’re going to perform. You have to put so much into it to get down here. I told the guys this all week long, ‘All you have to do is go close to what you went or a little faster, and you’ll be swimming at night. That’s exactly what happened across the board – we had great swims. You have to swim fast in the morning, because you won’t be back at night if you don’t.”

The Wildcats indeed swam well in the morning on Friday. The Wildcats’ 200 medley team clinched a spot in the A final, as did Tyler Hong as an individual in the 200 IM and the 100 back. The 200 free relay and the 400 free relay qualified for the B final, as did Joe Richmond in the 500 free.

A long day on Saturday started with the 1-meter dive and ended with finals. The day began and concluded with success for the Wildcats.

Will Claus kicked things off for the blue and gold. The sophomore started strong on the diving board, tallying a score of 199.75 in the prelims. His solid start easily earned him three more dives in the semifinals. Claus nailed the easier dives and did solidly on more advanced dives with a higher degree of difficulty, keeping himself firmly in the hunt for a podium spot. In his last three dives, in the finals, Claus cemented himself in sixth place. The second-year Cat finished with a score of 571.20, earning a place on the podium for the second straight season. Claus will look to do even better next season, as Lyle Yost of Shaker Heights graduates after winning back-to-back-to-back state diving titles.

The finals of the swimming began just after 4 pm, beginning with the 200 medley relay. The Wildcats began the festivities with a great race. Tyler Hong, Nicky Hong, Joe Richmond, and John Soeder combined for a sixth-place finish in 1:33.58, improving by the prelim time by .08 seconds.

“At the beginning of the year, I did not think our medley would swim this fast,” Tyler Hong said afterward. “It was quite amazing. This means a lot. The amount of time we put in and the hard work paid off. It feels really good to see how far we’ve come.”

Tyler Hong smiled at the podium once more after the 200 IM. The sophomore tallied a time of 1:49.69, besting his previous time of 1:50.22. Hong broke his own school record (again), ensuring a new time will appear on the record board, albeit briefly until he breaks it once again next season.

The fun continued in the 500 free. Joe Richmond performed excellently on Friday to earn a spot in the B finals. Richmond did even better on Saturday. Swimming in lane 7, Richmond captured fourth in the B final (12th place overall). Richmond felt joy at the end of the day at the successful result.

“I had a really good experience this year,” Richmond said. “Last year was a little rougher because I came in at 19th and I finished 22nd, so I added time. But it was good exposure to the meet as a freshman. This year, I came back with a lot of motivation. I came in a little farther back than last year. I came in at 21st and went into finals at 14th, and then I made it back into 12th. It was really good to see all of my dedication in the past year pay off when I was able to make my time drop.

“I’m feeling excitement,” Richmond continued. “I made B final this year, but I want to make A final next year and get on the podium. I’m definitely satisfied with this year, but hungry for next year.”

Adversity struck in the B final of the 200 free relay. The Wildcats eked out a spot in the B final as the final qualifier, ensuring the Wildcats would swim in lane 8, one of the toughest lane assignments. Even still, the Wildcats swam well. Micah Murtha, William Van de Walle, Thomas Metz, and John Soeder dashed to a time of 1:26.26, tying for fifth. However, at race’s end, the letter “D” stood next to the Wildcats’ result on the scoreboard. The Aqua Cats were disqualified for an early start.

Even still, the Wildcats’ relay showed no sign of disappointment. The relay team swam aggressively and gave its all. The coaching staff expressed its pride to the quartet after the race. Composed of a junior, two sophomores, and one freshman, these Wildcats will be back next year. 

Another promising young Cat, Tyler Hong, returned to the podium for his performance in the 100 backstroke. In the pool against Carson Foster, who set the state record for the race in the prelims, Hong dashed to third. Hong beat his prelim time, shaving his time to 48.75 for bronze.

“I’m really pumped for next year,” Hong said. “I’m excited to see what happens. We’re a young team. Hopefully by 2020 or 2021, I hope we can place really high, hopefully top 3.”

The evening ended in successful fashion for the Wildcats in the 400 free relay.

In an exciting few minutes, the Wildcats competed in the B flight of the event. The Wildcats roared in the event, cutting through the water in 3:07.93, an excellent time. Tyler Hong, Richmond, Daemyen Haywood, and Soeder combined to cut over a second from prelims to finals. If the Wildcats had swam the exact same time in the A final, the quartet would have placed sixth on the podium.

At the end of the evening, the Wildcats felt a sense of accomplishment, yet a hunger for the future. The feeling around the program is one of overwhelming excitement for a bright future.

The only Wildcats’ state qualifier who will not return next season is proud of his young teammates, and can’t wait to watch the progression of the program.

“It’s really cool, because it’s such a young team. With me graduating, I can look next year and say, ‘Hey, these are the same guys I was with,’” said Nicky Hong. “I’m super excited. I’m still going to be involved the next few years. It’s going to be awesome to see what everyone can do.”

The excitement will last some time, but it will die out with time and a long offseason. In its place, a hunger and desire will take over.

Make no mistake, cutting time and earning results does not happen by itself. Plenty of work is ahead for the Wildcats, but this group will embrace it.

“If you take a look, there’s a lot of points coming back to this team next year,” Lehto said. “With the way the freshmen performed this season, especially with Micah swimming the leadoff relay and just missing the freshman record, there’s a lot of promise as far as our depth and the quality of our kids. Now what we have to do is get Joe Richmond in a second event, Tyler will have to be there, we have to get Soeder in the 50 free, and a couple guys in the individual events, and we’ll be in good shape.”

Before moving onto next season, however, Lehto and the Wildcats will take a little time to bathe in the glow of a bright season.

This group of young men is special and the 2018-19 season was one full of unforgettable memories.  

“This is a great group of guys who bonded together right away,” said Lehto. “Last year, we had an influx of freshmen and that turned the tides this year as sophomores. We also had another influx of freshman this year. The cohesiveness of the team has been really good. They’ve been really supportive of each other. That’s what makes them go stronger in practice. When you have that, and you’re going everyday against these guys, and they work, it makes a big difference.”

Author's Note: On behalf of Saint Ignatius, I would like to thank the many people who helped us to cover the Aqua Cats this season. As they say, it takes an army.

First off, thank you to the coaching staff – Mike Lehto, Kevin Carmichael, Jim Hlavaty, Phil Symons, and Tom Blankenship. Thank you for giving us an all-access look inside the program and helping to tell the story of this team (and answering countless questions with grace and helpfulness). 

Secondly, thank you to the swimming & diving parents, particularly Debbie Toothman, Kyoko Hong, and Liz Claus. Thank you for sending results, action shots from meets, and providing help and support throughout the season. 

Finally, thank you to the members of the swimming & diving team. Thank you for giving such great quotes and for being so welcoming. You make covering the team fun and fulfilling. You have a bright future ahead, both inside and outside of the pool.