Scarborough claims title MDI senior wins 100 backstroke

ORONO – Jamie Garver only began swimming the backstroke at the state championships this year, but the senior from Mount Desert Island turned out to be very good at it.

Her efforts were rewarded in Monday’s state Class B girls swimming and diving championships at the University of Maine’s Stanley Wallace Pool as Garver won the 100-yard backstroke title by more than 1.5 seconds.

Scarborough used its depth to capture the team laurels by 47 points over runner-up Greely of Cumberland Center.

With sophomores Ashley Wheeler and Jennifer Flaherty and freshman Carrie Chykaliuk piling up wins and other high finishes, Scarborough finished with 216 points. Greely was at 169, followed by Catherine McAuley of Portland at 166, and Falmouth at 137.

MDI was the top-scoring Eastern Maine team, in fifth at 117 points. Old Town was sixth at 112, and John Bapst Memorial of Bangor also finished among the top 10 teams, in ninth with 54 points.

Garver had qualified for the state championships in the backstroke in previous years, but had declined to race it.

“The backstroke is my favorite event, but when it came to states, we’d look at the times and see what was best for the team,” said the 17-year-old from Trenton.

Her freshman year, she swam the 50 and 100 freestyles; her next two years, she swam the 100 and 200 frees.

Her only state championship was her freshman year as a member of the Trojans’ 200 free relay team.

When she and her coach saw she was seeded first in the state, by a wide margin, in the backstroke, Garver decided to go after the backstroke crown.

She finished third in the 200 freestyle, the second event of the night, then waited for her chance at the 100 back.

“I was nervous in the backstroke,” said Garver. “Wheeler, in the first 25 [yards] was close to me, but I kicked a lot.”

Her time of 1 minute, 4.7 seconds buried Wheeler and the other competitors in the final. Wheeler’s time was 1:06.28.

“I was very happy,” said Garver. “The one thing I wanted to do was get first in the back[stroke]. My year feels complete now.”

Scarborough won the opening event, the 200 medley relay (consisting of Wheeler, Flaherty, Chykaliuk, and Kristen Davis), but Greely passed the Storm by scoring 27 points in the 200 individual medley, inluding Meaghan Skahan’s victory.

Scarborough scored 22 points in the next event, the 50 free, to pull ahead for good. The Red Storm’s victory was all the more amazing because they had no competitors, and therefore no points, in the 1-meter diving.

Greely pulled to within seven points and McAuley nine after the diving, but they would get no closer.

The Swimmer of the Meet was freshman Gina Mancini of Falmouth, who earned automatic All-America honors with a 23.90 effort in the 50 free prelims and followed it with a 24 flat victory in the final. She also won the 100 breaststroke and anchored the winning 200 free relay. The 50 time is also a state and meet record.

Kary Goodman of McAuley also earned All-America status when she won the 100 butterfly in a meet record 57.45 seconds, 3.7 seconds ahead of runner-up Alyson Tozier of Falmouth. Tozier did win the 200 free.

Chykaliuk won the 100 free. Flaherty followed by edging Goodman in the 500 free by .17 seconds as Flaherty made up a quarter of a body length deficit over the final 40 yards.

Tozier and Mancini led Falmouth to the 200 free relay title, and Wheeler, Flaherty, Chykaliuk (plus Tina Maples) gave Scarborough another title in the 400 free relay.

Megan White of Falmouth won the diving with 368.65 points.

MDI also picked up the Sportsmanship Award.