The Jesuit men's team swam their way to an incredible fourth-consecutive state title at last weekend's OSAA championship meet at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham. The Crusader women's swim team mounted an epic comeback on day two of the competition. Starting the day at a 32-point deficit, the women's team finished only 1.5 points behind top rival Sunset High School. It was a thrilling, close competition to watch!
The Crusaders also took home a couple of key individual event wins. Junior Trent Martinez placed first in state for both the 200 and 500 yard freestyles, posting times of 1:39.00 and 4:32.39 respectively. Junior Elise Kreutzer won the same event on the women's side, setting a time of 1:50.88 for her 200 freestyle victory. The Crusader men's team also bested the competition in the 200 yard medley and 400 freestyle relays.
Congratulations to all of our hard working student-swimmers and coaches! AMDG
From the Beaverton Valley Times:
There was all kinds of dubiousness about whether Jesuit had the means to four-peat.
Maybe the Crusader boys swimming team was a tad too young, too early in its development to fully defend its past three Class 6A state titles. Graduation took its toll on the depth chart. The pecking order was turned upside down as Jesuit essentially started anew this season.
With Trent Martinez in tow, however, and head coach Brian Butcher pressing all the right buttons when it comes to lineup placement, Jesuit didn't need to distress.
Martinez was a monster, winning the 200 and 500-yard freestyles as an individual and helping Jesuit's 400 free relay take first overall. With Sunset in striking distance seemingly the entire day thanks to a banner outing from Caspar Corbeau and a surprise first place in the 200 free relay, Jesuit again repelled the Apollos with 157 team points for its fourth straight 6A state championship at Mt. Hood Community College on Saturday.
"We knew we had the advantage, we just had to hold on for dear life," Martinez said with a smile. "We moved up a few places and moved down a few places throughout the meet, but we held through. Going up on the podium it felt like a lot fewer people who actually swam compared to the years before. It was a change in dynamic, but it was good."
As opposed to the past two state meets when Jesuit completely boatraced the field and cruised into Saturday's 'A' finals with the crown basically secure, the Crusaders had to labor for their fourth straight blue trophy. That was to be expected, however. With freshmen and sophomores seemingly everywhere, Jesuit knew this year was going to be a melee. Sunset and the rest of the Metro League prepared the Crusaders for such a skirmish. Continue reading on The Beaverton Valley Times.
PHOTOS: Chase Allgood for OregonLive