INDIANAPOLIS — Seniors Anne Marie DeKeyser and Megan Coffin have been yearning for a pair of long-time Greenfield-Central swimming records.
DeKeyser got it Friday. Coffin will get another shot today.
Coffin was the lone Greenfield-Central Cougar to qualify for today’s IHSAA Girls Swimming and Diving State Finals at the IUPUI Natatorium.
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G-C swimmers participated in eight events in Friday’s preliminaries. Three school records were set. One is still in reach for the senior Coffin, who will be participating in two events today.
At the prelims, the top 16 in each event swim in the championship round. The top eight swim for a state title in the A Final. Preliminary seeds Nos. 9 through No. 16 participate in the consolation B Final. Coffin placed 13th in the 100-yard butterfly and 11th in the 100-yard breaststroke.
She broke her G-C record in the butterfly with a time of 56.70 seconds, but just missed the record and a shot at the A final in the breaststroke.
Coffin was .07 away from the school record, finishing the prelim with a time of 1:04.67, and .46 away from making the championship race and finishing in the top eight.
Both Coffin and DeKeyser have been eyeing records set in 1998 by Andrea Stouder, one of the all-time Cougar greats.
DeKeyser broke Stouder’s 22-year old mark in the 100-yard freestyle, finishing in 52.99 seconds. She placed 23rd. The old record was 53.11.
“It feels so good,” DeKeyser, aware of the record since sixth grade, said. “I was disappointed I didn’t make it back for the Top 16, but I did my best and that is all I can do. I am very excited I got that record. I have been chasing it as long as I can remember.
“I beat her today and Megan is going to beat her tomorrow.”
Coffin and DeKeyser set another school mark in the 200-yard freestyle relay along with freshmen Norah Johnson and Mary Ellen Stratman, placing 25th in 1:41.47.
The same quartet earned a finals’ alternate spot by finishing 18th in the 200-yard medley relay at 1:49.56.
Stratman added a 29th in the 200-yard IM. She took three seconds off her sectional time by finishing in 2:15.95.
DeKeyser was 27th in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 24.70 seconds.
The 400-yard relay group of Ariel Niemeier, Audrey Brinkruff, Sarah Stutz and Rebekah Bogle were 29th in 3:55.96.
Johnson added a 27th place in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:08.13.
“My hope is to go out strong for fly and hopefully drop a little more time on that, but for breaststroke I really want our school record,” Coffin said on her goals for today. “Tomorrow I’m going to get it.”
Coach Emily Logan was pleased with the performance of her team. Most of her swimmers either beat their time from last week’s sectional or placed higher than they were seeded.
“Overall, I am happy with the meet,” Logan said. “I’d love to have more of them back tomorrow, but we were just a little bit outside (in a couple of events).”
She’d like to have more, but she’s glad to have Coffin.
“She wants (the breaststroke record) so bad,” Logan said. “One more shot at it.”
