Wood reaches state finals again
By Mark Smith msmith@post-trib.com February 21, 2012 4:06PM
Crown Point's Daniel Kvachkoff swims the breast stroke during the boys swim sectionals on Saturday, February 18, 2012, in Munster. | Scott R. Brandush~Sun-Times Media
Munster Boys swim sectional
2-18-12 @ Munster
50 FREESTYLE
1. Adam Johnson (Highland) :20.51
2. Stephen Castillo (Highland) :21.06
3. Mike Kukurugya (CP) :21.43
4. Sammy Odtallah (Munster) :22.30
100 FREESTYLE
1. Adam Johnson (Highland) :45.88
2. Stephen Castillo (Highland) :46.42
3. Johnny Lynk (CP) :47.71
200 FREESTYLE
1. Luke Paprocki (LC) 1:49.19
2. Kyle Rucket (Munster) 1:46.74
3. Chris Dabrowski (Highland) 1:47.80
500 FREESTYLE
1. Chris Dabrowski (Highland) 4:47.05
2. Kyle Ruckert (Munster) 4:48.58
3. Cole Briggs (Munster) 4:52.50
200 IM
1. James Beckman (Munster) 1:58.84
2. Eric Dobis (Munster) 2;00.04
3. Josh Barjas (LC) 2:00.96
BUTTERFLY
1. Danny Kvachkoff (CP) :52.72
2. Joel Gintzer (CP) :52.90
3. Brandon Stefano (LC) :53.20
BREASTSTROKE
1. Connor Wood (LOWELL) 1:00.05
2. Andy Kvachkoff (CP) 1:00.22
3. Joe Gardner (Munster) 1:01.07
BACKSTROKE
1. Mike Kukurugya (CP) :52.52
2. James Beckman (Munster) :53.17
3. Johnny Lynk (CP) :54.53
200 MEDLEY RELAY
1. Johnny Lynk, Mike Kukurugya, Danny and Andy Kvachkoff (CP) 1:36.26
2. MUNSTER - 1:38.18
3. LAKE CENTRAL - 1:39.10
4. HIGHLAND - 1:42.41
200 FREE RELAY
1. Stephen Castillo, Lloyd Postell, Matt Dyer and Adam Johnson (HIGHLAND) 1:25.04
2. Nick Huls, Joel Gintzer, Andy and Danny Kvachkoff (CP) 1:30.27
3. LAKE CENTRAL - 1:30.49
400 FREESTYLE RELAY
1. Stephen Castillo, Chris Dabrowski, Matt Dyer and Adam Johnson (Highland) 3:10.58
2. James Beckman, Sammy Odtallah, Kyle Ruckert and Eric Dobis (Munster) 3:15.78
3. Nick Huls, Joel Gintzler, Johnny Lynk and Mike Kukurugya (CP) 3:17.67
Article Extras
MUNSTER — So Munster won the local boys swimming sectional for the 27th year in a row. Twenty-seven in a row. Barely more than a quarter of a century. Big deal.
How about Crown Point winning four events including going 1-2 in the butterfly, 1-3 the backstroke and winning the 200 medley relay, second in the 200 relay and 3rd in the 400 relay?
And Lowell’s Connor Wood (1:00.05), the favorite in the breaststroke, coming from behind to win the sectional by a fraction of a second over CP’s Danny Kvachkoff (1:00.22)?
Wood was the top seed but he didn’t feel any pressure, even when Kvachkoff led him at the turn.
“I don’t pay any attentiuon to that,” Wood said. “It’s my senior year. I’ve got my college picked out. I just wanted to have fun. Andrew and Danny (Kvachkoff) have been my friends since I was 12. They are old friends. We’ve had a lot of fun time swimming.
“I was under a minute on the prelims and that was a goal of mine.
“My timing was really off. I worked on quick turns and the quick lunge to get my kick in place. My 200 IM time (2nd at 2:00.72 in the prelims, 2:02.13 in the finals) was a lot better. That’s why I was at :59 (in the breastroke) instead of the 1:03s I’ve been averaging all season.”
The 1-2 butterfly for Kvachkoff and Joel Gintzler was an upset because that’s not where they were seeded.
“He worked so hard so we could go 1-2,” said Kvachkoff. “I was second and I think he was fifth. We finished third as a team. We wanted to win. I think we set ourselves up to do really well at state. I think we could go top-15, maybe top-10.”
CP’s Mike Kukurugya won the backstroke and helped two relays place first in the 200 medley relay and third in the 400.
“That was the plan,” Kukurugya said. “(The backstroke win) wasn’t easy. Munster has that freshman (James Beckman, who place second). I loved the competeition here the last few years. All the fast guys who’ve gone on to college now. I was just so happy with how we did today.
“They (Kvachkoff and Gitzler) put in the work to go 1-2. We did very well today.”
Munster was first, second or third in eight of the 12 events and won the title even though it only won two events, one of them Beckman’s pool record-breaking 1:58.34 in the 200 IM. Without champions they will not be able to score big points downstate at the IUPUI Natatorium this Saturday but they reached their goal.
“Its big,” said coach Matt Pavlovich. “There’s a lot of competition here with Lake Central, Highland and Crown Point. Everybody is aware of it (the streak).”
Wood, who won the breaststroke last season with a time of :59.85, may speak for many when he says that he’s not obsessed with winning at the state finals this week, just wanting to do his best.
“One of the college coaches I’ve been talking to will be there,” he said. “I just want to have fun. It’s my senior year. Go out with a bang.”
SWIM NOTES: Actually Munster’s 27th sectional in a row is a very big deal.
And unlike Carmel’s girls state title streak, this streak goes against the odds. Carmel is one of the state’s five largest schools and it exists in the most wealthy county in the midwest.
There are no bag ladies walking the streets of Munster either, but it’s not half as large as the largest school in its own sectional.
“We’re doing this against some pretty big schools,” said Munster athletic director Mike Smith. “Lake Central and Crown Point are very big schools with very good programs.”
“We’re tied with Center Grove and they’ve won 27 in a row, too and it started in the same year. Isn’t that odd?”
Lowell’s Connor Wood was 21st at the 2011 state finals in the breastroke, posting a tie of 1:00.02. His 2011 sectional prelim time of :58.90 is his career best.
Hie prelim time last week was :59.75.
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