FORT COLLINS — Jackie Cro-mer’s message was simple yet original.
Moments after she realized she had won the 200-yard freestyle to become the first Lewis-Palmer swimmer to win an event at the state meet, she turned to her supporters at the Edora Pool and Ice Center and gave them a heartfelt No. 1 signal.
“It’s a great feeling, but I know it would not have been possible without the support from my coach and teammates,” she said.
Cromer’s win was just one of many unexpected finishes at the Class 5A state meet, one that ended in typical fashion with Cherry Creek taking its 23rd overall title, and its fourth in a row, with 349 points. For the fourth consecutive year, Fairview finished second (269), and Regis (193.5), Boulder (150.5) and Mountain Vista (131) rounded out the top five.
Cromer, who entered the finals with the third-fastest time behind Cherry Creek’s Jordan Mattern and Loren Brandon, allowed the field to set the pace and then turned up the pace in the final 50 yards. Her late push helped her finish .81 of a second ahead of Brandon at 1 minute, 52.16 seconds.
“I knew if I was going to win it, I was going to have to have nothing left at the end of that race,” said Cromer, a junior. “I knew I needed to leave it all in the pool, and that’s what I did.”
It started a trend for the Colorado Springs schools, which hadn’t crowned a big-school champion since Coronado’s Lisa Pursley in 2002.
Rampart’s Jenna Gregoire swam to victory in the 100 free, edging co-50-yard champion Tricia Nelson of Fort Collins in a time of 52.03 seconds in a field that featured three state champions.
“It’s absolutely huge for Colorado Springs,” Gregoire said. “Especially for our team, with all three relays coming back next year, our whole team was excited to represent Colorado Springs.”
The race of the night was the first event, and the nail-biting finish saw the Boulder quartet of Sophie Allen, Mackenzie Cooke, Ellie Shetter and Alex Scrimgeour win the Panthers’ first-ever relay title by .01 over Cherry Creek.
It got even closer in the 50 free, in which Nelson and Chatfield’s Shelley Perkins each touched the wall in 24.17 seconds.
“I’m OK with sharing,” said Nelson, who won the same event last year at 4A Fossil Ridge. “No. 1 is No. 1.”
Chaparral’s Elizabeth Yovich became the first Wolverine to win a swimming title, posting a score of 479.10 points to edge Littleton’s Hannah Tautz (467.60) in diving.
For the second straight year, Brighton’s Breann Fuller won the 100 backstroke title. Other champions included Smoky Hill freshman Caroline Piehl (200 IM), Fairview’s Lauren Rigg (100 butterfly) and Cherry Creek’s Brandon (500 free) and Christine Wixted (100 breaststroke).
