THORNTON — Shelly Patton didn’t exactly come out of nowhere to post an impressive double and earn athlete of the meet honors at the Coaches Invitational girls swim meet Saturday at the Veterans’ Memorial Aquatic Center.
The Heritage senior just took a one-year break from high school swimming.
“I’m here for the whole thing,” Patton said after swamping the competition in the 200-yard individual medley by 5.2 seconds and the 100 backstroke by 2.54 seconds. “I took last year off, but I really wanted to do it again.”
Patton won the IM in 2:00.83 and the backstroke in 55.02.
One of two double winners along with Fossil Ridge’s Rhianna Williams, who won both sprints, Patton swam for her club team last season, and along the way qualified for the Olympic Trials in the 200 IM. She still has an eye on making it in the 400 IM as well.
“She’s been a force for a long time,” Heritage coach Tom Byorick said of Patton, who was second to Regis Jesuit sensation Missy Franklin in the backstroke in the 2010 and 2009 state meets.
Franklin did not compete in Saturday’s meet, which featured some of the state’s top swimmers in 5A and 4A, but Cherry Creek senior Bonnie Brandon did mark her 2011-12 high school season debut.
The versatile Brandon, who has won state titles in five events, took second in the 200 backstroke in last month’s Pan American Games and has qualified for five events in next year’s Olympic Trials. She’s ranked fourth nationally in the 200 backstroke; Franklin is No. 1.
Admittedly “worn down from training,” Brandon skipped perhaps her best event, the backstroke. But she managed a victory in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:50.03 over Fairview’s Abigail Houcak (1:50.62), then took second in her weakest stroke, the 100 butterfly, with a time of 57.05. Columbine’s Ashley Horodyski won in 56.73.
Cherry Creek coach Eric Craven wouldn’t commit on whether Brandon will swim the 200 freestyle in the state meet. It would be the first time in her career, as in past years Craven opted for Jordan Mattern based on seniority. Mattern, last year’s champion in the event, has graduated.
Fairview led the team competition from the start and beat runner-up Fossil Ridge 260-200. Heritage and Cherry Creek tied for third with 192 points.
The meet also featured a diving duel between last season’s two state champions, with 5A’s Michal Bower, a Loveland junior, beating St. Mary’s Academy sophomore Alexa Bower, 482.70-450.95.
Coaches Invitational at VMAC
Overall team scores
Fairview 260, Fossil Ridge 200, Cherry Creek 192, Heritage 192, Ralston Valley 153, Thompson Valley 136, Mountain Vista 107, Broomfield 105, Boulder 101, Arapahoe 96, Grandview 93, Loveland 88, Mountain Range 66, Columbine 59, ThunderRidge 58, Denver East 56, Fort Collins 41, Smoky Hill 38, Windsor 37, Legacy 31, Mullen 27, Rock Canyon 24, Chaparral 24, Legend 22, Regis Jesuit 19, Chatfield 18, St. Mary’s Academy 17, Niwot 14, Estes Park 14, Highlands Ranch 14, Lakewood 11, D’Evelyn 5, Greeley West 4, Longmont 2, Gateway 1.
Individual events
200-yard medley relay: Fairview (Box, Fosse, Gamble, Verhoeven) 1:49.00; Heritage 1:50.16; Fossil Ridge 1:50.55; Broomfield 1:52.47; Mountain Vista 1:53.94; Ralston Valley 1:54.07; Thompson valley 1:55.86; Chaparral 1:57.27.
200 freestyle: Brandon, Cherry Creek, 1:50.03; Houck, Fairview, 1:50.62; Mayo, Arapahoe, 1:55.08; Eddy, Thompson Valley, 1:55.63; Hinton, Heritage, 1:55.96; Arnold, Legend, 1:56.09; Dirks, Grandview, 1:56.19; Richey, Boulder, 1:56.32.
200 IM: Patton, Heritage, 2:00.83; Rowley-Wiest, Boulder, 2:06.03; Drozda, Mtn. Range, 2:06.23; Nero, Fossil Ridge, 2:11.46; Thull, FC, 2:11.70; Salanitro, Mtn. Vista, 2:11.93; Haeger, Ralston Valley, 2:13.02; Guay, Fossil Ridge 2:13.58.
50 free: Williams, Fossil Ridge, 24.12; Ochitwa, ThunderRidge, 244.46; Smith, Fairview, 24.75; Kuhr, Columbine, 24.91; Hewson, Estes Park, 25.03; Li, Fairview, 25.30; Kane, Cherry Creek, 25.34; Fonseca, Thompson Valley, 25.57.
Diving: Bower, Loveland, 482.70 pts.; Beckwith, St. Mary’s Academy, 450.95; Russ, Mullen, 407.75; Eckhardt, Windsor, 406.85; Burge, Loveland, 404.65; Hobbs, Chatfield, 399.60; Ingmire, ThunderRidge, 397.20; Hafey, Mullen, 391.00.
100 butterfly: Horodyski, Columbine, 56.73; Brandon, Cherry Creek, 57.05; Nero, Fossil Ridge, 57.12; Metzger-Seymour, Ralston Valley, 57.44; Kane, Cherry Creek, 57.86; Burkhardt, Denver East, 58.18; Dahlquist, Mountain Vista, 59.25; Dirks, Grandview, 59.74.
100 free: Williams, Fossil Ridge, 52.36; Ochitwa, ThunderRidge, 52.45; Drozda, Mountain Range, 52.51; Smith, Fairview, 52.97; Haeger, Ralston Valley, 53.82; Powell, Cherry Creek, 54.01; Eddy, Thompson Valley, 54.03; Metzger-Seymour, Ralston Valley, 56.34.
500 free: Houck, Fairview, 4:57.59; Richey, Boulder, 4:59.41; Myers, Ralston Valley, 5:03.95; Hinton, Heritage, 5:08.84; Mayo, Arapahoe, 5:12.34; Stoddard, Mountain Vista, 5:14.33; Addison, Ralston Valley, 5:15.67; Hlavacek, Thompson Valley, 5:20.56.
200 free relay: Cherry Creek (Powell, Kane, Bae, Brandon) 1:38.39; Fairview 1:38.57; Fossil Ridge 1:42.11; Mountain Range 1:42.26; Grandview 1:42.34; Heritage 1:42.62; Thompson Valley 1:42.73; Broomfield 1:43.50.
100 backstroke: Patton, Heritage, 55.02; Rowley-Wiest, Boulder, 57.56; Johnson, Smoky Hill, 59.79; Evans, Windsor, 1:00.48; Horodyski, Columbine, 1:00.67; Laufasa-Duncan, Broomfield, 1:01.06; Payne, Fairview, 1:01.26; Hoffman, Fossil Ridge, 1:01.38.
100 breaststroke: Fosse, Fairview, 1:06.47; Hansen, Loveland, 1:07.38; Cassou, Rock Canyon, 1:08.34; Salanitro, Mountain Vista, 1:08.46; Krell, Arapahoe, 1:08.89; Guay, Fossil Ridge, 1:09.05; Mooney, Fort Collins, 1:09.28; Higgins, Fort Collins, 1:09.31.
400 free relay: Cherry Creek (Wixted, Powell, Kane, Brandon) 3:31.16; Fairview 3:34.18; Heritage 3:37.17; Fossil Ridge 3:37.48; Ralsto Valley 3:42.66; Legacy 3:43.22; Grandview 3:43.64; Broomfield 3:45.01.
