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MISSION VIEJO — Santa Margarita’s boys and girls swimming teams maintained their status as the fastest in the CIF Southern Section, and did it with style points Friday.
The Trinity League school set several records, including a national independent mark, to help highlight a memorable night for the Division 1 and Division 2 finals at Marguerite Aquatics Complex.
With Division 1 and Division 2 taking turns in the same competition pool, a race by Matthew Chai of Sonora in Division 2 found the spotlight.
The Cal-bound senior broke Olympian Jeff Kostoff’s 1983 record in the 500-yard freestyle — the oldest swimming record in the section — with a time of 4 minutes, 15.91 seconds. The time helped the Raiders tie for second in the Division 2 team race.
The finals also welcomed back Orange County Olympic legend Janet Evans (El Dorado HS), who was introduced before the girls 500-yard freestyle final that included her daughter, JSerra freshman Sydney Willson.
Evans appeared to kiss her daughter’s hand as she presented her medal for taking second place to winner Abby O’Sullivan of Santa Margarita.
“World’s most famous swim mom,” section commissioner and meet announcer Rob Wigod said.
The final images of the championships belonged to Santa Margarita.
The Eagles girls won their eighth consecutive title by scoring a section-record 548 points to easily outdistance runner-up Los Alamitos (142).
The Eagles boys captured their second straight team championship by winning their showdown against Loyola.
Santa Margarita’s boys and girls combined for three Orange County and three Division 1 records.
The girls capped the finals by breaking their own national independent high school and county record in the 400-yard freestyle with a time of 3:18.22. The team consisted of freshman Teagan O’Dell, Teia Salvino, Macky Hodges and anchor Justina Kozan.
The Eagles girls opened the session by setting Orange County and Division 1 records in the 200-yard medley relay. The team of Hodges, O’Dell, Kozan and anchor Lindsay Ervin clocked a 1:39.56, slicing more than a second off Crean Lutheran’s 2017 county record of 1:40.77.
Santa Margarita’s boys followed moments later by claiming their 200 medley relay in a county-record 1:30.08. The team of Ramon Jiang, Keller Morgan, Daniel Verdolaga and Hunter Cehelnik — three sophomores and a junior — edged University’s 2014 county record by two one-hundredths of a second.
“There’s something to say about momentum,” Santa Margarita co-coach Rich Blanc said of his relays.
And so went the Division 1 finals for the Eagles.
They crowned seven individual champions between the boys and girls. They were: USC-bound Kozan (200 free 1:45.09, 100 butterfly 52.65), O’Dell (200 individual medley 1:55.46, 100 back 52.83), Morgan (200 IM 1:47.74), Salvino (50 free 22.71) and O’Sullivan (500 free 4:48.67).
O’Dell, a freshman, lowered her school-record in the 200 IM by setting the Division 1 record and moving within 1 1/2 seconds of Ella Eastin’s county record.
San Juan Hills junior David Schmitt impressed in Division 1 by touching first in the 100 butterfly with a lifetime-best of 47.25, second-fastest in county history.
“I was trying to go 46,” said Schmitt, who approached Olympian Michael Cavic’s county record of 47.13.
Tesoro swept the boys and girls 100 freestyles in Division 1. Harvard-bound Anders Aistars took the boys in 44.01, the second fastest in county history and just two one-hundredth of a second from joining former Woodbridge star Derya Buyukuncu in the county’s 43-second club.
Michigan-bound Katie Crom of Tesoro touched first in the girls 100 free with a swift 49.14.
Fountain Valley freshman Kaitlyn Nguyen won the Division 1 breaststroke in 1:03.19.
Orange County also produced several champions in Division 2.
Chai also won the 200 free in 1:37.42. He slightly shook his head after his 500, a lifetime-best time that edged Kostoff’s 4:16.39 for Upland.
“I’ll take it,” he said of the record. “I just feel slow.”
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Laguna Hills’ Tona Zinn won the 200 IM (1:47.09) and 100 breaststroke (54.26) in times faster than the winning touches in Division 1. The Northwestern-bound senior was the defending champion in both events and took the 200 IM in Division 1 as a freshman.
Other Division 2 winners were: Esperanza’s girls medley relay (school-record 1:46.20), Sunny Hills’ Kailee Chow (500 free, 4:58.32), El Toro’s Henley Kerr (100 breast 1:02.92) and Sonora’s Joey Kling (100 back 48.99).
Next week, the racing shifts to Fresno for the CIF State championships, which return after a two-year absence caused by the pandemic. Santa Margarita’s girls claimed state titles in 2019 and 2018.