HSE swim team's sectional win fuels them for state finals

Last weekend, the Hamilton Southeastern Royals won the Fishers Swim Sectional to claim their 17th consecutive. The Royals' remarkable win was highlighted by the fact that the HSE boys swim team had faced a 100-point deficit prior to Saturday's final heat. Able to overcome the team standings, the Royals also avenged previous losses to both Fishers and Yorktown, suffered during the regular season. "They battled all year long and stayed with the plan - we repeatedly challenged them to swim for the end of the season, so this is the beginning with the final meet being the state championships, and they appear to be right on track," HSE coach Andy Pedersen said. The Royals won the sectional title with a score of 306.50 score, followed by Fishers' 297.50. Yorktown finished third with a score of 254. Individual winners for HSE included: Marshall Osborne in the 500-yard freestyle, Nathan Kinney in the 100 backstroke and the 200 medley and 200 freestyle relay teams. The 200 medley relay team composed of Justin Rossillo, Seth Essington, Kinney and Zach Snider set a sectional and pool record at 1:34.64. Kinney's time of 45.13 in the 100 freestyle established a school, sectional and pool record. His time of 50.28 in the backstroke marked a new sectional and pool record. The 200 freestyle relay team of Snider, Rossillo, Jacob Robinson and Kinney also set a new sectional and pool record at 1:25.53. Rossillo was also runner-up in the 100 backstroke and 200 individual medley. Osborne also placed third in the 200 freestyle and helped the 400 freestyle relay team (Billy Grogan, Robinson and Evan Wiedeman) claim third. Sebastian Garcia finished runner-up in the 100 breaststroke and Seth Essington was third in the same event. When HSE assistant coach Dan Johnson was asked where this team ranked with the other 16 previous winners, he said, "This one would have to be at the top because the guys not only had to overcome so much to win it, but also because no one gave them a chance to beat Fishers or Yorktown." The Royals move on to the IHSAA's 72nd annual Boys Swimming and Diving State Finals next, which begins on Friday night at the Indiana University Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI. The preliminary round is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. On Saturday, the diving preliminaries and semifinals begin at 9 a.m. At 1 p.m, the swimming consolations and finals commence. The top 16 participants in each swimming event during Friday's preliminaries will return for competition on Saturday with the top eight individuals vying for state championship honors.