By Jimmy Friery
COSTA MESA, CA – The Santa Barbara City College Women's Swimming & Diving team won their first state championship in program history this weekend at Orange Coast College.
The Vaqueros blew their competition out of the water, scoring 460 points while 2nd place Santa Rosa scored 281.5 points. They had all but clinched the state title in the first two days; by the start of Saturday—day three of the three-day meet—they had 322 points.
A historic milestone in so many ways, but the most striking way to put it is this: SBCC is just the second Aquatics program in the last 20 years to win the Water Polo and Swim & Dive state championship in the same school year. The Vaqueros went undefeated in water polo, no less. Golden West is the only other school to achieve the feat, doing it in 1998-99, 1999-2000, 2000-01, and 2012-13.
Chuckie Roth was naturally named State Coach of the Year, his first time receiving the honor by the 3C2A. Move over all of the other trophies on your mantel a tad, Chuckie, you have two more you'll need space for.
Lily Carrick broke a state record in the 400 IM, clocking in at 4:29.59. Even more remarkable, the Australian swam the event for the first time in her life less than two months ago, with an initial time of 4:46.28. Not only did she establish a state record while training for less than two months, she shaved more than 16 seconds off her original mark.
Speaking of, this Vaqueros team is made up mostly of water polo players, not primary swimmers. The majority of the athletes were trying swim for the first time since before high school, or even in their life. All the more impressive—and, a testament to how hard-working this group is—considering how dominant they were this weekend and throughout the swim season.
Roth echoed this sentiment to the 3C2A's Tony Altobelli: "I've got a really special group of kids, who worked really hard this year … They bought into the program and they bought into each other, making each other better each day. Our kids don't have a ton of swimming background – most are water polo athletes – but they're relentless, they're gritty and support each other in and out of the water. It's been incredible."
Day 1, Thursday:
On to the action, the Vaqueros put up a good showing in event 1, the 200 Free Relay. Caroline Oates-Lila Waechter-Lily Carrick-Maddie Myers finished 3rd at 1:38.55, just .12 shy of 2nd and .78 behind 1st, but the SBCC took the 32 points, nonetheless.
33 more points came in the 500 Free, with Carrick and Oates finishing 2nd and 3rd with times just over 5 minutes. Addie Lane also made the final heat, giving SBCC 11 additional points.
Tayten Neiderhiser also contributed 11 points in the final heat of event #5, the 200 IM.
In the 50 Free, Myers took home 3rd in the sprint with a blistering 24.21.
Then, in the final event, the Vaqs relay team made up for their rare non-1st place finish earlier in the day. In the 400 Medley Relay, Erin Otsuki-Myers-Carrick-Oates were in lane 7 and the only group to finish under 4 minutes. Otsuki's 58.57 Back split gave the Vaqueros a lead they would never relinquish.
The Vaqueros ended the day in 1st with 148 points, 44 off of 2nd place El Camino.
Day 2, Friday:
Picking up where they left off, the Vaqs won the 200 Medley Relay by a half-second over West Valley with a time of 1:49.00. However, they did not win it in the traditional way. Not given a top-8 seed, the Vaqueros had to swim in, and won from, the first heat! They beat all 8 times from the final heat for a 1st place finish overall. Erin Otsuki once again led off with the fastest Back split—a speedy 26.86—and Lila Waechter, Lily Carrick, and Maddie Myers took it home. Myers' 23.65 Free split was the fastest, too. Tally another 40 points for SBCC, serendipitously.
Then, history. Carrick swam the aforementioned state record time of 4:29.59 in the 400 IM, crowning herself state champion. Tayten Neiderhiser came in 5th at 4:53.49 to give SBCC 14 more points.
In the 200 Free, Myers and Caroline Oates finished 2nd and 3rd respectively. Reminiscent of the 500 Free, two Vaqueros rounded out the top 3 behind El Camino's Mia Park.
Otsuki earned SBCC 15 points with a 4th place finish in the 100 Back. Her time of 58.69 was just .35 off 3rd.
As usual, the Vaqueros then rounded out the day with a win in a relay. The 1st place team of Addie Lane-Sofia Paez-Oates-Otsuki touched at 7:51.79, more than 10 seconds to spare off 2nd. Oates' 1:55.03 split was by far the fastest of the bunch.
Two days down, and the Vaqueros had taken a commanding lead—322 points compared to 2nd place Santa Rosa at 205.5. It looked apparent that the Vaqueros would celebrate a state title on the following day.
Day 3, Saturday:
The mile kicked off the final day of the State Championship meet. Caroline Oates finished 2nd, only behind state-record-breaking Mia Park with a 17:34.42, breaking a school record and earning 17 surplus points. Addie Lane also competed and gave the Vaqueros 12 points.
In the 200 Back, Erin Otsuki was 3rd (2:06.76) and Tayten Neiderhiser was 6th (2:11.53), combining for 29 points.
Next event was the 100 Free, and Maddie Myers put on a 1st place, state champion performance. Her 51.36 gave her a gold medal, with Lily Carrick not too far behind in 4th at 52.66.
The Vaqueros did not have anyone compete in the 200 Breast or 200 Fly, but with such a substantial lead, no anxious thoughts were had. In the celebratory mood, only one more event was on the schedule, and SBCC was poised for one last show of their prowess.
The 400 Free Relay of Otsuki-Oates-Carrick-Myers was the fourth 1st place, state champion SBCC relay out of 5 relay events. Carrick's 52.51 split in the third leg took the lead, and Myers' 51.60 made sure they kept it. Their time of 3:31.68 gave them a final 40 points, bringing the team to 460 total.
Needless to say, a handful of program records were broken this weekend, and an update to the SBCC All-Time Marks page will need to occur.
It almost sounds hyperbolic at this point, but one really cannot say enough about how inspiring this group of women has been throughout this whole season. Even beyond this swim season, 13 of the athletes on this team can boast that they are state champions in both water polo and swim.
Bad news for their opponents, there are no signs of slowing down, either. 14 of the 19 athletes have another year of eligibility, so one can already set the expectations high for next year.
A special mention to sophomores Morgan Cederholm and Ava Smith. Morgan graduates as WSC Women's Diver of the Year, and Ava used this swim season to train for the triathlon. Both are state champions.
Furthermore, SBCC Aquatics is indebted to Caroline Oates, who bounced back to be a key starter on the state champion Water Polo team, constantly earned points at the top spots of distance events, and was a mainstay in various relays. In just one year, Caroline endeared herself to her teammates and all Vaqueros supporters, combined with absolute excellence in the water. Her legacy is cemented as a perfect 2 for 2 in 3C2A titles.
Speaking of legacy, look no further than Natalie Mancinelli and Gabi Turnbull. Two of the easiest people to root for, let alone athletes, the pair will hang up their SBCC caps with 3 state championships—back-to-back in Water Polo, and this year's Swim & Dive. Natalie brought the energy as the designated authority on the Vaqueros' music and speaker, and her poise in big moments is hard to come by in young athletes. Gabi gutted out various injuries to contribute statistically to both state championships this year, but her presence out of the water as a leader is of championship quality alone. We look forward to honoring them in the Vaquero Hall of Fame someday.
1st place finishes, state champions:
400 Medley Relay – Erin Otsuki-Maddie Myers-Lily Carrick-Caroline Oates, 3:59.33
200 Medley Relay – Erin Otsuki-Lila Waechter-Lily Carrick-Maddie Myers, 1:49.00
400 IM – Lily Carrick, 4:29.59, state record
800 Free Relay – Addie Lane-Sofia Paez-Caroline Oates-Erin Otsuki, 7:51.79
100 Free – Maddie Myers, 51.36
400 Free Relay – Erin Otsuki-Caroline Oates-Lily Carrick-Maddie Myers, 3:31.68
2nd place finishes:
500 Free – Lily Carrick, 5:01.03
200 Free – Maddie Myers, 1:52.69
1650 Free – Caroline Oates, 17:34.42
3rd place finishes:
200 Free Relay – Caroline Oates-Lila Waechter-Lily Carrick-Maddie Myers, 1:38.55
500 Free – Caroline Oates, 5:05.53
50 Free – Maddie Myers, 24.21
200 Free – Caroline Oates, 1:54.10
200 Back – Erin Otsuki, 2:06.76
Team scores (top 15):
1. SBCC, 460
2. Santa Rosa, 281.5
3. Long Beach, 255
4. El Camino, 248
5. Sierra, 229
6. Mt. San Antonio, 217
7. Orange Coast, 215
8. West Valley, 204
9. Diablo, 189
10. Foothill, 182.5
11. American River, 139
12. Hancock, 130
13. Grossmont, 129
14. LA Valley, 109
15. San Joaquin Delta, 104
Photos 1-3 by Daryl Peterson. Photo 4 from @3c2asports on Instagram
