Girls' swimming outlook: Plenty of experienced talent returning

The Class 4 Northwestern District is whole again, and it’s packed with swimmers who have experience competing against the best of the best in Virginia.

As the only local Class 4 school that competed in the 2021 Virginia High School League postseason, Handley has the most immediate experience among Northwestern District teams. The Judges achieved their best-ever finish by placing ninth in last year’s Class 4 state meet, and Handley returns all four swimmers who helped them earn that result.

Sophomore Grace Morgan placed second in the 500 free and fifth in the 200 free at the state meet and won the Class 4 Northwestern District title in both events. Junior Hailey Brown placed sixth in the 100 butterfly and seventh in the 200 free. Sophomore Laura Salley won the district title in the 100 fly. Those three and junior Sullivan Morefield teamed up for 6th in the 400 free relay and 8th in the 200 free relay at the state meet, and they also won the district title in that event.

Frederick County last competed in the VHSL postseason in 2019-20, when Sherando won the district team title and placed eighth in Class 4, the best finish in program history. Sherando’s personnel losses include Megan De Jong, The Winchester Star Girls’ Swimmer of the Year in 2020, but the Warriors still have four swimmers who competed at the 2020 Class 4 meet.

Junior Chelsey Jones placed sixth in the 100 fly for All-State honors. She also competed in the 100 backstroke at the state meet. Junior Taylor Smith (200 IM and 100 fly), junior Lexee Schellhammer (50 free) and senior Natalee Tusing (100 free and 200 free) also competed individually at the Class 4 meet.

James Wood loses a two-time Star Swimmer of the Year in Kimberly Warnagiris (2018 and 2019). The Colonels still have junior Lauren Masters (seventh in the 50 free and a state competitor in the 100 free). Senior Paige Simko competed at the state meet in the 100 free and 100 breast in 2020 and signed with NCAA Division I Loyola of Maryland last month.

Millbrook will be led once again by senior Lyddie Esslinger, who competed in the 100 backstroke at the 2020 state meet.

Clarke County only had three swimmers on its roster last winter. With nine girls this year, the Eagles will be significantly more competitive in Class 2.

Senior Kayla Sprincis will again lead Clarke County. She’s a two-time defending state champion in the 500 free, and she also placed second in the state in the 200 free last year.

The following is a glance at each area team:

Handley

Coach: Tag Grove, 20th season.

Last year: Second in Class 4 Northwestern District; fourth in Region 4C; ninth in Class 4 state.

Key loss: Molly Young.

Key returnees: Grace Morgan, So.; Hailey Brown, Jr.; Laura Salley, So.; Sullivan Morefield, Jr.; Claire Zombro, Jr.; Ren Delaney, Jr.; Talley Sublett, Sr.; Abigail Dodd, Sr.; Payton Craig, Jr.; Mahi Patel, Sr.; Lia Feit, Sr.; Emma Fout, Jr.

Key newcomers: Kelsye Brown, Fr.; Sierra Campbell, Fr.; Alexa Gluszak, So.

Grove’s outlook: “We have the talent at the top end, but the middle has the potential to be better. That’s kind of what we need to have happen to have the success that we’re capable of having. We’re going to be counting on people like Ren and Talley and Claire to do a little bit more. They came off really good seasons last year. They’re doing the work now, and we’ll see where they end up in a month or two. (Kelsye Brown, Hailey’s younger sister) is definitely our top freshman coming in. Mahi is probably the most dedicated person I’ve come across in years. She’s not one of our fastest swimmers, but she’s someone you can count on to swim any event for us. She volunteers to swim the fly a lot, and she does well. When we get to next year, it’s going to set in that she’s not here every day, cheering people on, making people work hard in the weight room. She’ll be missed. If we had 20, 30 kids like her, it’d be great.”

First meet: Today vs. Fauquier at Jim Barnett Park, 11 a.m.

Sherando

Coach: Joe Knight, 17th season.

Key losses: Lindley Armel, Emma De Jong, Addy Gannon, Hannah Motley, Anika Williams.

Key returnees: Jennifer Angel, Sr.; Chloe Boyd, Jr.; Chelsey Jones, Jr.; Audrey Kauffman, So.; Avery Lunde, Sr.; Madison Reed, So., Lexee Schellhammer, Jr.; Taylor Smith, Jr.; Chloe Stogsdill, Sr.; Natalee Tusing, Sr.; Madelynn Twigg, So.; Addy Wallin, So.; Stella Wallin, Sr.; Grace White, Jr.

Key newcomers: Zyna Chaari, Fr.; Gracie Defibaugh, Fr.; Zurisadal Fernandez, Fr; Emma Keister, So.; Deeana Laduca, Fr.; Reese Luong, Fr.; Mary Veatch, Fr.

Knight’s outlook: “It’s hard to gauge our team at this juncture of the season. We graduated several key swimmers from last year. That bunch had been with us for four strong years, and to lose them is bound to have a huge impact on our team. Lindley, Emma, Addy, Hannah, and Anika all played key roles in our success over the years and they will be hard to replace. That is especially true of Emma De Jong. That, in addition to coming off our COVID-abbreviated season last spring, makes it doubly hard to tell how we are going to fare. If pressed, I would say that we are not nearly as deep as our teams over the last three or four years, so it’s going to be up to the others to step up and fill key roles for us.”

First meet: Dec. 11 vs. Liberty at Jim Barnett Park

James Wood

Coach: Jessica Barr, third season.

Key loss: Kimberly Warnagaris.

Key returnees: Paige Simko, Sr.; Lauren Masters, Jr.; Leah Snapp, Sr.

Key newcomers: Annie Hua, Fr.; Kallie Gyurisin, Fr.

Barr’s outlook: “We are looking to get back to states again this year, with not only multiple individual swims but also with a girls’ relay team. Warnagaris certainly leaves behind some tough shoes to fill, but we are excited to see what depth we have this year as we bring in a few solid newcomers with quite a number of combined years of experience in year-round swimming. In the district, we’ll definitely have some tough competition but I believe we have what it takes to be towards the top. As we get further into the season and are able to analyze what our competition brings forth, we will continue to focus on what each team member can contribute towards the team in order to put forth a top-three performance at districts.”

First meet: Tuesday vs. Handley at Jim Barnett Park

Millbrook

Coach: Will Sigler, eighth season.

Key losses: Emma Shipp, Avery Ours.

Key returnees: Lyddie Esslinger, Sr.; Olivia Webster, Sr.; Avery Sigler, Sr.

Key newcomer: Kiera Webster, Fr.

Sigler’s outlook: “We are excited to get back to a regular swim season with 10 meets scheduled. We are a small team with good quality this year. There will be a lot of competitive swims with several of our individual swimmers. We should have some individual state qualifiers which will also help with getting a relay to states this year.”

First meet: Today vs. Kettle Run at Jim Barnett Park, 9 a.m.

Clarke County

Coach: Carol Marshall, 20th season.

Last year: 17th in Class 2/1 state meet.

Key losses: None mentioned.

Key returnees: Kayla Sprincis, Sr.; Riley Duncan, So.

Key newcomers: Kyleigh Goforth, Fr.; Leah Mitchell Fr.,; Maya Pitts, Fr.; Kylie Prazinko, So.; Rebecca Spitler, Fr.; Noelle Whalen, Fr.; Claire Quijadas, Fr.

Marshall’s outlook: “The girls are excited we get to have relays this year. Kayla sets the pace for Maya, Noelle and Kyleigh. None of these ladies are afraid to swim fast. Kayla will still be our primary distance swimmer, while Noelle will pick up fly and most likely back, Kyleigh free and breast, and Maya IM and fly. Leah, Kylie and Rebecca are summer swimmers who are building their endurance nicely and will round out the roster. We are a young team, but only Claire is new to the sport of swimming. The ladies should perform well in the region and at the state meet.”

First meet: Today vs. Wilson Memorial at Signal Knob Recreation Center in Strasburg, 3 p.m.

— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Follow on Twitter @WinStarSports1th