The St. Michael Albertville Knights Boys Swim and Dive Team proved they are a competitive force as their season began Saturday at the annual Hutchinson Invite. The Knights finished in second place out of seven teams, and impressively touched the wall first in seven out of eleven races.
The results of the invite proved the strength of this year’s team with dominate performances and plenty of depth. Not only do the Knights have strong leadership this year, with many returning varsity athletes, but the team has added many talented younger boys as well. Coach Kelli Nadeau was very proud of the team’s performance stating, “Everyone is fast and at a good starting point for the beginning of the season. We are proud of our new swimmers on the team and the effort and energy they brought.”
Finishing in front of the competition was Junior Max Lezer with first place finishes in the 200 individual medley and 500 free and Junior Ryan Everly with first place finishes in the 200 free and 100 fly. Captain Ryan Marhula was unbeatable in the 100 breaststroke, out touching the competition by a fraction of a second. Will Gallagher, Ryan Sustacek, Everly, and Lezer combined their speed to win the 200 free relay. The 400 free relay team of Gallagher, Kam Loven, Everly, and Lezer ended the swim meet with an impressive show of force, winning the race in a come from behind victory.
The number of athletes that scored for the team was a major contribution to the team’s success. Diver Cole Meyer finished in third place in the morning diving event and Adam Konsor dove to a sixth place finish.
Team point totals were: Breck- Blake 563, STMA 496, Mankato West 366, Hutchinson 346, Mankato East, Loyola 237, Dasssel- Cokato- Litchfield 210, Montivideo 103.
Top 8 Finishers
200 Medley Relay — 6th, Kam Loven, Ryan Marhula, Trevor Lefebvre, Nate Morgan; 200 Free — 1st, Ryan Everly; 200 IM — 1st, Max Lezer, 4th, Kam Loven; 50 Free — 4th, Will Gallagher; Diving —3rd, Cole Meyer, 6th, Adam Konsor; 100 Fly —1st, Ryan Everly; 100 Free — 2nd, Will Gallagher 7th, Nate Morgan, 8th, Ryan Sustacek; 500 Free — 1st, Max Lezer; 200 Free Relay — 1st, Will Gallagher, Ryan Sustacek, Ryan Everly, Max Lezer; 5th, Trevor Lefebvre, Drew Roberts, Nate Morgan, Gabe Dalluge; 100 Backstroke — 5th, Kam Loven; 100 Breaststroke — 1st, Ryan Marhula
4th, Cole Herman; 400 Free Relay — 1st, Will Gallagher, Kam Loven, Ryan Everly, Max Lezer, 7th Trevor Lefebvre, Drew Roberts, Cole Herman, Ryan Marhula.