Cedarburg girls swimming team eyes podium finish
Three storylines to watch
Going for three: Cedarburg has come up short of the state championship, but many programs would love to be in its position. The Bulldogs have been the Division 1 runner up the past two seasons. The potential is there for another podium finish this year. The team lost standout Erika Remington to graduation but returns almost everyone else.
Sprint to the finish: What will be the state's most competitive events? It could be the 50- and 100-yard freestyles. Both events return seven of the top 10 finishers in Division 1.
Back for more: It isn't often that the area's top performer is a sophomore, but that is what we had in Brookfield East's Reilly Tiltmann last season. She's the defending state champion in the 100 and 200 freestyle and should have a chance to earn a couple of medals, if not titles, in the relays.
Athletes to watch
Division 1
Abby Carlson, jr., Waukesha South/ Mukwonago: A state qualifier in her first two seasons, Carlson is the swimmer to watch in the 500 free. She was fifth as a freshman. Last season took second and was just one of two athletes in either division to break the 5-minute mark (4:58.63).
Brigid Gwidt, jr., Cedarburg: A state champion in the 400 free relay as a freshman, Gwidt went on to improve her performances in her individual events at state. She was third in the 100 breaststroke (1:03.32) after taking seventh as a freshman and was 10th in the 200 IM (2:07.55), one spot better than where she finished the previous year.
Olivia Meinberg, sr., Hartford/ Slinger: The fourth-place finisher in the 50 free and 100 free last season, Meinberg also medaled in the 50 free (fifth) as a sophomore. She was a state qualifier in the 200 individual medley and 100 backstroke as a freshman.
Maya Novack, sr., Cedarburg: A state champion in the 200 medley relay as a freshman and the 400 free relay as a sophomore, Novack finished third in the 50 and 100 free last season. Those were her first individual medals at state.
Lexi Penney, sr., Brookfield East: A state gymnastics champion in the balance beam as a freshman, Penney enjoyed her finest season in the pool in 2018. She qualified for her first state meet and with a sixth-place finish is the area's top returner in the event.
Cassie Stegner, sr., Menomonee Falls/Sussex Hamilton: The threetime state champion is the defending champ in the 200 freestyle was the runner-up in the 100 free last season. She won both titles as a sophomore.
Sydney Stoll, jr., Arrowhead: A twotime qualifier in the 500 free, Stoll is the No. 2 returner in the event behind Carlson. She also has state appearances in other events, taking 12th in the 200 individual medley as a sophomore and 13th in the 200 free as a freshman.
Reilly Tiltmann, jr., Brookfield East: Last season's area swimmer of the year won state titles in the 100 backstroke (54.62) and 100 butterfly (54.56) with times that ranked ninth and seventh, respectively, all-time at the state meet.
Emmaleigh Zietlow, jr., Arrowhead: The two-year state qualifier is the No. 2 competitor back into the 200 free thanks to a fourth-place finish in 1:52.86 and is the No. 3 returner in the 500 free (5:05.92).
Division 2
Emma Harris, sr., Whitefish Bay: The 100 fly is wide open after the top four finishers of 2018 graduated. Harris took sixth last year (58.76) and was eighth in the 100 back (59.84).
Hannah Kujawa, sr., Greendale: She is the top returner in the 50 freestyle by virtue of her second-place finish last season. She also medaled twice in relays last season.
Anna Oleniczak, sr., New Berlin Eisenhower: A two-time medalist in the 200 IM, Oleniczak took second last season in 2:09.06. She also had top-10 state finishes in the 100 back (seventh as a junior) and 100 breaststroke (ninth as a sophomore).
Bella Smith, jr., Whitnall: The standout diver was the state runner-up last season and the fourth-place finisher as a freshman. She was just 16.05 points behind defending champion Trinity McNall of Monona Grove last year.