Norman North rebounds to win state title
EDMOND — Norman North has finally moved on from last year’s mistake, and it took a celebration in the pool.
The Timberwolves won the Class 6A boys state championship Saturday night, edging Jenks 431413 in at Edmond Schools Aquatic Center to atone for a disqualification last year that left them two points shy of a title.
And they got to celebrate with their tradition of throwing the coaching staff in the pool and jumping in with the trophy.
“I don’t think there could have been another way to move past this,” Norman North’s Alex Stamatin said.
The title is the Timberwolves’ fourth in six years. But it could have been their fifth, had they not been disqualified for a false state in the 400-freestyle relay during last season’s prelims.
This time, Norman North won that event and used a huge win in the 200-yard freestyle relay. It swam in 1:25.05, passing Jenks’ 2001 state record of 1:26.08.
“Last year was rough,” Norman North coach Kent Nicholson said. “It’s just been a battle since then trying to get back here and do it again. And it was tight, so there was a lot of stress in the meet.”
Norman North also won the 200-yard medley relay.
But it was the trio of stars that led the Timberwolves.
Individually, Jonathan Tang won the 200-yard freestyle and finished second in the 100-yard freestyle. Freshman Aiden Hayes won the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard butterfly. Stamatin finished second in the 200-yard IM and won the 100-yard breaststroke.
Nate McMillen also pitched in when he won the 100-yard backstroke.
That was all part of a safe, but aggressive plan.
Norman North’s swimmers had not forgotten last year’s mistake. Some wore tank tops with the rule they broke printed on the back and a picture of the incident on the front, a move which Stamatin admitted was “childish.”
Shirts aside, Norman North still learned from the mistake, cautiously approaching the day in the pool.
“We came into this meet with the mentality that we need to be safe, but we need to go fast,” Stamatin said. “It’s nerve-wracking being up on the blocks and knowing what happened last year could happen this year. It’s scary having to worry about that.
“But this is the only way to go out.”