The Topper girls team, sporting tutus crafted by sophomore standout Anna Wetteland, are undefeated in the 2021-22 season. The team is captained by seniors Kamaya Ronning, front left and Sylvia Holesinger, front right. Courtesy photo
Seniors Orion Henderson and Kelly Wetteland have combined for four school records this season. Both were named to the 2020-21 High School All-America team and are under consideration for the 2021-22 team. Courtesy photo
Senior diver Kyle Hatler upped his game Friday, rebreaking his own school record in Santa Fe. Courtesy photo
By STU CORLISS
Swimming Coach
Los Alamos High School
The Los Alamos Hilltoppers won both the boys and the girls team competition at the Griffin Swimming and Diving Invitational Saturday at Genoveva Chavez Community Center in Santa Fe.
The girls beat out Hope Christian, 568-335, for the team title in a twelve-team field.
The boys team won with 515 points, outpacing Farmington with 360 and Hope with 184.
High School All-America Orion Henderson led the boys team in Santa Fe with NMAA league-leading times in the 50 and 100 free. The Topper senior also posted his first sub-21 second high school relay split over 50 yards.
With two competitions left before the state swimming championships, the Hilltopper girls are undefeated in their 2021-22 campaign.
They upended 5-time defending New Mexico state champ Academy Chargers in the Barney Relays in November, then won the Bill Hudson and Cleveland Invitationals in December before heading to the Lubbock Invitational.
In a rare interstate matchup of top high school teams, the Topper girls upset the two-time defending 5A Texas state champ team, Lubbock HS Westerners, in Lubbock in early January in a 14-team field. Girls team scores at that meet: Los Alamos 522, Lubbock Coronado 501, El Paso Coronado 455, and Lubbock 440.
The Wetteland sisters, senior Kelly and sophomore Anna, paced the Topper point assault in Lubbock, winning four individual events and racing past several opponents on their relay legs. They combined to take down four LAHS team records – Kelly the 100 breast (1:03.69) and 200 IM (2:05.09); Anna – the 100 fly (57.93) and 50 free (24.02).
Frosh Sophia Pieck also topped the podium for the Toppers, touching first in the 100 free a tight three-way race.
The 400 free relay team of sophomore Emily McLaughlin, senior Kamaya Ronning, Anna Wetteland, and Kelly Wetteland capped off the Lubbock meet with a come-from-behind win, amid raucous cheering, to clinch the team title.
Orion Henderson and freshman Duncan Henderson also broke LAHS team records in Lubbock. Senior Orion re-broke his own LAHS team records in 200 IM (1:50.51) and 500 free (4:34.04), while Duncan, coming off a bout of mononucleosis, broke Ian Jaeger’s 100 backstroke team record with 52.05.
At the Griffin meet Saturday, the Topper girls went 1-2-3 in the 50 free, dominated the freestyle relays and picked up a new state qualifier in diving, 8th-grader Lacy Albright. She surprised observers with a 2nd place finish behind senior veteran Annie Beus.
Versatile sophomore Anna Wetteland upset Farmington senior Aili Talcott to take the 100 breast (1:09.03) for the Toppers in a personal best.
Team co-captain Andy Corliss won the 100 breast for the Toppers followed by teammate Wayne Williams.
Anna and Kelly Wetteland are #1 and #2 in the NMAA rankings in the 50 and 100 freestyles so far this season.
Senior diver Kyle Hatler broke his own school record with a scintillating 490.80 performance. Even with a school record effort, he only edged out fellow Topper senior Brayden Stidham by 10 points.
The Toppers face Academy and six other Albuquerque teams in the Tom Casey Memorial Challenge Jan. 29 at Academy.
They will then travel to Farmington for the District 2 championship meet, the last chance to qualify athletes for the state meet.
The state meet will be held Feb. 16 (boys) and Feb. 19 (girls) at Albuquerque Academy.
Griffin Invitational
Jan. 22; Chavez Community Center Santa Fe; SQT= new state qualifying for LAHS
Girls
200 medley relay: Farmington 2:01.15, Hope 2:05.16, Los Alamos 2:06.00 (Pieck, L Ronning, Holland, Kimball); also: 8) LAHS 2:17.80 (McLaughlin, Bathrick-Price, Bishop, Montoya), 11) LAHS C 2:28.37 (Evans, Nolen, E Javernick, Enriquez)
200 free: Reese Hinnerichs HOPE 1:55.28, Anna Wetteland LAHS 1:55.60 (SQT), Aili Talcott FARM 2:03.39; also: 5) Lena Ronning LAHS 2:08.41, 6) Kamaya Ronning LAHS 2:11.65, 10) Ada Tripp LAHS 2:28.85, 13) Sofia Enriquez LAHS 2:56.19
200 individual medley: Morgan Deale FARM 2:23.88, Sara Swinton STPI 2:24.24, Ella Johnson HOPE 2:37.11; also: Sadie Evans LAHS 2:54.77d
50: Kelly Wetteland LAHS 24.83 (SQT), Sophia Pieck LAHS 25.99 (SQT), Savannah Kimball LAHS 27.11; also: 6) Sylvia Holesinger LAHS 27.75, 7) Emily McLaughlin LAHS 27.79, 13) Ada Tripp LAHS 29.23, 16) Allie Holland LAHS 29.74, 19) Allison Amrani LAHS 30.30, 25) Alisabela Montoya LAHS 31.38, 28) Annabelle Rosette LAHS 31.62, 42) Azure Honnell LAHS 35.48
1m dive: Annie Beus LAHS 388.15, Lacy Albright LAHS 310.50 (SQT), Emery Kurth SFPR 297.60; also: 5) Marian Stradling LAHS 246.30, 10) Nina Johnson LAHS 136.65
100 fly: Lena Ronning LAHS 1:08.18, Phoebe Davis 1:15.07, Allie Holland LAHS 1:19.04; also: 4) Hannah Bishop LAHS 1:22.68
100 free: Sophia Gossum SFPR 54.15, Kelly Wetteland LAHS 54.25, Ave Marie Machtinger STPI 58.95; also: 5) Kamaya Ronning LAHS 59.74, 6) Sylvia Holesinger LAHS 1:00.44, 15) Alisabela Montoya LAHS 1:08.78, 17) Hannah Bishop LAHS 1:10.28, 20) Annabelle Rosette LAHS 1:12.45, 24) Kylie Burns LAHS 1:15.16, 26) Ella Javernick LAHS 1:16.36, 31) Azure Honnell LAHS 1:23.78
500: Reese Hinnerichs HOPE 5:18.60, Sophia Pieck LAHS 5:40.00 (SQT), Ave Marie Machtinger STPI 5:47.58; also: 7) Allison Amrani LAHS 6:59.38, 11) Sofia Enriquez LAHS 7:55.90, Ella Javernick LAHS 7:55.92
200 free relay: Los Alamos 1:44.63 (K Wetteland, K Ronning, Holesinger, A Wetteland), Hope 1:50.84, Santa Fe Prep 1:51.46; also: LAHS B 2:00.65 (A Tripp, Holland, McLaughlin, Nolen), 9) LAHS D (Burns, Evans, Bathrick-Price, Honnell), 11) LAHS C 2:15.99 (Enriquez, E Javernick, Rosette, Amrani)
100 back: Jenica Finlayson FARM 1:06.17, Elia Tyroler SNFE 1:06.94, Bella Schultz STPI 1:07.89; also: 5) Savannah Kimball LAHS 1:11.64, 9) Sadie Evans LAHS 1:17.33
100 breast: Anna Wetteland LAHS 1:09.03 (SQT), Aili Talcott FARM 1:09.69, Sara Swinton STPI 1:12.72; also: 5) Emily McLaughlin LAHS 1:19.63, 9) Sophie Bathrick-Price LAHS 1:25.81, 18) Kylie Burns LAHS 1:39.99
400 free relay: Los Alamos 3:50.57 (K Wetteland 53.94 – SQT, A Tripp, Pieck, A Wetteland), Farmington 3:58.37, St Pius 4:01.88; also: 4) LAHS B 4:03.30 (Kimball, L Ronning, K Ronning, Holesinger), 7) LAHS C 4:55.05 (Rosette, Burns, Nolen, Montoya)
Girls Team Scores: Los Alamos 568, Hope Christian 335, St Pius X 307, Farmington 236, Santa Fe Prep 205, Santa Fe 147, St. Michael’s 118, Los Lunas 66, Oak Grove 46, Piedra Vista 40, Sandia Prep 28, Miyamura 10
Boys
200 medley relay: Los Alamos 1:42.21 (D Henderson, Williams, Corliss, O Henderson), Santa Fe 1:45.81, Farmington 1:52.05; also: 7) LAHS B 2:09.95 (S Javernick, Berninger, Price, Shrader), 12) LAHS C 2:25.80 (J Kerstiens, Tripp, Johnson, Stradling)
200 free: Grady Whitson STPI 1:51.19, Daschel Turner SNFE 1:52.69, Sam Dearing FARM 1:53.30; also: 6) Caleb Kerstiens LAHS 2:01.65, 7) William Price LAHS 2:15.36, 10) Jin Kim LAHS 2:18.63, 11) Seth Javernick LAHS 2:23.26, 17) Jace Kerstiens LAHS 2:47.50
200 individual medley: Duncan Henderson LAHS 2:04.42, Hayden Sutton LAHS 2:12.89 (SQT), Nikolai Nelson LAHS 2:16.05
50: Orion Henderson LAHS 21.70, Leo Kim STPI 22.62, Zenon McCluhan FARM 22.95; also: 6) Wayne Williams LAHS 23.95, 19) Seth Javernick LAHS 27.98, 23) Liam Stradling LAHS 28.87, 24) Avery Johnson LAHS 28.94, 27) William Berninger LAHS 29.16, 30) Gavin Shrader LAJHS 29.34, 42) Tyghe Tripp LAHS 33.58
1m dive: Kyle Hatler LAHS 490.80 (new Los Alamos HS school record), Brayden Stidham LAHS 480.90, Michael Vimont SFPR 406.15, Elijah Boyd SFPR 266.95
100 fly: Ethan Manske STMI 52.42, Andy Corliss LAHS 54.17, Grady Whitson STPI 56.54; also: 5) Nikolai Nelson LAHS 59.36, 6) Hayden Sutton LAHS 59.57
100 free: Orion Henderson LAHS 46.96, Nicholas Stadick SNFE 49.24, Duncan Henderson LAHS 49.44 (SQT); also: 8) Caleb Kerstiens LAHS 54.31, William Price LAHS 59.66, 13) Jin Kim LAHS 1:02.49, 19) Avery Johnson LAHS 1:06.30, 21) Gavin Shrader LAHS 1:08.37, 22) Liam Stradling LAHS 1:09.45
500: Henry Lyons SNFE 5:06.04, Aaron Sandoval HOPE 5:22.78, Grant Garcia STMI 5:49.97; also: 6) Jace Kerstiens LAHS 7:48.58
200 free relay: Los Alamos 1:30.16 (Corliss 22.74 SQT, Williams, Sutton, O Henderson), Santa Fe 1:31.99, Farmington 1:36.52; also: 7) LAHS B 1:47.93 (Nelson, Shrader, Kim, C Kerstiens), 10) LAHS C 2:00.03 (Johnson, J Kerstiens, Berninger, Stradling)
100 back: Nick Stadick SNFE 58.52, Caleb Allred FARM 1:07.13, Stefan Sabo STMI 1:09.33
100 breast: Andy Corliss LAHS 1:02.97, Wayne Williams LAHS 1:09.16, Andres Burkhardt VALE 1:13.27; also: 9) William Berninger LAHS 1:20.90, 13) Tyghe Tripp LAHS 1:35.09
400 free relay: Farmington 3:28.68,Los Alamos 3:30.27 (Sutton, Nelson, C Kerstiens, D Henderson), LAHS B 4:18.40 (Kim, T Tripp, S Javernick, Price)
Boys Team scores: Los Alamos 515, Farmington 360, Hope Christian 184, Santa Fe 181, St. Michael’s 162, St Pius X 162, Santa Fe Prep 112, Los Lunas 79, Miyamura 42, Piedra Vista 30, Valencia 18, Capitol 6